Supporting Engineering and Computing Studies Scholars through Experiential Learning, Personal Development, and Community Service

通过体验式学习、个人发展和社区服务支持工程和计算机研究学者

• 批准号: 2221052
• 负责人: Scott Steinbrink
• 金额: $ 150万
• 依托单位: Gannon University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-01-01 至 2028-12-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2221052&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Supporting; Engineering; Computing; Studies; Scholars

This project will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Gannon University. Gannon is a private, four-year, primarily undergraduate university located in Erie, Pennsylvania. Over its six-year duration, this project will fund scholarships to approximately 85 unique full-time students who are pursuing bachelor’s degrees in engineering and computing studies, including mechanical, electrical, software, environmental, biomedical, and industrial engineering. One-year scholarships (renewable for up to four years) will be offered to selected incoming freshman students. The program provides professional and personal development activities chosen to support retention to graduation and help students thrive post-graduation. These activities include sessions geared towards building student competence in the workplace, experiential learning, personal development, and community-building activities. The project contributes to student academic success through active advising of students, peer mentoring, and development of close, personal ties to faculty members. The broader impact of the project is found in the experiential aspect, wherein local in-need charitable organizations are assisted in development of low-cost engineered solutions to specialized problems, thereby enhancing livability in the university neighborhood (which is situated in one of the poorest zip codes in the USA) and encouraging students towards community service. Intellectual merit of the project is to be found in the establishment of additional best practices in student retention and in knowledge gained about the efficacy of actions taken to provide academic aid to students struggling in fundamental math and physics courses.The overall goal of this project is to increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. The goals of the Scholars of Excellence in Engineering and Computing Studies (SEECS) program are to: (1) increase the number of low-income, academically talented students with demonstrated financial need, especially women (an under-represented group), enrolled in and graduating from Gannon University’s engineering and computing studies programs, (2) facilitate students’ degree attainment by providing scholarships and rigorous academic support, (3) foster professional development and assist students’ entry into careers in STEM fields and/or graduate education, and (4) study and communicate the impact of targeted interventions on retention of high academic performing students, focusing on attrition-point courses. To realize these goals, this project aims to: (1) provide 25 scholarships per year on average for eligible students, (2) achieve an average 90% freshman to sophomore retention rate for SEECS scholars, (3) provide scholars with academic and professional development preparing them for employment in a STEM field and/or graduate school, (4) develop and maintain recruitment strategies to achieve a 30% rate of women applicants, and (5) provide academic support for critical path courses. The underlying philosophy of SEECS is to help increase diversity in engineering studies by increasing access to low-income students. Further, based upon past study of attrition, it has been noted that there are two particular courses that cause academic problems, namely Calculus and Physics. This project utilizes peer mentoring and multi-level academic advising to provide additional support to bolster student success in these courses. Thus, SEECS goals both foster diversity, and support development of a strong work force by providing academic and financial assistance towards graduation. Results will be disseminated through publications in conference proceedings and journals and will be made available through the university website. This project is funded by NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in STEM fields. It also aims to improve the education of future STEM workers, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income students.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该项目将通过支持有经济需要的成绩优异的低收入学生在甘农大学的保留和毕业，满足国家对受过良好教育的科学家、数学家、工程师和技术人员的需求。甘农大学是一所私立四所大学。该项目主要位于宾夕法尼亚州伊利市的本科大学，在为期六年的时间内，将为大约 85 名正在攻读工程和计算机研究（包括机械、电气、软件、环境）学士学位的独特全日制学生提供奖学金。 ,该项目将为选定的新生提供一年期奖学金（最多可延长四年），提供专业和个人发展活动，以支持毕业后的学业并帮助学生在毕业后茁壮成长。活动包括旨在培养学生在工作场所的能力、体验式学习、个人发展和社区建设活动的课程，该项目通过积极为学生提供建议、同伴指导以及与教职员工发展密切的个人关系，促进学生的学业成功。 .更广泛的影响该项目注重体验，因此帮助当地有需要的慈善组织开发针对专门问题的低成本工程解决方案，从而提高大学附近的宜居性（该社区位于美国最贫穷的邮政编码之一）美国）并鼓励学生参与社区服务，该项目的智力价值体现在建立学生保留方面的额外最佳实践以及为向基础数学和物理困难的学生提供学术援助而采取的行动的有效性方面获得的知识。课程的总体目标该项目旨在提高有经济需要的低收入、成绩优异的本科生完成 STEM 学位的数量。工程和计算研究卓越学者 (SEECS) 计划的目标是：(1) 增加低收入群体的数量。 ，具有经济需求的学术才华学生，特别是女性（代表性不足的群体），就读于甘农大学的工程和计算机研究项目并从中毕业，(2) 通过提供奖学金和严格的学术支持促进学生获得学位，(3 ） 促进专业发展并协助学生进入 STEM 领域和/或研究生教育，以及 (4) 研究和交流有针对性的干预措施对保留高学业成绩学生的影响，重点关注消耗点课程。该项目旨在：(1) 平均每年为符合条件的学生提供 25 份奖学金，(2) 为 SEECS 学者实现平均 90% 的新生保留率，(3) 为学者提供学术和专业发展，为他们就业做好准备在 STEM 领域和/或SEECS 的基本理念是通过增加入学机会来帮助增加工程研究的多样性。此外，根据过去的消耗研究，有人指出，有两门特殊课程会导致学术问题，即微积分和物理。该项目利用同伴指导和多层次的学术咨询来为低收入学生提供额外的支持。提高学生在这些课程中的成功。因此，SEECS 的目标是通过为毕业提供学术和财政援助来促进多样性和支持强大的劳动力发展。结果将通过会议记录和期刊的出版物进行传播，并将通过大学网站提供。美国国家科学基金会 (NSF) 的科学、技术、工程和数学奖学金项目旨在增加获得 STEM 领域学位的低收入学术天才学生的数量，该项目还旨在改善未来 STEM 工作者的教育。并到产生有关低收入学生的学业成功、保留、转学、毕业和学术/职业道路的知识。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。