Through the NSF I-Corp for Learning Program, this project will develop ways to increase the scale and impact of an effort to help community college biology faculty to meet the challenges facing this segment of higher education. The program, called the B2 Scholars program, is a model professional development program which is designed to provide a community of practice to increase the rate of adoption of pedagogical reforms, and encourage participants to remain active in disciplinary and education communities. The model combines education and social science research about adoption of instructional reform, effective pedagogical approaches, and additional skills needed by at risk students to succeed in academia. Community colleges serve an enormous number of undergraduates: estimated enrollment for Fall 2014 was 12.4 million students. High percentages of these students come from low socioeconomic backgrounds, are groups underrepresented in STEM disciplines, are non-traditional students, and work while pursuing degrees. Working with these students requires a strong understanding of how students learn, how to help students overcome cognitive and content barriers, and how to develop the professional skills recent research has demonstrated are necessary for academic success. Unfortunately, most community college faculty are provided few resources, both in terms of funding and time, for professional development that would help them keep abreast of current educational information. The B2 Scholars program is designed to directly impact the success of community college students by providing bioscience community college faculty with the skills and resources to enhance student success. The program's emphasis on bioscience faculty is a reflection of the popularity of bioscience majors; in 2007-08, health sciences was the most popular STEM Associate's degree at 21% of STEM degrees (1,627,000 students) and this area continues to show enormous growth.
The B2 Scholars program will help enhance community college faculty pedagogical skills within their discipline, promote broader participation in disciplinary and educational communities, and encourage these faculty to assume leadership roles in designing the future of postsecondary education. The model has been developed based on educational research and lessons learned over BioQUEST's past 29 years in biology education reform. The program utilizes a combination of face-to-face and virtual communities to allow participants to develop meaningful relationships and support each other through the challenges of adopting and implementing educational reforms. This model has the potential to be a valuable template for additional BioQUEST professional development programs serving other faculty communities. By increasing the widespread implementation of these professional development practices, this project will help to improve the effectiveness community college educators.
