STEM Scholars Program

Santa Monica College, Santa Monica CA

Investigators

Abstract

Santa Monica College's (SMC) STEM Scholars program will investigate the impact of scholarship assistance and targeted interventions both in and out of the classroom to improve student success in STEM among community college students. Many of these students are the first in their family to attend college and represent demographic groups traditionally underrepresented in STEM disciplines. These interventions will bridge the academic curriculum with comprehensive student support services and will include STEM-focused counseling and career planning sessions, a STEM speaker series, STEM skill building workshops, and applied learning activities, including research opportunities with local university and industry partners. This project will provide additional support in math, which is often the primary barrier to success in STEM for community college students, many of whom enter underprepared in math. The STEM Scholars program evaluation plan includes both formative and summative components that will assess the effectiveness of the project in improving student outcomes, as well as measuring the institution's capacity to support student success. In collaboration with SMC's Office of Institutional Research, the formative component will assess the establishment of a program database to evaluate applications, development of marketing materials, initiation of classroom presentations, distribution of scholarship funding, and facilitation of cohort activities. The summative component will assess the overall impact of this project on both students and the institution and will focus on the project's four primary objectives and how the project has helped achieve the S-STEM Program Goals.