BPC-DP: Community Outreach Opportunities with Research in Data Science (COORDS)

Loyola University Of Chicago, Health Sciences Campus, Maywood IL

Investigators

Abstract

This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2). To better prepare a data-savvy workforce, universities are increasingly incorporating principles of data science throughout STEM curricula. Emerging teaching practices that encourage students to take a genuine interest in the subject matter and understand the material on a level where they can problem solve can be particularly effective for broadening participation in computing. This partnership between Loyola University, Arrupe College, and the Chicago youth learning organization, MAPSCorps aims to design a data science pathway in Chicago for scholars from underrepresented groups. Through research, training, and mentorship opportunities, undergraduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and faculty will address challenging data science research questions while mentoring the next cohort of scholars. Incorporating principles of computational/data science in STEM curriculums has become more prevalent. Through the programming at the Institute for Racial Justice (IRJ) at Loyola University Chicago, students will be immersed in hands-on experiences throughout the calendar year as well as complemented by an intensive undergraduate summer internship program. As part of IRJ’s pedagogical approach of near-peer mentoring design, the project will recruit undergraduate students to work directly with high school students overseen by an IRJ (Postdoctoral) Fellow in Chicago. In a collaborative effort with the data science programming of the Chicago youth learning organization, MAPSCorps, the project will be centered on experiential STEM learning through structured guidance. The primary objectives of this BPC demonstration project are to 1) create an experience for successful STEM research and learning methods through internships, symposium, and online coursework, providing training opportunities, and seeding research activities, and 2) generate a pipeline of students, particularly underrepresented students from Chicago, who are well prepared for the workforce and will choose to continue their education and training in STEM related disciplines. As a result of the programming with MAPSCorps, this programming will also strengthen the existing informatics and computational science outreach programs in the Chicagoland are by utilizing a group of well-trained faculty and undergraduate researchers with broad expertise as research mentors and instructors. 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.