Planning: EES-HSI Program: Expanding Diversity in STEM by Broadening Participation in CUREs through Multi-Institutional Experiential Learning Programs

Maricopa County Community College District, Tempe AZ

Investigators

Abstract

With support from the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) Program, this planning proposal aims to identify strategies and funding opportunities directed to enhancing activities necessary to build STEM education capacity at 2-year HSIs, by creating cross-institutional Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) as an educational model for integrating undergraduate research into introductory non-major and major STEM community college courses that can be continued as Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs), and progress as undergraduate projects when students transfer to a 4-year university STEM major. CUREs are high impact practices embedded into the course curriculum that have been proposed as an inclusive strategy for increasing access to the educational benefits of research. While the impact of CUREs on student success parameters has been widely demonstrated in 4-year institutions, little is known of the benefits of CUREs in 2-year colleges, specifically those with significant percentages of underserved students, such as HSIs. Discussions will be focused on how cross-institutional CUREs can improve STEM educational outcomes at 2-year institutions, engage students in undergraduate research, and close the gap in STEM degree completion of underrepresented students. Planning session outcomes will be critical in advancing knowledge of the benefits and unique challenges involved in the design and implementation of cross-institutional CURE programs. They will also aid in the identification of core elements that contribute to cross-institutional collaborations for improved student learning outcomes and enhanced interest in STEM career pathways among underrepresented students. Planning sessions aim to lay the foundation for understanding benefits, methodology, and viability of implementing multi-institutional CUREs. CUREs will be designed with the goal of creating cohorts of STEM students and taking them through an academic pathway that involves experiential learning, mentoring, immersion in the process of science and engineering design, and opportunities to advance and persist in STEM careers. To address these topics and assess the feasibility of the proposed STEM cross-institutional CURE program, they will hold discussions that will build and expand upon their prior work with undergraduate research and CURE implementation at Phoenix College (PC), STEM mentoring programs at PC (Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement Program), and NSF funded Center for Bio-mediated and Bio-inspired Geotechnics and Center for Nanotechnology Enabled Water Treatment experience in managing and conducting REU programs. Planning sessions will build on NSF-funded MCCCD STEM-CURE Program (NSF EES 1832543) and recommendations from PC HSI Conference: Improving STEM Education at HSI Community Colleges by Introducing High Impact Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) (NSF HRD 2211811) and will increase knowledge and understanding of adapting CUREs for STEM students at 2-year HSIs. Results will be disseminated to governmental agencies and higher education organizations via educational research journals, presentations at regional and national conferences, and institutional social media outlets. Findings will inform funding priorities for high impact educational interventions in 2-year HSIs, and provide effective models for STEM student engagement and persistence. The HSI Program aims to enhance undergraduate STEM education and build capacity at HSIs. Program will also generate new knowledge on how to achieve these aims. 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.