The Robert Noyce Scholarship program at California State University, Long Beach, is supporting approximately ten (10) science or mathematics Single Subject (middle or high school) preliminary credential seekers per year for four years. In return for two years of stipend support, at the level of $10,000 per year, the twenty or so new teachers produced by this program are each dedicating the initial four years of their teaching careers to service in high-needs schools in Long Beach Unified School District (approximately 97,000 students) and Whittier Union High School District or Whittier Union Elementary District (approximately 20,000 students). Both of these districts include schools that meet the criteria of high-needs through the free or reduced lunch and/or high teacher turnover criteria. Both pre-service and in-service teacher support programs are being provided to Scholarship recipients. The intellectual merit of this proposed work lies in the strong linkages between research theories of student cohort engagement, retention, mentoring, and corresponding program activities. Longitudinal studies of the effectiveness of the program are being reported to augment existing research in this field. The principal investigator team is well qualified to lead and manage the program, and represent faculty and staff from mathematics, science, and education disciplines. This program is leveraging extensive resources already in place at California State University, Long Beach, and is building on existing teacher preparation programs, including a well-developed student support center available to all mathematics and science undergraduate students at California State University, Long Beach. One strategy is to partner more closely with two area community colleges (Long Beach City and Cerritos) who have both a commitment to teacher preparation, and who routinely transfer significant numbers of mathematics and science undergraduate majors and/or pre-service teachers to California State University, Long Beach. The broader impact of this proposed work lies in the leveraging of scholarship resources to recruit, educate, and mentor approximately twenty (20) highly qualified mathematics and science undergraduate majors to enter teaching professions, who might not otherwise consider such careers. Given the diversity of institutions involved in the project, considerable broadening of participation of underrepresented groups will be achieved, particularly in light of the preference given to scholarship recipients from underrepresented groups. Partnerships between and among three higher education institutions and two large school districts are being strengthened through this collaboration.
