DCL: HBCU Conference Proposal: A National Symposium to Build Research Capacity at Historically Black Colleges and Universities through Collaborations with STEM Advocates and Practi

Quality Education For Minorities Network, Washington DC

Investigators

Abstract

The Historically Black College and University (HBCU) Research Action and Practice (RAP) Symposium will elevate research and institutional partnernships to advance STEM, and build collaborations with stakeholders, giving researchers at HBCUs greater leverage to contribute to national efforts that require STEM input. Though a small segment of our Nation's colleges, HBCUs disproportionately graduate African American STEM degree recipients. The conference's collaboration and dissemination strategies will catalyze HBCU researchers and stakeholders to support achievement of the Nation's goals of filling needed STEM expertise in the labor market and diversifying the STEM workforce. An expected outcome of the Symposium activities is an action plan that will share what works in building a community of practice between HBCU researchers and STEM stakeholders. As the U.S. faces a shortage of experts to fill projected STEM workforce needs, Historically Black Colleges and Universities are prime institutions to seriously be considered as a source of STEM expertise, especially for students and researchers that have been traditionally under-involved in STEM. The HBCU Research Action and Practice (RAP) Symposium seeks to highlight the capacity of HBCUs to increasingly contribute to the scientific research enterprise. The objectives of the HBCU RAP Symposium is to build the research capacity of HBCUs through: 1) hosting a workshop to increase the collaborative energy between HBCU researchers, administrators and a cross-section of stakeholders, and increase awareness of NSF's 300 programs to HBCUs, 2) convening a research forum to elevate and translate research led by HBCUs in a setting that strategically positions it to advance STEM action and practice and 3) building a community of practice to cultivate relationships so that HBCU researchers, administrators, and STEM supporters will develop collaborations to advance STEM research at HBCUs eventually increasing institutional research capacity. 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.