The Science of Success: Addressing Workforce Needs in North Dakota

North Dakota State College Of Science, Wahpeton ND

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 North Dakota State College of Science (NDSCS). Over its 6-year duration, this project will fund scholarships to a minimum of 70 unique full- and part-time students who are pursuing associate’s degrees in 11 career and technical education (CTE) and 5 liberal arts transfer programs. Based on enrollment trends, approximately 85% of the scholarship recipients are expected to be CTE students. The project addresses retention, graduation and engagement by providing financial, academic, and professional success support personalized to each STEM Scholar. This includes experiential learning such as class projects, internships, research projects, co-curricular activities, and professional development activities. This project also supports a professional development activity that will develop STEM awareness, the ability to understand the relationship between STEM disciplines, and use the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics collaboratively to solve a problem. The project will address the statewide and regional in-demand workforce by graduating students who not only possess the technical skills required by industry and universities but will also possess the career-ready skills critical for professional success, and understand the importance of their profession to the STEM community. The overall goal of this project is to increase degree completion rates for low-income, high-achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. The specific objectives of the project are to (1) recruit academically-talented STEM students with demonstrated financial need, (2) retain 100% of the STEM Scholars from their first to second year of study and graduate 90% of STEM Scholars within two years, and (3) integrate professional skills throughout their plan of study. Retention efforts will focus on faculty and peer mentoring, student success initiatives, and experiential learning. This project will address the disconnect between college education and industry expectations by including professional development activities for faculty and students that include individualized growth plans and career success seminars as well as leadership opportunities in the form of co-curricular activities. Students in each STEM program view their program as being isolated from the others. The project will address this misconception by incorporating STEM awareness activities throughout the career success seminars, arranging tours of each campus laboratory to learn how each program is similar, and by encouraging collaboration on projects between student groups. The project will provide students with the necessary knowledge and skills to contribute to their career, and to understand their individual contribution to regional and national STEM needs. The project will be evaluated using a mixed-method approach of student surveys, structured interviews, focus groups, and inventory analyses of student work and artifacts. The results will be disseminated to the public, and CTE and STEM communities. 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.