More Like this

1. Building Bridges into Engineering and Computer Science: Outcomes, Impacts and Lessons Learned

   Espiritu, Doris ; Todorovic, Ruzica ; O'Connell, Bridget ( January 2022 , 2022 ASEE National Conference and Exposition)

   Wright College, an urban open-access community college, independently accredited within a larger community college system, is a federally recognized Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) with the largest community college enrollment of Hispanic students in its state. In 2018, Wright College received an inaugural National Science Foundation-Hispanic Serving Institution (NSF:HSI) research project grant “Building Capacity: Building Bridges into Engineering and Computer Science”. The project's overall goals are to increase underrepresented students pursuing an associate degree (AES) in engineering and computer science and streamline two transitions: high school to community college and 2-year to 4-year institutions. Through the grant, Wright College created a holistic and programmatic framework that examines and correlates engineering students' self-efficacy (the belief that students will succeed as engineers) and a sense of belonging with student success. The project focuses on Near-STEM ready students (students who need up to four semesters of math remediation before moving into Calculus 1). The project assesses qualitative and quantitative outcomes through surveys and case study interviews supplemented with retention, persistence, transfer, associate and bachelor's degree completion rates, and time for degree completion. The key research approach is to correlate student success data with self-efficacy and belonging measures. Outcomes and Impacts Three years into the project,more »Wright College Engineering and Computer Science Program was able to: • Develop and implement the Contextualized Summer Bridge with a total of 132 Near-STEM participants. One hundred twenty-seven (127) completed; 100% who completed the Bridge eliminated up to two years of math remediation, and 54% were directly placed in Calculus 1. All successful participants were placed in different engineering pathways, and 11 students completed Associate in Engineering Science (AES) and transferred after two years from the Bridge. • Increase enrollment by 940% (25 to 235 students) • Retain 93% of first-year students (Fall to fall retention). Seventy-five percent (75%) transferred after two years from initial enrollment. • Develop a holistic and programmatic approach for transfer model, thus increasing partnerships with 4-year transfer institutions resulting in the expansion of guaranteed/dual admissions programs with scholarships, paid research experience, dual advising, and students transferring as juniors. • Increase diversity at Wright College by bridging the academic gap for Near-STEM ready students. • Increase self-efficacy and belonging among all Program participants. • Increase institutionalized collaborations responsible for Wright College's new designation as the Center of Excellence for Engineering and Computer Science. • Increase enrollment, retention, and transfer of Hispanic students instrumental for Wright College Seal of Excelencia recognition. Lessons Learned The framework established during the first year of the grant overwhelmingly increased belonging and self-efficacy correlated with robust outcomes. However, the COVID-19 pandemic provided new challenges and opportunities in the second and third years of the grant. While adaptations were made to compensate for the negative impact of the pandemic, the face-to-face interactions were critical to support students’ entry into pathways and persistence within the Program.« less
2. Repeated Bleach Sanitization Effects on Medical Exam Glove Mechanical Properties

   https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.581721  

   Samuel A. Mansfield, Jonathan Patterson ( July 2021 , American journal of advanced research)

   Since the mass outbreak of COVID-19 globally, the unique challenges of the pandemic have demanded the global economy, governments, and scientific community adapt in unprecedented ways. Despite pre-existing federal stockpiles of personal protective equipment (PPE) in countries such as the United States, rising shortages and resource constraints have compounded the complexity of curbing the spread of the pandemic and treating patients. To face such shortages, healthcare workers in different parts of the world have been reusing PPE, especially personal protective gloves, and possibly sanitizing them through more cost-effective means such as a simple bleach and water solution. To preserve current and future PPE resources, this study investigates the effect of repeated diluted bleach treatment on mechanical properties of representative gloves to determine if reuse is an acceptable practice. This study aims to determine how bleach sanitization may affect material degradation of gloves when used in working environments. To this end, tensile tests were performed on elastomeric exam gloves with and without bleach sanitization treatments. Control data were prepared for both nonconditioned and humidity conditioned glove samples. Additional glove samples were subjected to ten repetitions of bleach exposure as outlined by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention US (CDC US) guidelines.more »Subsequently, all glove samples were tensile tested, and mechanical properties were determined. A statistically significant (p ≤ 0.05) loss of stiffness was observed for some of the tested samples, ranging as high as a 90% loss in stiffness. This research could serve to inform medical professionals as to whether sanitization through bleach treatments is acceptable and if so, at how many repetitions this treatment could potentially compromise the glove’s ability to function as intended« less
3. Switching from telephone to web‐first mixed‐mode data collection: Results from the Transition into Adulthood Supplement to the US Panel Study of Income Dynamics

   https://doi.org/10.1111/rssa.12840  

   Sastry, Narayan ; McGonagle, Katherine A. ( January 2022 , Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series A (Statistics in Society))

   We conducted an experiment to evaluate the effects on fieldwork outcomes and interview mode of switching to a web-first mixed-mode data collection design (self-administered web interview and interviewer-administered telephone interview) from a telephone-only design. We examine whether the mixed-mode option leads to better survey outcomes, based on response rates, fieldwork outcomes, interview quality and costs. We also examine respondent characteristics associated with completing a web interview rather than a telephone interview. Our mode experiment study was conducted in the 2019 wave of the Transition into Adulthood Supplement (TAS) to the US Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID). TAS collects information biennially from approximately 3,000 young adults in PSID families. The shift to a mixed-mode design for TAS was aimed at reducing costs and increasing respondent cooperation. We found that for mixed-mode cases compared to telephone only cases, response rates were higher, interviews were completed faster and with lower effort, the quality of the interview data appeared better, and fieldwork costs were lower. A clear set of respondent characteristics reflecting demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, technology availability and use, time use, and psychological health were associated with completing a web interview rather than a telephone interview.
4. Development and implementation of a scalable and versatile test for COVID-19 diagnostics in rural communities

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-24552-4  

   Ceci, A. ; Muñoz-Ballester, C. ; Tegge, A. N. ; Brown, K. L. ; Umans, R. A. ; Michel, F. M. ; Patel, D. ; Tewari, B. ; Martin, J. ; Alcoreza, O. ; et al ( December 2021 , Nature Communications)

   Abstract Rapid and widespread testing of severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is essential for an effective public health response aimed at containing and mitigating the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Successful health policy implementation relies on early identification of infected individuals and extensive contact tracing. However, rural communities, where resources for testing are sparse or simply absent, face distinctive challenges to achieving this success. Accordingly, we report the development of an academic, public land grant University laboratory-based detection assay for the identification of SARS-CoV-2 in samples from various clinical specimens that can be readily deployed in areas where access to testing is limited. The test, which is a quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR)-based procedure, was validated on samples provided by the state laboratory and submitted for FDA Emergency Use Authorization. Our test exhibits comparable sensitivity and exceeds specificity and inclusivity values compared to other molecular assays. Additionally, this test can be re-configured to meet supply chain shortages, modified for scale up demands, and is amenable to several clinical specimens. Test development also involved 3D engineering critical supplies and formulating a stable collection media that allowed samples to be transported for hours over a dispersed rural region withoutmore »the need for a cold-chain. These two elements that were critical when shortages impacted testing and when personnel needed to reach areas that were geographically isolated from the testing center. Overall, using a robust, easy-to-adapt methodology, we show that an academic laboratory can supplement COVID-19 testing needs and help local health departments assess and manage outbreaks. This additional testing capacity is particularly germane for smaller cities and rural regions that would otherwise be unable to meet the testing demand.« less
5. Compounding hazards and intersecting vulnerabilities: experiences and responses to extreme heat during COVID-19

   https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ac1760  

   Wilhelmi, O V ; Howe, P D ; Hayden, M H ; O’Lenick, C R ( August 2021 , Environmental Research Letters)

   Abstract Extreme heat is a major threat to human health worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its complexity and global reach, created unprecedented challenges for public health and highlighted societal vulnerability to hazardous hot weather. In this study, we used data from a three-wave nationally representative survey of 3036 American adults to examine how the COVID-19 pandemic affected extreme heat vulnerability during the summer of 2020. We used mixed effects models to examine the roles of socio-demographic characteristics and pandemic-related factors in the distribution of negative heat effects and experiences across the United States. The survey findings show that over a quarter of the US population experienced heat-related symptoms during the summer of 2020. Mixed effects models demonstrate that among all socio-economic groups, those who were most vulnerable were women, those in low-income households, unemployed or on furlough, and people who identify as Hispanic or Latino or as other non-white census categories (including Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, and multi-racial US residents). The study findings indicate that millions of people in the US had difficulty coping with or responding to extreme heat because of the direct and indirect effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Limitedmore »access to cooling as well as COVID-19 related social isolation played a major role in adverse heat health effects. Geographically, the South and the West of the US stood out in terms of self-reported negative heat effects. Overall, the study suggests that the intersection of two health hazards—extreme heat and coronavirus SARS-CoV2—amplified existing systemic vulnerabilities and expanded the demographic range of people vulnerable to heat stress.« less