Southern Nevada Northern Arizona LSAMP

University Of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas NV

Investigators

Abstract

The LSAMP Program priorities are to (a) increase individual student retention and progression to baccalaureate degrees for underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, (b) enable successful transfer of underrepresented students from 2-year to 4-yearinstitutions in STEM programs (c) increase access to high quality undergraduate research experiences, and (d) facilitate seamless transition of underrepresented students into STEM graduate programs. Southern Nevada Northern Arizona LSAMP (SNNA-LSAMP) is an alliance of higher education institutions that includes research universities (University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and Northern Arizona University) and community colleges (College of Southern Nevada and Coconino Community College) in the Lower Colorado River Basin. SNNA-LSAMP's goal is, within five years, to increase substantially the number of underrepresented minority (URM) students who earn science, technology, engineering, and technology (STEM) baccalaureate degrees at alliance institutions. SNNA-LSAMP will provide services and activities that bolster the academic performance and persistence and graduation rates of URM STEM students at alliance institutions. Specifically, SNNA-LSAMP will provide these students with intensive, near-peer mentoring; out-of-class STEM activities that enhance disciplinary socialization; undergraduate research opportunities; internships; priority registration for enrollment in STEM courses; and priority access to all academic support services provided on alliance campuses. Furthermore, SNNA-LSAMP will facilitate the smooth transitions for participants transferring from its community colleges to its universities, as well as provide upper-division participants with step-by-step guidance through the process of applying to graduate school. SNNA-LSAMP will improve the STEM classroom experience for URM students by providing workshops that enhance the multicultural competence of professors and instructors at alliance institutions. Consequently, SNNA-LSAMP will be a vital component of efforts to diversify and significantly expand the pool of highly qualified STEM workers in southern Nevada and northern Arizona, accelerating the region's ongoing transformation into fertile ground for STEM startups and will be an attractive destination for established STEM-based businesses seeking to relocate.