LSAMP Pacific Alliance Phase II

University Of Alaska Anchorage Campus, Anchorage AK

Investigators

Abstract

Building a National Model for Excellence in Native American Higher Education Programs LSAMP Pacific Alliance University of Alaska Anchorage The Pacific Alliance Universities University of Alaska Anchorage University of Alaska Fairbanks University of Hawai'i Manoa University of Washington Alaska Native Civil Engineering graduates Andy White and Michael Nabers helped architects and engineers to design a new 12,000 square foot building on the UAA campus to house the Pacific Alliance. Pacific Alliance Recruitment, Retention and Placement Strategies Pre-College program: empowerment & excitement about careers in engineering and science computer building with trig, physics & chemistry High School to University Bridge: Summer experiences for entering freshman Internships with Calculus Prep Graduate School Peer mentoring & co-enrollment Presentations and technical papers Organized study groups Collaborative experiences Faculty cross-cultural training Faculty mentoring Internships National & international conferences Grant writing experience Graduate research and undergraduate research Workshop for Teaching Assistant (TA) instruction Faculty Mentoring Peer Mentoring Supporting community Professional mentoring Graduate student mentoring Research Undergraduate Retention Learning Community Co-enrollment Team building Group study Advising Scholarships Internships Overview Our objective is to effect a systemic change in the hiring patterns of Indigenous Americans in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by increasing the number of individuals on a career path to leadership within STEM fields. We will double the 2005 Indigenous STEM graduation rate over the next 5 years. Intellectual merit: Beginning with high school juniors, structured programs lead students each step of the way through high school, into the undergraduate years, on to graduate school, and into professional life. At each level the goal is to create empowerment and excitement around engineering and science. We have doubled the Alliance wide Indigenous STEM graduation rate from 46 students in 2000 to 95 during the last academic year. Enrollments of Indigenous students in STEM disciplines have climbed from 344 students during the 2001- 2002 academic year to 795 during 2004-2005. We have leveraged $3.2 million in NSF funding with contributions of approximately $11 million dollars from our many partners. Broader Impact: Our students are among the poorest people in the nation. The parents of some of our Alaska Native students were raised on the tundra as nomads and are the first generation of people in their families to ever use money. Indigenous students have historically come to our Universities under-prepared in math and science. We would do years of remedial work at the University before these students were able to successfully complete a University level course. In many of the high schools with high populations of Native students, coursework was not available that would foster success in STEM degree programs. We are now bringing Indigenous people who are prepared in math and science to Alliance Universities in numbers that are unprecedented at our institutions. They are graduating and moving on to graduate schools. At UAA, the University is in construction phase for a 12,000 square foot building to house the Pacific Alliance and the Indigenous Peoples Institute for Engineering and Science Education. The new Institute will be a focal point as our programs are replicated across the nation. We are having a profound and positive impact on the students, their families, and their communities that will endure for generations.