CUE-P: Ohio Pathways to Undergraduate Computing Success (OPUCS)

随着美国对计算机专业人员的需求持续增长，开发能够增加在计算领域完成学士学位的学生数量的项目是至关重要的。因为与一般人群相比，女性和来自历史上代表性不足的群体的学生的数量很低，所以招募和留住这些学生进入计算机专业将有助于填补日益增长的劳动力需求。在这个为期五年的项目中，俄亥俄州的15所高等教育机构将联合起来，形成俄亥俄州大学生计算机成功之路（OPUCS）项目。这个由九所四年制大学和六所两年制大学组成的联盟将设计转学途径，以增加完成计算机科学学士学位的学生人数，重点是支持女性学生。该项目为来自不同背景的学生准备高薪职位，从而满足雇主的需求，并为毕业生及其家庭的社会流动性做出贡献，从而造福社会。OPUCS还将向参与该联盟的学术机构的计算机女学生提供和研究创新结构支助的影响。OPUCS项目的目标是：(1)建立一个由9个四年制独立机构、6个两年制社区学院和15个工业合作伙伴组成的全州联盟；(2)为学生从两年制大学到四年制大学的计算机科学学士学位制定明确的课程路径；（三）增加两年制大学转学到四年制大学并在转学后两年内完成学士学位的学生人数；(4)增加计算机专业女生转校生的数量；(5)增加在我们的行业合作伙伴完成实习的女性人数；(6)在75%的联盟机构中建立计算机协会的计算机女性理事会（ACM-W）分会。为了完成这些目标，项目团队将(1)为所有OPUCS机构的计算机科学计划的头两年制定商定的课程；(2)将该课程作为制定正式衔接协议的基础；(3)为学术顾问提供具体、详细和持续的培训，使学生在四年内有一个有计划的完成学位的途径；(4)提供教师发展培训，以提高整个联合体的教学质量；(5)培训招生顾问，使他们准备好与未来的学生谈论计算机科学方面的机会；(6)根据国家妇女信息技术中心（NCWIT）行之有效的策略，提供量身定制的招聘材料。对知识的贡献将来自对两个研究问题的调查：(1)在多大程度上建立一个明确的学术途径，并在参与该途径的机构之间提供一个熟悉的社会/专业支持网络，导致整个俄亥俄州学习和完成高等计算机学位的女性人数增加？(2) OPUCS联盟的哪些活动被攻读计算机学位的女性认为最有影响力？该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

As the demand for computing professionals in the United States continues to grow, it is critical to develop programs that will increase the number of students who complete bachelor’s degrees in computational fields. Because the number of women and students from historically underrepresented groups in computing is low as compared to the general population, recruitment and retention of these students into computing majors will help to fill the growing workforce needs. Over the course of this five-year project, fifteen institutions of higher education in Ohio will join together to form the Ohio Pathways to Undergraduate Computing Success (OPUCS) project. This consortium of nine four-year and six two-year institutions will devise transfer pathways that will increase the number of students who complete their Bachelor of Science degrees in computer science with a focus on supporting women students. This project benefits society by preparing students from diverse backgrounds for high-paying positions, thus meeting the needs of employers and contributing to social mobility for graduates and their families. OPUCS will also provide and study the impact of innovative structural support to women computing students at the academic institutions involved in the consortium.The OPUCS project objectives are to (1) establish a statewide consortium of nine four-year independent institutions, six two-year community colleges, and 15 industrial partners; (2) develop clearly articulated curricular pathways for students from two-year institutions to computer science bachelor degree completion at a four-year institution; (3) increase the number of students who transfer from two-year to four-year institutions and to complete their bachelor degrees within two years of transfer; (4) increase the number of women transfer students studying computing; (5) increase the number of women who complete internships with our industrial partners; and (6) establish an Association for Computing Machinery’s Council on Women in Computing (ACM-W) chapter at 75% of the consortium institutions. To complete these objectives, the project team will (1) develop an agreed-upon curriculum for the first two years of a computer science program among all OPUCS institutions; (2) use that curriculum as the basis for development of formal articulation agreements; (3) provide specific, detailed, and ongoing training to academic advisors so that students have a planned pathway for degree completion in four years; (4) provide faculty development training to improve the quality of instruction across the consortium; (5) train admission counselors so they are prepared to talk with prospective students about opportunities in computer science; and (6) provide tailored recruitment materials based on proven strategies from the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT). Contributions to knowledge will come from investigation into two research questions: (1) To what extent does building a clear academic pathway and offering a familiar social/professional support network among the institutions involved in that pathway lead to an increase in the number of women studying and completing post-secondary computing degrees across Ohio? and (2) Which activities of the OPUCS consortium are perceived as most impactful by women pursuing computing degrees?This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.