Tribal College Faculty Professional Development Workshop

University Of Montana, Missoula MT

Investigators

Abstract

A goal of the Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) is to increase the STEM instructional and research capacities of specific institutions of higher education that serve the Nation's indigenous students. Expanding the STEM curricular offerings at these institutions expands the opportunities of their students to pursue challenging, rewarding careers in STEM fields, provides for research studies in areas that may be culturally significant, and encourages a community and generational appreciation for science and mathematics education. The Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) program funds research and the development, implementation, and investigation of models to transform the dissertation phase of doctoral education, postdoctoral training and/or faculty advancement of historically underrepresented minorities (URMs) in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and/or STEM education research. The focus of the proposal from the University of Montana (UM) is on developing faculty at tribal institutions, so they too will be able to support the needs of their students. In addition, UM continues to build and strengthen collaborative efforts with the Montana tribal colleges, which could provide more opportunities for tribal students to do research at UM. The University of Montana will expand upon a successful model to provide tribal college faculty collaboration with UM researchers and new research opportunities. Tribal college (TC) faculty will be provided field research experience to gain exposure to various research opportunities at the Flathead Lake Biological Station while investigating lab research practices that are appropriate for the TC's campus lab infrastructures, the needs of their students, and the knowledge, skills, and abilities of the TC faculty members. The research group model will continue to strengthen a faculty network as TC faculty learn from each other and begin establishing collaborations with UM faculty for future possible research discussion. The workshop will have TC faculty come to the UM campus and the FLBS for one week during the summer of 2018, have two follow up meetings during the subsequent fall and spring semesters, and participate in a specialized program for experienced TC faculty in the summer of 2019. A parallel track will be developed and provided for new TC faculty in the summer of 2019.