NSF S-STEM Grant # PI: Dr Robert R Klepper Professor of Chemistry Iowa Lakes Community College Estherville, IA rrklepper@iowalakes.

Transcription

1 Infinity Scholars

2 NSF S-STEM Grant # PI: Dr Robert R Klepper Professor of Chemistry Iowa Lakes Community College Estherville, IA rrklepper@iowalakes.edu

3 Program description: This comprehensive project will utilize financial and academic support to create a learning community for STEM students similar to students enrolling in a career program. Grant funds will be used to annually award scholarships to approximately 35 students. The award amount will be up to $4,000 per year based on tuition and fees for full-time students attending Iowa Lakes Community College. Students awarded scholarships will demonstrate both academic talent and financial need as defined by the National Science Foundation and Federal Title IV regulations.

4 Scholarship participants will: 1) Achieve at least one of the following by the end of the project period: 2) Receive an associate degree in one of the S-STEM disciplines; 3) transfer to a baccalaureate degree program in one of the S-STEM disciplines; or 4) complete a stage within an associate degree at Iowa Lakes in one of the S-STEM disciplines is documented and defined as a point of unusually high attrition; 5) Participate in all of the project activities identified within the project plan; and 6) Meet or exceed established project academic achievement standards.

5 GOALS Goal 1: Improve educational opportunities for students interested in STEM careers. Goal 2: Increase student retention to degree achievement. Goal 3: Increase impact of student support for students enrolled in STEM disciplines. Goal 4: Increase numbers of well educated and skilled employees in STEM careers of national need.

6 Broader Impact: This NSF S-STEM: Infinity Scholars project will serve as a model for comprehensive academic support and scholastic enrichment to assist students to complete a two-year degree and successfully transfer to a four-year college or transition to the work place. Project broader impact will be realized through expansion of internships and job shadow experiences for freshman and sophomore STEM discipline students. Project completers will be firmly entrenched on a STEM career path and/or transfer to a four-year college. The blending of academic and support services initiated by this project will meet the unique needs of these and other students in rural colleges nationwide.

7 Intellectual Merit: Project strategies unify a diverse learning community through intentional student engagement activities sequenced to build upon competencies developed each academic term of enrollment. Retention strategies and project activities provide participants with the academic and career exploration support necessary for seamless transition to a university or the workforce. Quantified project objectives have been based on trend data of Iowa Lakes first time, full time student cohorts. Baseline data for Iowa Lakes and STEM degree programs will be entered into a project database in tandem with established college institutional research processes. The Principal Investigators and Core Team will partner with the Iowa Lakes Institutional Research Office to track similarities and disconnects among participant and eligible non-participant STEM program students to further evaluate project impact and need for improvement. Strategies and lessons learned will be disseminated on a state and national level. STEM business and industry partners from each discipline will serve on the project Core

8 Team. Iowa Lakes eligible, targeted STEM degree programs include: Biomass Energy Processing, Computer Aided Drafting and Design, Computer Forensics, Computer Science, Education Transfer (Math and Science focus), Engineering Transfer, Information Technology, Mathematics Transfer, Science Transfer, Sustainable Energy Resource Management, and Wind Energy and Turbine Technology. Results from Prior NSF Support: CSEMS DUE : Infinity Scholars, Focus: Increase graduation rates of underrepresented, financially needy, academically talented students in the Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics and Science (CSEMS) disciplines. Results: 110 students participated in the four-year project. More than 64.5 percent of the Infinity Scholars project students completed an associate degree within two years compared to 43.2 percent of the Iowa Lakes student body. This successful project serves as the model for this application.

9 Outcomes: 1. Provided scholarships for STEM students. 2. Developed 2 courses based on the Infinity Scholar program a. Infinity Scholar Seminar I i. All students did a research paper in an area of specific interest to them. b.infinity Scholar Seminar II i. All students did a capstone project in an area of specific interest to them. 3. Students visited a University to learn about STEM programs available at a higher level than available at the Community College. 4. Students job shadowed in an area of the STEM disciplines. Some examples of the job shadowing were: a. Dentist b.chiropractor c. Wind Energy Technician

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