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1. Perceptions of low-income and academically talented students and mentors of [Program Name] - an S-STEM program at a Hispanic Serving Institution

   Santiago-Roman, Aidsa ; Jimenez, Manuel ; Guillemard, Luisa ; Bartolomei-Suarez, Sonia ; Santiago, Nayda ; Suarez, Oscar M ; Quintero, Pedro ; Lopez Del Puerto, Carla ; Cardona, Nelson ; Rodriguez-Martinez, Manuel ; et al ( August 2022 , ASEE Annual Conference proceedings)

   PEARLS is a structured scholarship program designed to mitigate the economic hardship associated with the cost of attendance (COA). The main goal of the program is to increase the retention and success of low-income, academically talented students (LIATS) in engineering programs at a Hispanic institution. We structured students' interventions in five stages: LIATS Background Experiences, Belonging, Formative, Growth, and Graduate Development. This full paper presents the program evaluation results that combine social cognitive career theory and attrition mitigation elements. Specifically, we conducted a formative evaluation approach guided by the following question: What were the strengths and weaknesses of PEARLS according to students and mentors? A total of 92 LIATS (40 females and 52 males) met the eligibility criteria and the selection process established by the Executive Board. Overall, 78% of student participants voluntarily completed the electronic self-report questionnaires. Also, we assigned students under the supervision of eight mentors. In terms of their mentoring process, participant students reported an overall excellent opinion about their mentors and the mentoring process provided through the program. They expressed to be very satisfied with their relationship with their mentor regarding communication, connection, professionalism, and encouragement. Few students indicated weaknesses in their mentor, including poor accessibility due to lack of time, feeling intimidated by the mentor, and inadequate counseling. From the mentors’ perspective, it was perceived that their tasks and responsibilities aligned with their expectations. We noticed a relationship between what mentors perceived as their duties and what mentees identified as strengths of the mentoring program. For instance, their commitment to serve as a student mentor by offering academic counseling, encouragement, recommendations for COOP and research experiences, and setting career goals has resulted positive to establish a good relationship with the mentee. Finally, we concluded that both students and mentors felt satisfied with their involvement in the program. Similarly, mentors agreed that the time and commitment required to fulfill the responsibilities in the program are limited due to other obligations, such as teaching, research, and service commitments. This situation reflects on the mentees who expressed concern about the time availability of their mentors due to other professional obligations. Regardless, we conclude that the goal of the mentoring program proposed to promote a sense of belonging in mentees during their years of study was accomplished. 

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2. Mentoring across difference and distance: building effective virtual research opportunities for underrepresented minority undergraduate students in biological sciences

   https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.01452-23  

   Knox, Corey J. ; Ab Latif, Faqryza M. ; Cornejo, Natasha R. ; Johnson, Michael D. ( January 2024 , mBio)

   Freitag, Nancy E. (Ed.)

   The National Summer Undergraduate Research Program (NSURP) is a mentored summer research program in biosciences for undergraduate students from underrepresented backgrounds in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Conducted virtually over 8 weeks every summer starting in 2020, NSURP provides accessible and flexible research experiences to meet the needs of geographically diverse and schedule-constrained students. Drawing from mentee reporting and surveys conducted within the NSURP framework involving over 350 underrepresented minority undergraduate students over three cohorts (2020–2022), matched with mentors, this paper highlights the potential benefits of students participating in virtual mentored research experiences. In addition to increased access to quality research experiences for students who face travel or academic setting constraints, we found that virtual mentoring fosters cross-cultural collaborations, generates novel research questions, and expands professional networks. Moreover, this study emphasizes the role of virtual mentorship opportunities in fostering inclusivity and support for individuals from underrepresented groups in STEM fields. By overcoming barriers to full participation in the scientific community, virtual mentorship programs can create a more equitable and inclusive environment for aspiring researchers. This research contributes to the growing body of literature on the effectiveness and the potential of virtual research programs and mentorship opportunities in broadening participation and breaking down barriers in STEM education and careers.

   Summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs) are established to provide platforms for interest in scientific research and as tools for eventual matriculation to scientific graduate programs. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of in-person programs for 2020 and 2021, creating the need for alternative programming. The National Summer Undergraduate Research Project (NSURP) was created to provide a virtual option to REUs in microbiology to compensate for the pandemic-initiated loss of research opportunities. Although in-person REUs have since been restored, NSURP currently remains an option for those unable to travel to in-person programs in the first place due to familial, community, and/or monetary obligations. This study examines the effects of the program's first 3 years, documenting the students’ experiences, and suggests future directions and areas of study related to the impact of virtual research experiences on expanding and diversifying science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

    

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3. TEAM ADVANCE: Facilitated Peer Mentoring Circles Supporting Early Career Faculty

   Malloy, Erin ; Foland, Joanna H. ( December 2022 , The chronicle of mentoring coaching)

   Though mentoring is associated with faculty productivity, career success, and satisfaction, barriers to effective mentoring such as time and resources persist. At UNC-Chapel Hill, mentoring climate surveys revealed uneven access to mentoring, with majority of faculty securing mentors on their own. Targeting Equity in Access to Mentoring (TEAM) ADVANCE (NSF Award#1760187) launched a facilitated peer mentoring circles program in fall 2019 to provide support for early career faculty in itsmultilevel intervention. TEAM ADVANCE Peer Mentoring Circles provide a semi-structured, facilitated peer mentoring model. Open to all early career faculty, each circle supports up to 6 mentees, facilitated by 2 senior faculty. A goals/values survey enabled formation of groups that include tenure-track and fixed-term faculty from a variety of disciplines. Circles meet monthly. Facilitators debrief between circles meetings. A concurrent professional development workshop series provides resources and topics for circle discussions. Circles also address individual and shared goals. A total of 168 faculty participated in the program over 3 academic years. Qualitative analysis of focus group data and open-ended responses on mentoring climate surveys from program participants revealed themes of safe spaces for conversations, access to senior faculty, access to career development resources, and networking with peers/similar social identities. Mentoring Climate Survey data from all faculty respondents indicated an increase in satisfaction with peer mentoring from fall 2019 to spring 2020, statistically significant for women (p < 0.05). The TEAM ADVANCE Peer Mentoring Circles program shows promise and scalability in supporting early career faculty across a wide range of social identities. Senior mentor-facilitators were appreciated. The semi-structured approach with access to workshops/content on professional development topics (e.g., negotiation, promotion/tenure, annual reviews) provides a base for Circles conversations to unfold to directly support peer mentees. The has been delivered in-person and virtually. Administrative support is the primary cost. 

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4. Preparation of Female and Minority PhD and Post-Docs for Careers in Engineering Academia (Experience)

   Makki, Nidaa ; Cutright, Teresa J. ; Coats, Linda T. ; Willits, Rebecca K. ; Stone, Tonya W. ; Williams, Lakiesha N. ; Rodrigues, Debora F. ( July 2022 , ASEE annual conference)

   Improving undergraduate STEM teaching for diverse students is dependent to some extent on increasing the representation of Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) and women in the ranks of faculty in engineering departments. However, new faculty members, whether they had postdoctoral training or not, report that they were not adequately prepared for academia. To address this need, a professional development program was developed for underrepresented doctoral and postdoctoral students, which focused on various strategies to be successful in teaching, research and service aspects of academic positions. The program included an intensive two-week summer session, with follow-up mentoring during the academic year, and was conducted from 2017 to 2020 with three cohorts of fellows recruited from across the country. To evaluate the impact of the program on the participants’ perceptions of their preparation for academic careers, a follow up survey was sent in May 2021 to the three former cohorts of participants (n=61), and responses were received from 37 of them. The survey asked participants to reflect on areas that they felt most prepared for in their academic positions, and areas that they felt least prepared for. The survey also asked participants to discuss additional supports they would have liked to have been provided with to better prepare them given their current positions (academic, industry, etc.). Results from the survey indicated that 92% of participants found the professional development program prepared them for the responsibilities and expectations to succeed in academic positions. Over 90% agreed that the program prepared them for the application process for a tenure track search, and 89% agreed the program prepared them for the primary components of the startup package. In addition, participants reported that the program increased their preparation in developing teaching philosophy (100%), developing learning outcomes (97%), and using active learning strategies during teaching (91%). The majority agreed that the program helped prepare them to teach students with various cultural backgrounds, and to develop and use assessment strategies. Participants were also asked to discuss the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on their career trajectory, and most of them reported being somewhat impacted (65%) to extremely impacted (29%). Participants reported few or no job openings, cancelations of interviews, delays in research which impacted the rate of completing degrees, and publications, which affected the participants’ application competitiveness. Furthermore, working from home and balancing family and academic responsibilities affected their productivity. Based on the survey results, funds were secured to provide an additional day of professional training to cover any items not addressed during summer training, as well as any issues, challenges, or concerns they might have encountered while fulfilling their academic position. Thirty-three ACADEME fellows have indicated that they will participate in the new professional development, held in May 2022. Results from this analysis, and preliminary topics and outcomes of the supplemental activities are discussed. The findings contribute to the literature by increasing knowledge of specific challenges that new faculty encounter and can inform future efforts to support minorities and women in engineering doctoral programs. 

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5. Preparation of Female and Minority PhD and Post-Docs for Careers in Engineering Academia (Experience)

   Makki, Nidaa ; Cutright, Teresa J. ; Coats, Linda T. ; Willits, Rebecca K. ; Stone, Tonya W. ; Williams, Lakiesha N. ; Rodrigues, Debora F. ( July 2022 , ASEE annual conference)

   Improving undergraduate STEM teaching for diverse students is dependent to some extent on increasing the representation of Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) and women in the ranks of faculty in engineering departments. However, new faculty members, whether they had postdoctoral training or not, report that they were not adequately prepared for academia. To address this need, a professional development program was developed for underrepresented doctoral and postdoctoral students, which focused on various strategies to be successful in teaching, research and service aspects of academic positions. The program included an intensive two-week summer session, with follow-up mentoring during the academic year, and was conducted from 2017 to 2020 with three cohorts of fellows recruited from across the country. To evaluate the impact of the program on the participants’ perceptions of their preparation for academic careers, a follow up survey was sent in May 2021 to the three former cohorts of participants (n=61), and responses were received from 37 of them. The survey asked participants to reflect on areas that they felt most prepared for in their academic positions, and areas that they felt least prepared for. The survey also asked participants to discuss additional supports they would have liked to have been provided with to better prepare them given their current positions (academic, industry, etc.). Results from the survey indicated that 92% of participants found the professional development program prepared them for the responsibilities and expectations to succeed in academic positions. Over 90% agreed that the program prepared them for the application process for a tenure track search, and 89% agreed the program prepared them for the primary components of the startup package. In addition, participants reported that the program increased their preparation in developing teaching philosophy (100%), developing learning outcomes (97%), and using active learning strategies during teaching (91%). The majority agreed that the program helped prepare them to teach students with various cultural backgrounds, and to develop and use assessment strategies. Participants were also asked to discuss the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on their career trajectory, and most of them reported being somewhat impacted (65%) to extremely impacted (29%). Participants reported few or no job openings, cancelations of interviews, delays in research which impacted the rate of completing degrees, and publications, which affected the participants’ application competitiveness. Furthermore, working from home and balancing family and academic responsibilities affected their productivity. Based on the survey results, funds were secured to provide an additional day of professional training to cover any items not addressed during summer training, as well as any issues, challenges, or concerns they might have encountered while fulfilling their academic position. Thirty-three ACADEME fellows have indicated that they will participate in the new professional development, held in May 2022. Results from this analysis, and preliminary topics and outcomes of the supplemental activities are discussed. The findings contribute to the literature by increasing knowledge of specific challenges that new faculty encounter and can inform future efforts to support minorities and women in engineering doctoral programs. 

   more » « less