Cohorts, Research Experiences, Academics, Teams, and Exploration to Support STEM Scholars

About This Grant

This project, Cohorts, Research Experiences, Academics, Teams, and Exploration to Support STEM Scholars (CREATE), will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Roosevelt University, a designated Hispanic-Serving Institution. Over its six-year duration, this Track 2 project will fund scholarships for 37 unique students who are pursuing bachelor's degrees in biology, biochemistry, computer science, and cyber and information security. First-year through sophomore students will receive scholarships for the duration of their undergraduate careers (up to four years for first-year students). Scholarship recipients will have opportunities to engage in co-curricular activities, including mentoring, cohort development, research, leadership training, and family/community inclusion, with mentoring as a central theme. Scholars will connect with professional, social, or personal mentors, with structured mentor relationships established for each S-STEM Scholar. Research participation will involve career exploration and research courses. Project leadership will implement a collective impact model, coordinating with partners to support the nation's STEM workforce needs. The overall goal of this project is to increase STEM degree completion of high-achieving, low-income undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. CREATE will work to reduce student attrition and improve engagement, retention, and graduation rates in Biology, Biochemistry, Computer Science, and Cyber and Information Security through four strategies: 1) awarding 19–37 annual S-STEM scholarships, 2) providing co-curricular support through cohort-building, mentoring, research, leadership training, and family/community inclusion, 3) enhancing curricula with Career and Research Connections courses, and 4) studying the influences of these supports on students' science identity, leadership identity, and success. This multifaceted, research-based approach will emphasize engagement inside and outside the classroom, role modeling, and mentoring to strengthen students' sense of belonging, science identity, and academic capital. Evidence suggests that interactions with faculty, mentors, research, internships, financial support, and academic and social resources increase STEM retention and graduation. The project will investigate the impacts of scholarships, mentoring, research, cohort participation, leadership development, and family/community involvement on belonging, science identity, and academic capital. Studies will analyze co-curricular and curricular strategies' outcomes, supported by a longitudinal assessment. This project has the potential to advance understanding of the effects of financial and co-curricular and curricular supports in retention and graduation of STEM undergraduate students. A CIPP (context, input, process, product) evaluation model will guide improvements by assessing strengths and areas for enhancement. Findings will be disseminated in journals, conferences to stakeholders, including educators, policymakers, and industry leaders. Funded by NSF's Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, this project will not only increase the number of academically talented, low-income STEM graduates but also improve the education of future STEM professionals and contribute knowledge on success, retention, transfer, graduation, and pathways for low-income students. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.