This grant is part of a series of grants through the NSF EES that works to increase participation of students from historically underrepresented groups in STEM, with the ultimate goal of developing and maintaining a diverse and highly capable STEM workforce, leading to innovation and sustaining U.S. competitiveness in the science and engineering fields.
We’ve used a mix of interviews and surveys to understand what parents, students and faculty think about STEM education, with the goal of increasing student engagement within STEM fields at ASU and creating better relationships with the community. To date, we have surveyed over 250 ASU students in both STEM fields and non-STEM fields, as well as 200 parents and community members, and have conducted almost 30 interviews and 10 focus groups.
Some key findings include:
Non-white students tend to both experience and witness more gender and racial discrimination from their peers and faculty.
Women STEM students are more likely to rate STEM as competitive compared to their male counterparts.
Students across races/ethnicities and gender generally feel supported by their parents and friends in their pursuit of STEM education.
Students generally feel connected to faculty who are: accessible and approachable, perceived as role models, supportive of their academic goals, and knowledgeable about their fields. When they identify those faculty, they are more likely to remain in STEM majors.
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
Prior Funded Areas and Projects
The CREEME (Culturally Responsive Education En Mechanical Engineering) project received funding in 2017 from the U.S. Department of Education HSI Title V program. This award established the Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (B.S.M.E.) program, created the faculty and staff culturally relevant pedagogy training program, and redesigned policies and systems that remove challenges related to transferring to ASU.
Through the culturally relevant pedagogy program, CREEME ensures that Hispanic, first-generation and/or low-income students receive a set of more culturally sustaining experiences than they would at other institutions. This is accomplished through the adoption of culturally relevant teaching practices, re-imaging curricular pedagogies, and redefining the processes and systems the university utilizes in collaborating with community colleges to improve teaching, advising and relationships with community college partners.
The STEP West Texas (Strengthening the Engineering Pipeline in West Texas) project received funding from the U.S. Department of Education HSI Division from 2014-19. It aimed to solve several problems in the 35-county areas served by ASU and Southwest Texas Junior College (a two-year institution with campuses in Uvalde, Del Rio, Eagle Pass and Crystal City) by addressing the lack of a civil engineering program at any institution of higher education in the region; a continuing and growing high demand for civil engineers, and limited resources to develop such a program.
Through this partnership, community college students can obtain an Associate of Science in Engineering Sciences (A.S.E.S.) degree before transferring to ASU to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (B.S.C.E.) degree.
This project was supported by an Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Competitive Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture during 2013 -18. This program aimed to prepare new food scientists to pursue careers in the meat and food Industries.
The Angelo State University – Howard College HSI STEM Cooperative project was funded through the Hispanic Serving Institution STEM program from 2011-16. Its goals were to increase the number of Hispanic and low-income students who earned four-year degrees in STEM fields and identify areas that hampered transferring to ASU. Increased STEM outreach to K-12 students, families and the community provided a smooth transition for STEM transfers and opened new pathways for transfer students.
