Building Capacity: Building Capacity of Women in STEM

Mount Saint Mary'S University, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Abstract

The Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions Program (HSI Program) aims to enhance undergraduate STEM education and build capacity at HSIs. Projects supported by the HSI Program will also generate new knowledge about how to achieve these aims. This project at Mount Saint Mary's University will advance the aims of the HSI Program by increasing retention in STEM, and preparing students for research and other opportunities in STEM. Through this project, Mount Saint Mary's University aims to improve the quality of STEM education for its undergraduate students, the majority of whom are Hispanic women. The purpose of this project is three-fold: 1) increase student interest, motivation, and retention in STEM; 2) prepare students for external research opportunities, internships, and future employment opportunities in STEM; and 3) increase student interest in conducting STEM research and attending graduate school. Aligned with this purpose, the project seeks to achieve four outcomes: 1) increased satisfactory completion of undergraduate STEM major courses; 2) increased undergraduate student retention in STEM majors; 3) increased undergraduate participation in research; and 4) increases in the number of STEM graduates who enter graduate school or are employed in STEM fields. By increasing women and Hispanic representation in graduate school and the STEM workforce, the project can contribute to increased diversity and equity in STEM fields. The project plans to improve undergraduate STEM education by: 1) revising biology, chemistry, and mathematics courses; 2) providing academic support for students in STEM major courses; 3) offering summer programs that prepare students for collegiate STEM courses and future research opportunities; 4) providing students with peer and faculty mentoring support; and 5) supporting research and internship experiences. The University will specifically examine the effect that peer mentoring has on student retention. Although peer mentoring has been examined by other researchers, this project's unique combination of women and Hispanic students, and multi-year mentoring will provide important new information. Both qualitative and quantitative data will be collected. The project will determine the extent to which the participants met the project goals as well as operational objectives. The program will add to the body of knowledge on best practices to engage undergraduate STEM students at both Hispanic-serving institutions and institutions that have large populations of female students. 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.