An official website of the United States government
Abstract Persistence across undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs is exceptionally low. Recent studies have shown that social support and sense of belonging are particularly important for students who are historically underrepresented in STEM, yet few interventions have directly targeted or investigated these factors. This qualitative study investigates low‐income, high‐achieving undergraduate STEM students' perceptions of their belonging in the context of a 2‐year peer social support group intervention. Interview analysis of 11 participants demonstrates that these STEM students attribute their sense of belonging to feelings or displays of comfort, commonality, community, and concerted effort. The peer group facilitated increases in participants' social support and sense of belonging by allowing participants to build friendships, recognize shared experiences, connect to their campus, build confidence with peers, and feel supported in their non‐academic and academic struggles. Although the program's main objective was to build participants' sense of belonging, the social support provided through the peer group also acted as a mechanism for increasing information‐related social capital. We recommend the implementation of similar non‐academic, supportive social spaces to increase the sense of belonging and overall persistence of low‐income STEM students.
more »
« less
This content will become publicly available on January 7, 2026
Perspectives on postbaccalaureate PEERS : Advocacy and empowering communities
Abstract The impact of Covid‐19 pandemic has dramatically shifted the education landscape between recent college and university graduates and pathways to graduate degrees. In my perspective article, I wish to share the challenges, reflections, and a call‐to‐action framework in ways we can support and advocate for postbaccalaureate persons excluded because of their ethnicity of race, or from a structurally marginalized community orPEERSthrough the lens of mindfulness, humility, reflection, and deep listening. Through cross‐institutional community network support, culturally responsive mentoring of postbaccalaureate PEERS is one of the key dimensions in empowering communities toward health, environmental, and social justice.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 1852032
- PAR ID:
- 10627818
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education
- Volume:
- 53
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 1470-8175
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 126 to 130
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
Summary Holobiont phenotype results from a combination of host and symbiont genotypes as well as from prevailing environmental conditions that alter the relationships among symbiotic members. Corals exemplify this concept, where shifts in the algal symbiont community can lead to some corals becoming more or less thermally tolerant. Despite linkage between coral bleaching and disease, the roles of symbiotic bacteria in holobiont resistance and susceptibility to disease remains less well understood. This study thus characterizes the microbiome of disease‐resistant and ‐susceptibleAcropora cervicorniscoral genotypes (hereafter referred to simply as ‘genotypes’) before and after high temperature‐mediated bleaching. We found that the intracellular bacterial parasite ‘Ca.Aquarickettsia rohweri’ was strikingly abundant in disease‐susceptible genotypes. Disease‐resistant genotypes, however, had notably more diverse and even communities, with correspondingly low abundances of ‘Ca.Aquarickettsia’.Bleaching caused a dramatic reduction of ‘Ca.Aquarickettsia’ within disease‐susceptible corals and led to an increase in bacterial community dispersion, as well as the proliferation of opportunists. Our data support the hypothesis that ‘Ca.Aquarickettsia’ species increase coral disease risk through two mechanisms: (i) the creation of host nutritional deficiencies leading to a compromised host‐symbiont state and (ii) the opening of niche space for potential pathogens during thermal stress.more » « less
-
Abstract This study examined how children’s moral reasoning in response to intergroup exclusion scenarios relates to inclusive attitudes and behaviors. A sample of 528 students (Mage= 9.19,SD = 0.90; 264 girls) in third through fifth grade participated in theDeveloping Inclusive Youth(DIY) program, which provided structured opportunities for moral reasoning through varied intergroup scenarios and peer discussions. Results showed that more frequent use of moral reasoning predicted greater inclusivity across multiple measures. Children who engaged in higher levels of moral reasoning demonstrated more negative evaluations of exclusion, greater empathy toward peers from multiple racial groups, and a stronger desire to play with those peers. However, moral reasoning was not significantly associated with expectations for inclusion or with attitudes toward boys or girls. No significant interactions emerged between moral reasoning and participant demographics (race, gender, grade), suggesting broadly applicable effects. These findings highlight moral reasoning as a key mechanism for promoting inclusive orientations in childhood, particularly in contexts involving racial diversity. Future research should explore how moral reasoning interacts with other factors, such as empathy, perspective-taking, and group norms, to support inclusivity across social contexts.more » « less
-
Abstract Identity development frameworks provide insight into why and to what extent individuals engage in STEM‐related activities. While studies of “STEM identity” often build off previously validated disciplinary and/or science identity frameworks, quantitative analyses of constructs that specifically measure STEM identity and its antecedents are scarce, making it challenging for researchers or practitioners to apply a measurement‐based perspective of participation in opportunities billed as “STEM.” In this study, we tested two expanded structural equation models of STEM identity development, building off extensions of science and disciplinary‐identity frameworks, that incorporated additional factors relevant to identity development: gender, ethnicity, home science support, parental education, and experiencing science talk in the home. Our models test theorized relationships between interest, sense of recognition, performance‐competence, and identity in the context of STEM with undergraduate students (N = 522) enrolled in introductory STEM courses at a Hispanic Serving Institution. Our findings support our measurement of STEM identity and its indicators, providing researchers with a predictive model associated with academic intentions across disciplinary domains in STEM. Further, our expanded model (i.e., Model I+) indicates significant contributions of participant gender, which has a larger indirect effect on STEM identity (β = 0.50) than the direct effect of STEM interest (β = 0.29), and of home support in relation to performance‐competence in academic contexts. Our model also posits a significant contribution of family science talk to sense of recognition as a STEM person, expanding our understandings of the important role of the home environment while challenging prior conceptions of science capital and habitus. We situate our results within a broader discussion regarding the validity of “STEM identity” as a concept and construct in the context of communities often marginalized in STEM fields.more » « less
-
Abstract BackgroundThe vertebrate enteric nervous system (ENS) consists of a series of interconnected ganglia within the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, formed during development following migration of enteric neural crest cells (ENCCs) into the primitive gut tube. Much work has been done to unravel the complex nature of extrinsic and intrinsic factors that regulate processes that direct migration, proliferation, and differentiation of ENCCs. However, ENS development is a complex process, and we still have much to learn regarding the signaling factors that regulate ENCC development. ResultsHere in zebrafish, through transcriptomic, in situ transcript expression, immunohistochemical analysis, and chemical attenuation, we identified a time‐dependent role for bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) in the maintenance of Phox2bb+enteric progenitor numbers and/or time of differentiation of the progenitor pool. In support of our in silico transcriptomic analysis, we identified expression of a novel ENS ligand‐encoding transcript,bmp5, within developmental regions of ENCCs. Through generation of a novel mutantbmp5wmr2andbmp5crispants, we identified a functional role for BMP5 in proper GI tract colonization, wherebyphox2bb+enteric progenitor numbers were reduced. ConclusionAltogether, this work identified time‐dependent roles for BMP signaling and a novel extrinsic factor, BMP5, that is necessary for vertebrate ENS formation.more » « less
