The Geosciences Diversity Enhancement Program (GDEP) Track 2 project extends a successful, innovative partnership (GDEP 2002-04) to recruit and mentor students from underrepresented groups into research and education programs in the geologic, physical geographic, and archaeologic disciplines. GDEP Track 2 builds on unusually strong inter-college and interdisciplinary activities among sixteen faculty members from CSULB''s geology, geography, geoarchaeology and environmental science disciplines to create a working prototype for a comprehensive, integrated geoscience program that includes faculty from four departments in two colleges. The project utilizes an innovative and proven collaborative partnership with high schools (Cabrillo, Lakewood, Long Beach Polytechnic, Millikan, and Wilson) and community colleges (Cerritos, Compton, El Camino, Long Beach City, Orange Coast, Saddleback, and Santa Monica) that will promote education and careers in the geosciences. Faculty mentors from CSULB are implementing a program of mentored summer research projects, community outreach field trips and workshops, classroom visits and public/private sector internships. A target population will enter and flow through the GDEP-Track 2 network of classroom exposure, focused field research and supported internships while a larger number of students and their families, as well as Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) students, will be exposed to the geosciences through classroom visits, workshops, and community outreach field trips. Through partnerships, CSULB will leverage its scientific and educational resources to attract, retain, and better prepare undergraduate students for opportunities in the geosciences. GDEP Track 2 establishes a network and model to change the culture of the community and to foster awareness of the geoscience disciplines and their potential.
CSULB GDEP Track II: Recruiting and Training the Next Generation of Geoscientists The overarching goal of GDEP was to enhance the participation of underrepresented groups in the geosciences (geology, geography and geoarchaeology). Specifically we sought to 1) Increase the number of underrepresented students who seek further education and degrees in the geosciences by directly engaging students in geoscience research. 2) Enhance the quantity and quality of geoscience research and teaching by faculty partners by directly engaging faculty partners from high schools and community colleges in geoscience research. We initially employed a directed research program during summer. Teams of students and high school/community college mentors, led by CSULB faculty, worked on field-based projects, with each student being responsible for some specific aspect. The research culminated in a professional-style poster session. While effective in engaging students, increasing their confidence, and educating them about the work of geoscientists, it became apparent that this model was not sustainable. The model restricted the number of participants, limiting its impact. It was also too time intensive for faculty, particularly with the obligations of modern academic life (i.e., research and publishing). New models were explored in the third year that focused on maximizing student exposure. These models included a workshop for K-12 teachers so that they could more effectively teach geosciences and spark interest at younger grade levels (Goal 2). Teachers viewed this workshop as highly successful in increasing their knowledge and providing them with resources to make their teaching more effective. Several did note that lack of infrastructure (ex. equipment and lab materials) and the need for administrative "busy-work" in class reduced their ability to put this knowledge to use. A second model focused on conducting research only with high-school and community college teachers so that they could develop geoscience curricula to share with the broader geoscience community. This model limited the number of participants but provided on-line educational material that could be accessed by many (Goal 2). A third, student-centric, model was an "immersion" field trip, designed to expose students to the broad spectrum of fields within geosciences (Goal 1). This 10-day trip across California was open to as many students as wanted to take it, increasing accessibility. Students were expected to become "experts" in a topic of their choice and use their expertise to educate the other students. This format worked well in introducing students to many topics while still engaging them in directed learning. To assess success, anonymous, pre- and post-surveys of students were administered by a psychology faculty member. These surveys highlighted many strengths and weaknesses of the program. However, one of the more common findings suggested that despite GDEP investment, certain barriers, including family pressure to major in traditional fields (medical and business), lack of role models, and lack of financial support, remained. Similarly, the surveys suggest that commitment of the faculty had probably the greatest impact on ALL of the students, regardless of their final interest in the geosciences and regardless of the activity in which they participated. Many students commented on how easy it was to talk with faculty, how devoted they are, and how passionate they are about the things they do. High school students realized how different faculty were from their perceptions and also how important it is to pursue something that they truly love. Although GDEP encouraged a number of students to major in geoscience fields (approximately 1/3 of the cohort for each year: Goal 1), the real impact it had was on altering perceptions about geoscientists and their perceptions about their own abilities to pursue geoscience as a career. Quotes from the anonymous surveys sum up the impact that GDEP had on students. A small portion follow: "GDEP opened up my eyes to all the other careers there are in the Geoscience field. Before GDEP, I was only knowledgeable on one type of career." "Before I think I was just curious, and now I’m pretty sure, 100%, that I want to get into it." "And having my own research topic, that was probably the best part. Cause I felt like I was involved . . ." "You definitely find pride in what you’re doing. And it’s not just a matter of, ok, I’m just going to pass, as long as I can get an A. It’s like, my name is going to be on this, my friends’ names are going to be on this, it has to be nice." "I like the confidence they had in us." "There’s no competition...There’s no grades. I mean, I was clapping for everybody after their poster presentation . . ." "It doesn’t depend on what background you are. It’s actually what you bring to the table."
