This project will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Mount Mary University, both a women’s and a Hispanic Serving Institution. Over its five-year duration, this project will fund scholarships to 22 unique full-time students who are pursuing a bachelor’s degree in biology, chemistry, or food science chemistry. The Scholars will enter in five cohorts of about four students and receive up to four years of scholarship support. The project will support Scholars to develop a professional STEM identity by providing: (1) faculty mentoring, financial mentoring, and wrap-around support; (2) peer tutors; (3) an Authentic Research in Microbiology Seminar; and (4) internships, a Science & Industry Seminar Series, and industry advisory board. The project activities are expected to increase persistence and graduation of women in STEM whose unique and diverse perspectives will contribute to the integrity of scientific advancement and innovation. The project will also introduce evidence-based approaches to undergraduate STEM by institutionalizing Authentic Research in Microbiology seminars to support persistence of all students.
The overall goal of this project is to increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. The specific goal of this project is to increase undergraduate Scholars’ retention and advancement by accomplishing the following aims: (1) recruit and enroll low-income, academically talented undergraduates who matriculate into Mount Mary University; (2) retain and graduate Scholars who are prepared to enter the STEM workforce or pursue graduate school; and (3) investigate how identity affects scientists who are women. This project will advance knowledge by exploring if an inquiry-based seminar series can increase scientific skills and a sense of belonging as a scientist. As a result, this work will address gaps in the STEM education research literature about how a multi-year research seminar affects low-income female scholars’ persistence and success, their ability to overcome impostor phenomenon, and their self-identify as scientists. The project will use validated assessment instruments to evaluate the strength of the project’s approaches. Results will be published and shared with the academic and scientific communities. This project is funded by NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in STEM fields. It also aims to improve the education of future STEM workers, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income students.
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.
