The Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University is in downtown Brooklyn and serves mostly commuting students who live in the area. Nearly all undergraduates are first generation college students; 59% are of African-American and Hispanic origin; and 70% are women. Many are unprepared to succeed in the sciences. Our project is to redesign the introductory level physics course taken by most of the non- science majors, a population that includes a large number of education majors who are teachers in the New York Metropolitan area. The course will utilize current methodologies that support student-centered learning journal writing, ethnography, collaborative learning, and study skills. The project will have these objectives: 1) preparation of material for a student-centered, active learning course; 2) preparation of faculty to teach the course; and 3) enhancement of students' academic and personal self-confidence as future scientists, educators, and citizens. The course is being developed with the participation of NYC Alliance, an NSF-funded Alliance for Minority Participation (CAMP) Program. It will be disseminated to serve as a model and resource for other colleges.
