Implementation Project: STEM Academy for Research and Entrepreneurship

University Of Arkansas At Pine Bluff, Pine Bluff AR

Investigators

Abstract

Implementation Projects in the Historically Black Colleges and Universities - Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP) provide support to design, implement, study, and assess comprehensive institutional efforts to increase the numbers of students and the quality of their preparation by strengthening science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and research. This implementation project at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) seeks to enhance the capacity of the university’s STEM faculty in high impact practices that engage students and leverage the institution’s resources for sustained collaboration. Specifically, the project aims to establish a STEM Academy for Research and Entrepreneurship. It is anticipated that students who participate in the proposed activities will be well-suited to attend graduate school and/or enter the STEM Entrepreneurship workforce. The UAPB STEM Academy for Research and Entrepreneurship integrates science and business disciplines to create a synergistic approach to solving today’s society of complex problems by utilizing technology at the forefront. The goal of the project is to fast-track the number of STEM graduates who attend graduate school or enter STEM entrepreneurship and thereby increase the number of STEM researchers and the talented graduates who engage in STEM entrepreneurial leadership. The overall goal of the project is anchored to three objectives: (1) increase in the graduation rate of STEM four-year graduates, (2) increase the rate of entry to graduate school, and (3) increase the number of students who enter entrepreneurial endeavors. The attainment of the measurable objectives is organized on the principles of socialization theory and social learning where human behaviors and mindset develop based on ideas, beliefs, values, and social experiences transmitted by informal and formal groups of reference (family, neighborhood, friends, schools) surrounding the individuals. This project is jointly funded by the Historically Black Colleges and Universities - Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP) and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). 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.