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Opportunities for undergraduate research in STEM programs at community colleges can be few where lower-division science curriculum emphasizes classroom and laboratory-based learning and research laboratories are limited in number. This is particularly true in the geosciences where specialized programs are extremely rare. Urban serving academic research institutions have a unique role and opportunity to partner with regional community college programs for undergraduate research early-on in student post-secondary educational experiences. Programs built for community college transfer students to urban serving undergraduate programs can serve to integrate students into major programs and help reduce transfer shock. The benefits of exploring research as an undergraduate scholar are numerous and include: building towards mastery of technical skills; developing problem-solving in a real-world environment; reading and digesting scientific literature; analyzing experimental and simulation data; working independently and as part of a team; developing a mentoring relationship with a research advisor; and building a sense of belonging and confidence in a scientific field. However, many undergraduate research internships are targeted towards junior-level STEM majors already engaged in upper-division coursework and considering graduate school which effectively excludes community college students from participating. The Center for Climate and Aerosol Research (CCAR) Research Experience for Undergraduate program at Portland State University serves to help build the future diverse research community. 10-week intern research experiences are paired with an expert faculty mentor are designed for students majoring in the natural/physical sciences but not necessarily with a background in climate or atmospheric science. Additional programmatic activities include: 1-week orientation and training using short courses, faculty research seminars, and hands-on group workshops; academic professional and career development workshops throughout summer; journal club activities; final presentations at end of summer CCAR symposium; opportunities for travel for student presentations at scientific conferences; and social activities. Open to all qualifying undergraduates, since 2014 the program recruits primarily from regional (Northwest) community colleges, rural schools, and Native American serving institutions; recruiting students who would be unlikely to be otherwise exposed to such opportunities at their home institution. Over the past 9 cohorts of REU interns (2014-2019), approximately one third of CCAR REU scholars are community colleges students. Here we present criteria employed for selection of REU scholars and an analysis of selection biases in a comparison of students from community colleges, 4-year colleges, and PhD granting universities. We further investigate differential outcomes in efficacy of the REU program using evaluation data to assess changes over the program including: knowledge, intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, science identity, program satisfaction, and career aspirations. In this presentation, we present these findings along with supportive qualitative analyses and discuss their implications for community college students in undergraduate research programs in geosciences. 

Recent reviews of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education conclude that engagement of undergraduate students in research generally broadens future participation in research and increased retention in STEM. Towards the goal of investing in a sustained and diverse atmospheric science research community, the Center for Climate and Aerosol Research (CCAR) at Portland State University (PSU) introduced a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program in 2014 with the objective of providing atmospheric science summer research experiences to promising students in STEM disciplines from rural Northwest and Native American communities who would be unlikely to be otherwise exposed to such opportunities at their home institution. The PSU CCAR REU site is focused on student research in areas of atmospheric chemistry, physics, air quality, meteorology and climate change. For 10 weeks, students conduct research with an expert faculty mentor and participate in activities such as a short courses, faculty research seminars, and hands-on group workshops; academic professional and career development workshops; journal club activities; and opportunities for travel for student presentations at scientific conferences; and social activities. The program ends with a paper based on their summer research, which is presented via poster and oral presentations during our concluding CCAR symposium. Evaluation data from seven cohorts (2014-2021) of the CCAR REU (N = 70) was used to explore how science identity had changed over the course of the program, as well as what predicted positive increases in science identity. Change was assessed using paired-sample t-tests. To explore the predictors of change, we ran an exploratory stepwise regression where the difference score in science identity items from pre- to post-program was predicted by similar changes in knowledge, intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and career aspirations, demographic characteristics (e.g., age, gender), and mid-program satisfaction and met expectations. In this presentation, we present these findings along with supportive qualitative analyses and discuss their implications for undergraduate research programs in geoscience fields.