EAGER: Student-Driven Internship Opportunities in the Atmospheric Sciences: Breaking Barriers to Diversity, Inclusion, and Equal Access

University Of Puerto Rico Mayaguez, Mayaguez PR

Investigators

Abstract

This grant addresses the need for increasing the levels of representation and retention of racial and ethnic minorities in the Atmospheric Sciences, focusing on underrepresented minority students at Hispanic Serving Institutions. It employs a novel approach to increasing the appeal of Atmospheric Science and Meteorology programs, the retention of students, and the probability of success after graduation, through the implementation of an internship program driven by student needs and input. A survey of the students’ interests, goals, and aspirations will guide the creation of new internship spaces tailored to the participants. The full implementation of the internships will result in a much better understanding of every aspect of the model and allow for the fine tuning of this new system. Informed by student needs, such a system has the potential to complement and perhaps replace some of the existing ways of providing enriching and motivating internship opportunities. It is expected that the internships themselves will constitute an important recruitment tool to attract and retain larger numbers of underrepresented minorities into the Geosciences. The data collected from participation and outcome statistics, combined with exit interviews would guide future implementations of this model in and outside the initial scope of the Atmospheric Sciences. This data together with follow-up contacts with the various participant cohorts may reveal important lessons that could help better understand the nature of the barriers and systemic obstacles that disproportionately affect underrepresented groups in the Geosciences. Lessons learned can be used to apply the model more widely across academic fields and student populations. This grant supports a novel approach to increasing the appeal of Atmospheric Science and Meteorology programs, the retention of students, and the probability of success after graduation, through the implementation of an internship program driven by student needs and input. A survey of the students’ interests, goals, and aspirations will guide the creation of new internship spaces tailored to the participants. The full implementation of the internships will result in a much better understanding of every aspect of the model and allow for the fine tuning of this new system. Informed by student needs, such a system has the potential to complement and perhaps replace some of the existing ways of providing enriching and motivating internship opportunities. It is expected that the internships themselves will constitute an important recruitment tool to attract and retain larger numbers of underrepresented minorities into the Geosciences. The student-driven model begins the process by surveying and encouraging students to think about the possibility of going on an internship and expressing their personal interests and aspirations in the field. With this knowledge, the project administrators will approach a wide range of prospective partners in the weather, water, and climate enterprise and research complex, to encourage them to open spaces where these students can provide a needed service while acquiring precious experience, make networking connections, and increase their self-confidence and sense of belonging. During this time, the host partner has the added benefit of getting to know and evaluate these students for future employment opportunities. At the end of the summer internship period students will be expected to prepare a presentation describing their internship project. Students will also be encouraged to develop their summer work into a poster presentation that could be presented at the following Annual Meeting of the American Meteorological Society or other relevant conference. 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.