Work in progress — Recruiting initiatives for Hispanic, first-generation students

Abstract

The "Program to Increase College Opportunities and Successes" (PICOS) is an NSF S-STEM funded initiative to increase the number of Hispanic, first-generation, economically disadvantaged students in Math, Chemistry, Engineering, and Engineering Technology using scholarship funds and academic success initiatives. The first phase of the project was implementing a recruiting strategy. To facilitate this, a recruiting advisory board composed of Hispanic representatives from the community and university was established. This board helped develop recruiting materials, educate the management team on Hispanic family dynamics, and advertise the program in the community. A second component was to have a knowledgeable recruiter involved in the program. The recruiter also served as liaison between the PICOS program and the broader university recruiters. A third component was to alleviate anxieties about college preparedness and transition by incorporating a summer bridge program. In the first two years, 25 students were recruited into the target majors, nearly doubling the overall Hispanic enrollment in these majors. This paper will elaborate on the recruiting strategies and impacts associated with this phase of the PICOS program.

Beyond SES: Individual Financial Status as a Predictor of Persistence for High-performing Undergraduate Engineering Students

“…A review of papers in the Diversity in Engineering (DinE) bibliography [20] revealed that in the context of diversity, when SES is discussed, authors most often connect it to poor academic performance and attrition. That is, authors note the existence of a generalized, societal-level connection between low SES and low academic achievement, and typically propose an initiative or intervention to help low SES students, often in a K-12 setting and with underrepresented minority populations [e.g., 21,22] . In short, SES tends to be both tacitly and overtly associated with scholarship on K-12, underrepresented minorities, and a lack of academic success and persistence.…”

Work in Progress: Design Activities in a Summer Engineering Program Implemented in Both Virtual and Hybrid Modality

“…The program enrolled underclassmen from the TAMUK COE and potential engineering transfer students from nearby community colleges and universities. Extracurricular Bridging Programs identified as a student success strategy by other engineering colleges served as an impetus for the SBP in an NSF IUSE grant [1][2][3]. The intent of this paper is to share the results of the third annual SBP in the NSF IUSE grant implemented at TAMUK, and to inform and solicit feedback from other undergraduate engineering education experts.…”

Work-in-Progress: Project-based Learning in a Summer Engineering Program Implemented Virtually

“…The program enrolled underclassmen from the TAMUK COE and potential engineering transfer students from nearby community colleges and universities. Extracurricular Bridging Programs identified as a student success strategy by other engineering colleges served as an impetus for the SBP in an NSF IUSE grant [1][2][3]. The intent of this paper is to share the results of the second annual virtual SBP in the NSF IUSE grant at TAMUK, and to inform and solicit feedback from other undergraduate engineering education experts.…”