Arkansas Alliance for Minority Participation (ARK-LSAMP) in STEM Careers - New Alliance

University Of Arkansas At Pine Bluff, Pine Bluff AR

Investigators

Abstract

Arkansas Alliance for Minority Participation (ARLSAMP) in STEM Careers Executive Summary (Intellectual Merit and Broader Impact) The Arkansas Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (ARLSAMP) is a collaborative alliance of nine institutions, including two Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) and two two-year institutions, which has a goal of increasing the pool of baccalaureate, masters, and doctoral degree graduates in STEM disciplines in Arkansas? workforce. Through ARLSAMP, for the first time, there is an assembly and networking of a representative number of public and private institutions mobilized by the embracement of a common need to produce more well-qualified STEM graduates; guided by a shared vision to help make Arkansas, the region, and the nation a more competitive force in the sciences. The activities of the alliance will address recruitment (both from secondary schools and from two-year colleges). A Pre-Freshmen an ARLSAMP Summer Institute will help to prepare first semester freshmen to successfully navigate the transition to college level coursework. A review of bottleneck courses will result in interventions to prevent students from being removed from the STEM pipeline at these critical points. Summer and academic year research in faculty laboratories will provide extracurricular involvement in research at the forefront of STEM. Mentoring programs will provide for peer mentoring (upper-level student to lower-level student) as well as faculty mentoring. A STEM seminar series will provide training in research ethics, as well as information on STEM careers, STEM in society, and preparation for Graduate School. Alliance-wide and inter-institutional conferences and activities will foster greater collaborative research among faculty across institutions. Intellectual Merit: This proposal will build upon and add to the knowledge base of best practices for increasing the number of underrepresented minorities entering, succeeding in, and completing undergraduate degrees in STEM disciplines with the ability and desire to pursue advanced degrees within these disciplines. These will include practices for recruiting students to STEM, retaining students in STEM, and preparing them for pursuing advanced STEM degrees. Broader Impacts: The increase in the number of underrepresented students receiving baccalaureate degrees in STEM will provide an enhanced workforce for the state of Arkansas. Those continuing to obtain graduate degrees will increase the pool of students going into leadership and faculty positions in STEM areas. The research experiences of the students will increase the number of entrepreneurial ventures in STEM areas. Requirements for students and faculty mentors to visit other alliance institutions will bring increases in cross institutional collaborations among faculty and researchers. The use of ARLSAMP student scholars in public outreach and recruiting to K-12 schools will provide a positive feedback loop to increase the number of students who pursue STEM degrees when they get to college.