The South East Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate

University Of Florida, Gainesville FL

Investigators

Abstract

The proposed SEAGEP Program includes The University of Florida (UF) as lead institution and two primary partners . Clemson University and The University of South Carolina. SEAGEP unites three Research Extensive institutions that combined offer PhD degrees in over 50 STEM fields offering unparalleled opportunities for graduate studies. In 2002, the total STEM graduate enrollment at these institutions was over 400. Secondary partners are the Florida-Georgia Louis B. Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (FGLSAMP), the South Carolina Louis B. Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (SCAMP) and the University of the U.S. Virgin Islands. SEAGEP will also provide international opportunities for students through a collaboration with the Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions (LACCEI) and other Latin American and worldwide projects. SEAGEP will organize and deliver a comprehensive program that successfully guides STEM graduate students from underrepresented groups toward doctoral degree completion and entry into academic careers. The components of the program will be guided by the design principles suggested by the Building Engineering & Science Talent organization and will include targeted recruitment activities, bridging activities that prepare students for the graduate school experience, retention activities that include faculty and peer mentoring, professional preparation activities for entry into academic careers, and post doctoral opportunities. The objectives of the program are to: Increase the number of minority STEM PhD students from underrepresented groups and prepare them for successful entry into productive faculty careers, Develop synergistic partner relationships for institutionalizing changes that will continue to promote diversity in STEM graduate education Increase the pool of undergraduates from underrepresented groups who are prepared for entry into graduate STEM fields, Develop a model to evaluate the effectiveness of the partnership. The SEAGEP program will be evaluated throughout the five years of the program- using both qualitative and quantitative methods, including formative evaluation of the program activities as they are implemented, as well as summative program impact evaluation. The intellectual merit of SEAGEP is evident in that this Alliance includes a diverse team well qualified to serve as PIs and facilitators of the activities designed to address the preparation of doctoral students in creative and innovative ways, thereby increasing the numbers of underrepresented scholars that earn doctoral degrees in STEM disciplines and enter the professoriate. SEAGEP has been developed from a thorough understanding of the challenges inherent in this mission as reported in the literature. Each partner has unique strengths to contribute and benefits to realize. Through this synergy, SEAGEP will result in national models for cultural and institutional change, and partnership effectiveness. The Mission of SEAGEP is to create a regional partnership for enhancing diversity in higher education by developing innovative and sustainable graduate education programs to prepare and train students to enter STEM fields and to foster models of institutional cultural change. When realized, it will provide a direct impact by increasing the number of minority PhDs and will also result in broader impacts by establishing a model partnership and proven strategies that will be widely disseminated. SEAGEP will contribute to the development of a more inclusive, skilled, and versatile technical talent pool, strengthening the diversity of the Nation.s workforce, particularly academia, thereby contributing to the fields that are critical to the Nation.s economic strength, national security, and quality of life.