The broad goal of this two-year project is to increase the enrollment of African- and Hispanic-American students in geosciences at Howard University and Pennsylvania State University. The core objective is to develop strategies to recruit and retain minority students with the goal to enter doctoral programs in geosciences or join the professional ranks. Throughout the academic year, undergraduate students will participate in supportive peer and faculty mentoring activities. Peer mentors will include resident graduate students and senior undergraduates, including majority students. Faculty mentors will work with undergraduates on research activities involving hands-on and inquiry-based approaches. Joint research projects will be carried out involving both minority and majority students. Symposia will be organized during the spring semester to allow students to practice how to present scientific results. Likewise, summer research workshops will be organized to engage students in research activities under the guidance of senior graduates and faculty members. Emphasis of the summer workshops will be on engaging undergraduates to pursue experiential research methods utilizing modern technologies. Retreats will be organized to discuss opportunities in graduate school and professional ranks. By working with students for a full calendar year, it will be possible to evaluate the most suitable approaches to attract minorities to pursue geosciences as their potential career.
This project recruited and trained four students to participate in field research activities. A vertical and horizontal (peer-based) mentoring scheme was designed for the students recruited from Howard University and at Penn State. The PI together with the undergraduate students characterized a potential instrument that is being proposed for a national network of forecasting. The students were trained on the application of the scientific method of data reductions and hands-on experiential learning methods. This training took the form of organized lectures on publication processes, paper development, scientific concept development, and data interpretation processes, role of science in society during the two summers. Throughout the academic year, had regular meetings with students who decided to continue with the research activities. In these meetings, two students were mentored in class project presentation and worked extensively on scientific method of analysis. As a result, a number of presentations and publications were enabled. In addition, one studnet intern is now a 2nd year graduate student in STEM, two more students are about to graduate with a BS in physics from Howard University. In collaboration with The Pennsilvania State University, several undergraduate students were trained and mentored at the Howard University research site. This trianing has allowed for an excellent interaction between a MInority (HBCU) university and a majority university. All students that benefited from this grant plan on pursuing higher degree and work in STEM areas.
