Cultivating Academic Success in Computing

Long Island University, Greenvale NY

Investigators

Abstract

This project will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Long Island University (LIU) in Brooklyn, New York. Over its six-year duration, this project will fund scholarships to 13 unique full-time students who are pursuing bachelor’s degrees in Computer Science. Three cohorts of students will receive up to four years of scholarships. Scholarship recipients, along with other students in their cohort, will be offered comprehensive mentoring and experiential learning plans involving industry partners, all with the aim of helping students build a STEM identity and improve their cohesion to the discipline and within professional networks. The project will help LIU and similar urban educational institutions better understand and implement effective support strategies for talented, low-income Computer Science students. The overall goal of this project is to increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. It aims to build and improve the capacity of the LIU Brooklyn department of Computer Science to serve low-income students in its computing programs, and specifically to increase retention and graduation rates among students who qualify for Pell grants. Challenges leading to low Computer Science graduation rates in this population include financial strain, but also the lack of cohesion that first-generation students and students from under-represented groups often feel with the institution, the discipline, and professional networks. The project will provide comprehensive, multidimensional mentoring involving traditional campus advising, computer science faculty, industry partners, and near-peer mentors. It aims to help students develop their STEM identity, access experiential learning and research opportunities, and ultimately achieve meaningful placement in the computing industry or graduate school. The project expects to improve the four-year graduation rate for all Pell-eligible computer science majors (not just those receiving NSF scholarships), and to build and sustain LIU’s capacity to support future students. The project includes a comprehensive evaluation plan that builds on LIU’s assessment tools and expertise, and will advance knowledge about how LIU Brooklyn and similar urban educational institutions can more effectively support academically talented, low-income STEM students. This project is funded by NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in STEM fields. It also aims to improve the education of future STEM workers, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income 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.