Gallaudet University is the world's only liberal arts university with programs and services specifically designed to accommodate deaf and hard of hearing students. Gallaudet's S-STEM project provides scholarships to deaf students majoring in biology, chemistry, or mathematics.
This project's intellectual merit results from addressing the severe under-representation of deaf individuals in STEM fields by providing a specific plan to prepare deaf students for STEM careers. The goals of this plan are realized through the following objectives: 1) recruit deaf students into STEM majors, 2) provide scholarships to talented deaf STEM students with documented financial need, 3) provide individual and group activities to support undergraduate S-STEM Scholars, 4) assist deaf S-STEM Scholars in overcoming cultural and linguistic barriers, and 5) to provide support services to deaf S-STEM Scholars to ultimately enter STEM careers.
Broader Impacts result from increasing the number of talented deaf students who choose a STEM major, and increasing the number of deaf STEM majors who are well prepared to enter STEM careers. Deaf S-STEM Scholars are interacting with deaf mentors and deaf scientists to understand that they truly can make significant contributions to STEM fields. There is a need for replicable best practices in educating deaf undergraduates in STEM disciplines, and this project can help develop such practices. Plans are in place to disseminate these best practices on Gallaudet's website for prospective students and the public. Plans are also in place to reach the STEM education community through presentations at national venues and publications in professional and higher education literature, including those that focus on teaching and learning.
