ASPIRE to Careers in Science

Molloy University, Rockville Centre NY

Investigators

Abstract

The Alumni, Students, Professors, Internships, Research, Enrichment (ASPIRE) to Careers in Science project at Molloy College will support 20 academically talented students with financial need to pursue a course of study in biology or earth and environmental sciences and earn undergraduate degrees in these scientific disciplines. Program activities include a freshman learning community, three-tiered (alumni, student, professor) mentoring, internships, curriculum-embedded research, and faculty-sponsored research. These activities are expected to increase retention and academic perseverance of ASPIRE scholars, will generate enthusiasm and excitement for science and will encourage serious consideration for pursuing graduate study in science or entry into the workforce in a STEM position. These outcomes could be readily adopted by other Molloy STEM departments as well as by other colleges and universities as best practices. The ASPIRE program will recruit two consecutive cohorts of first year students and support them for four years. It is expected that a first-year retention rate of 90% or greater and a graduation rate of 80% or greater of the original cohort students will be achieved. Extensive formative and summative assessment and evaluation will monitor the effectiveness of the ASPIRE to Careers in Science project. These data will provide comparative information on the academic impact of faculty-sponsored student research and curriculum-based hypothesis-driven research on student-learning outcomes and on the persistence of students to careers in STEM disciplines. Through workshops, faculty will be given the opportunity to improve their skills in effective training methods for early research involvement by STEM students. They will also have the chance to implement curriculum changes that are engaging for entry level students. Preliminary data will be generated on the impact of each mentoring relationship, and the comprehensive multi-tier system through interviews, focus groups and program evaluation. This program will catalyze the growth in STEM education at Molloy well beyond the funding period and provide exciting opportunities in STEM to the diverse local and regional student population.  This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.