The goal of this project is to increase the number of students from underrepresented groups who are majoring in biology (non-medical), chemistry, computer science, engineering, electrical engineering technology, environmental technology, earth systems and environmental science, mathematics, physics, and telecommunication technology to prepare them for careers in technology fields. Students are being recruited from mathematics and science courses at the college and from local high schools.
Intellectual Merit: In addition to receiving financial support, S-STEM student/scholars and faculty participate in the Mathematics, Engineering, Technology, and Science (METS) Academy, modeled on the Science Academy and the Honors Program, in which each student is assigned a faculty mentor. The Academy sponsors talks, offers tutoring, provides students with information about research opportunities, and encourages them to enroll in the Research Enrichment Seminar. Students are directed to Career Services for workshops on interviewing and resume writing and to the Transfer Center as they approach graduation.
Broader Impacts: The program is having a major impact on student retention and graduation. It builds on the highly successful CSEMS scholarship program, which supported 78 students and had a 91% retention rate. The success of the S-STEM program is being evaluated by the percentage of students who graduate and transfer to a STEM major at a four-year college or find employment in the technology area; increased enrollment in STEM fields; and the number of high school students who enroll in STEM programs at the college.
The goal of the S-STEM project at Bronx Community College was to increase the number of students from underrepresented groups who are majoring in a (non-medical) science or technology, or in computer science, engineering, or mathematic in order to prepare them for careers in technology fields. The objectives were to support 20 to 25 students a year and to provide each student a faculty mentor in his or her field, opportunities for student research and summer internships, and academic support through tutoring and study groups. Students were encouraged to get involved with research projects sponsored by the LSAMP Program or through summer internships at Brookhaven National Laboratory which accepted eight scholars as research associates. Five students were interns in the public high schools in the Bronx. Students were directed to Career Services for workshops on interviewing and resume writing and to the Transfer Center as they approached graduation. The S-STEM Scholarship Program had a positive impact on graduation and retention rates. We supported the students by providing each one with a faculty mentor and we hired tutors to help students with physics, discrete mathematics and computer science. Over the course of the grant we were able to support a total of 94 individual students, 77 men and 22 women. Eight-one students graduated and/or transferred to four-year institutions including Amherst College, Columbia University, Cooper Union, Cornell University, Duke University, University of Milwaukee, New York University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Rutgers University, Rochester University, Upsalla University in Sweden, various SUNY Universities including Binghamton, Buffalo and Stony Brook, and various CUNY Colleges including Baruch, City, Hunter, and Lehman. Four will continue to be supported by our new S-STEM award. Two of our graduates were members of the ALL-USA Academic Team and two of our graduates were valedictorians of their graduating classes.
