Scholarships for academically strong STEM students, who may not otherwise be able to afford college, have an impact on the number of STEM graduates prepared to help regional and local companies compete and innovate in the global economy. This project will increase the number of academically talented, economically disadvantaged STEM transfer students who complete baccalaureate degrees in biology and chemistry at Samford University in order to develop the STEM workforce in Central Alabama. Approximately 40 scholars will participate in a two-year program, designed to maximize academic success, social support, and career development. The project will build on partnerships that were initiated with two nearby 2-year colleges (Lawson and Jefferson State Community Colleges) during a prior NSF-REU award. The institutions will conduct joint research symposia, seminars, professional society meetings, and STEM recruitment events and establish faculty exchanges.
Recognizing that providing transitional support structures is critical in promoting academic success and retaining transfer students, the project team will utilize a variety of high- impact practices including learning communities, academic tracking, and close advising. Moreover, the scholars will participate in a four-day Transfer Success Seminar to orient them to academic life at a 4-year institution and cultivate a group identity within the cohort. The findings from the project evaluation will help to contribute evidence that will improve our understanding of best practices for supporting STEM community college transfer students through to graduation. Formative evaluation will address the student's satisfaction and identification as scientists (SALG) and faculty assessment of the students' progress (rubrics). Summative evaluation will consist of an analysis of how well the project components align with successful attainment of the retention targets. In addition, internship employers will be surveyed. Dissemination of the results of evaluation will be done through websites, national meetings (the University of New Mexico Mentoring Institute Mentoring Conference, the Ecological Society of America, the American Chemical Society and the Biennial Conference on Chemical Education, and relevant journals (the Journal of Research in Science Teaching and the Journal of Chemical Education).
