Start Date
16-10-2020 10:00 AM
End Date
16-10-2020 10:50 AM
Document Type
Presentation
Abstract
Underrepresentation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields by individuals with low socioeconomic status (SES) is a long-standing concern. Funded in late 2018, the NexSTEM Program (the “Program”) is a National Science Foundation multi-institution consortia S-STEM grant-funded program at Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU), Illinois State University (ISU), and Heartland Community College (HCC) with the goal of reducing barriers for low SES students from Central Illinois enrolling in and completing STEM degree programs at the three institutions and identifying effective, and sustainable, programmatic components. To help address barriers, the Program awards 2- and 4-year scholarships to academically successful students with significant financial need, and pairs the scholarships with multi-level mentoring, academic supports, and hands-on STEM research project involvement beginning in the first semester of college for both 2-year and 4-year students. Uniquely, HCC students who want to transfer to IWU or ISU can take their scholarship with them as they complete their 4-year STEM degree. The Program has now onboarded 2 cohorts of largely Pell-eligible first year students pursuing an eligible STEM major at one of the three IHEs. This presentation will discuss program structure, interim outcomes related to the current cohorts, and implications for the efficacy of this model in improving retention and representation in STEM.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
The NexSTEM Program: A Community Assets Program that Fosters the Next Generation of STEM Leaders
Underrepresentation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields by individuals with low socioeconomic status (SES) is a long-standing concern. Funded in late 2018, the NexSTEM Program (the “Program”) is a National Science Foundation multi-institution consortia S-STEM grant-funded program at Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU), Illinois State University (ISU), and Heartland Community College (HCC) with the goal of reducing barriers for low SES students from Central Illinois enrolling in and completing STEM degree programs at the three institutions and identifying effective, and sustainable, programmatic components. To help address barriers, the Program awards 2- and 4-year scholarships to academically successful students with significant financial need, and pairs the scholarships with multi-level mentoring, academic supports, and hands-on STEM research project involvement beginning in the first semester of college for both 2-year and 4-year students. Uniquely, HCC students who want to transfer to IWU or ISU can take their scholarship with them as they complete their 4-year STEM degree. The Program has now onboarded 2 cohorts of largely Pell-eligible first year students pursuing an eligible STEM major at one of the three IHEs. This presentation will discuss program structure, interim outcomes related to the current cohorts, and implications for the efficacy of this model in improving retention and representation in STEM.
Speaker Information
Maggie Evans, PhD
Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington, IL
Sheri L. Glowinski, PhD
Director, NexSTEM Program, Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington, IL
Pennie Gray, PhD
Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington, IL
Rebecca Roesner, PhD
PI, NSF S-STEM NexSTEM Grant, Associate Provost & Professor of Chemistry, Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington, IL