The North Star STEM Alliance will broaden the participation of underrepresented minorities in Minnesota in STEM baccalaureate education. The 18 Alliance partners include public and private colleges and universities, community colleges, the Science Museum of Minnesota and the Minnesota High Tech Association. The University of Minnesota Twin Cities will be the lead institution. The configuration of 16 educational institutions, a high technology association with over 300 members, and a leading science and technology museum provides a resource-rich opportunity to address the engagement, capacity, and continuity (ECC) of underrepresented minorities in STEM. Using the critical transition points of middle school to high school, high school to first year of college, first year to sophomore year, transfer from 2-year to 4-year institution, and from lower division to STEM majors, the Alliance sets the following objectives: increase the level of interest in STEM careers by secondary and postsecondary non-STEM students in the targeted population; increase the number of students in the targeted population completing a college preparatory/STEM preparatory high school program; increase the number of high school seniors of the targeted population enrolling in Alliance pre-college STEM and STEM baccalaureate degree programs; increase the number of students from the targeted population completing the associates degree and transferring to the 4-year Alliance schools: and increase the number of students from the targeted population persisting to the STEM baccalaureate. The North Star STEM Alliance will provide a comprehensive longitudinal set of initiatives to address these objectives at the critical transition points. The initiatives will include Alliance-wide community building conferences, bridge programs, peer-to-peer learning, undergraduate research opportunities, industry internships and professional development, contextual STEM course module development workshops, college prep STEM high school curriculum, and public communication campaigns of current STEM research. The intellectual merit of the Alliance project includes a contribution to the statewide discussion of student achievement in higher education in Minnesota, with a particular emphasis on STEM and underrepresented minorities, and on what works, what matters, and why. Due to the rigor of the entering qualifications for pursuing STEM, the Alliance outcomes will augment the discussions of the appropriateness and accuracy of predictors of student performance in institutions of higher learning, especially in regards to underrepresented minorities. In addition, because of the diversity of the educational missions of Alliance partners, the project will stimulate discussion on the scholarly literature on access and equity in higher education and the policy implications for interventions at varying educational institutions. The inclusion of high-achieving underrepresented minorities amongst the institutions also presents an opportunity for the Alliance to weigh in on specific intellectual achievement issues such as stereotype threat and overprediction, which are based on high-achieving minority populations. The Alliance's experience with overcoming the relative isolation of underrepresented minorities on campuses outside of the Twin Cities Metro area will also contribute to understanding the critical role of student cohort building. The broader impacts of Alliance activities will be the advancement of discovery and understanding by the involvement of underrepresented minorities in the current research of STEM faculty and scientists, the development of contextual STEM modules in the curriculum that can be replicated at other educational institutions, and the public communication of the current rigorous research of underrepresented STEM faculty. The Alliance will increase the number of underrepresented minorities exposed to activities that allow them to make informed choices about STEM careers. Undergraduate research initiatives across Alliance institutions will enhance the research and education infrastructure by allowing Alliance students and faculty from different disciplines and different institutions with limited research infrastructures to access science and technology and engineering research centers on Alliance members' campuses possessing these facilities. The composition of the Alliance will promote broader dissemination through collaborative presentations of Alliance pedagogical and research activities at the distinct professional organizations and conferences of Alliance members. The Alliance will benefit society by providing the foundation for the development of the next generation of civically engaged STEM scholars.
: LSAMP - North Star STEM Alliance The North Star STEM Alliance has helped me refocus and commit to math and the sciences. They have opened me to a scientific world that I only dreamt of. I always wanted to get back to my scientific roots and STEM has guided me to Math Club, Engineering Club, etc. Without North Star STEM, this part of my life would not be possible. –North Star STEM Alliance undergraduate student The North Star STEM Alliance is Minnesota’s Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP), one of about forty across the nation. The Alliance during its first phase of NSF funding was a partnership of 16 Minnesota colleges and universities and two community organizations[1] committed to supporting underrepresented minority students earning bachelor’s degrees in STEM -- science, technology, engineering and mathematics. We worked together as a partnership to share effective practices and leverage opportunities for our students. We also fostered change toward greater diversity and inclusion on our campuses leading toward greater overall success of underrepresented students in STEM. Goals: 1) Double the number of underrepresented minority students receiving STEM bachelor’s degrees. 2) Develop an alliance of collegiate institutions and community organizations working toward increasing the likelihood of success of underrepresented students working toward the bachelor's degree. 3) Foster institutional change toward greater diversity and inclusion on partner campuses. Outcomes of Phase 1: The Alliance achieved 293 graduates in Year 5, exceeding the doubling goal of 272 graduates by year 5 of the program. Nearly 1,460 students received stipends and wages from the project to support their college expenses. This accomplishment is based on aligning goals across our Alliance and implementing best practices: 1) undergraduate research, 2) cohorts and community building, 3) faculty and peer mentoring, 4) academic support, and 5) professional and career development. 1) Research experiences during undergraduate years give students opportunities to learn what science is truly about—discovering the unknown. They meet faculty and graduate students, learn alongside them, and may travel to national scientific conferences to present research results. This best practice is regarded as the most influential retention program for minority undergraduate students. A total of 256 students participated in undergraduate research during this phase. 2) Helping students associate with other students from cultural minorities majoring in STEM reduces the isolation they feel in classrooms and laboratories in predominately white institutions. They feel more comfortable and accepted among students of their own culture. The Alliance helps cohorts and communities form in departments, colleges, and across partner institutions. 3) Mentoring, like coaching, provides one-on-one career guidance and professional development by one who is more advanced in the STEM career. This mentoring may come from a student farther along in his/her coursework, a faculty member, or STEM professional in government or industry. During this phase, students became leaders of the programs, thereby establishing strong role models for newer students. A total of 137 faculty across Alliance partner institutions mentored Alliance students. 4) Academic support consists of several strategies that help students earn higher grades, such as one-on-one tutoring, workshops on academic and research skills, study groups, and additional discussion sections. 5) Professional and career development gives students experience in presenting oneself professionally, networking effectively, interviewing, and setting career goals. Students also become accustomed to their new professional STEM communities through opportunities to meet STEM professionals and attend national conferences. A total of 135 Alliance students attended 21 national and regional conferences. During the first five years of the North Star STEM Alliance, student engagement and participation in research rose steadily and the number of graduates exceeded the doubling goal. NSF awarded the North Star STEM Alliance a mid-level alliance grant which extends funding for another five years and establishes a new doubling goal of 544 Alliance students earning STEM bachelor’s degrees by 2017. [1] Collegiate partners included Anoka Ramsey Community College, Augsburg College, Carleton College, Century College, Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College, Gustavus Adolphus College, Macalester College, Metropolitan State University, Minneapolis Community and Technical College, MSU-Mankato, North Hennepin Community College, St. Cloud State University, St. Olaf College, UM Duluth, UM Morris, UM Twin Cities. Community partners included the Minnesota High Tech Association and the Science Museum of Minnesota.
