Hispanic Serving Institutions STEM Hub for Innovation in Numeracy Education (HSI-SHINE)

About This Grant

With support from the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI Program), this HSI Program Resource Hub aims to improve students' numeracy skills, train faculty at Hispanic-Serving Institutions to teach these skills more effectively and develop a national repository of numeracy resources for faculty and students at HSIs. The STEM Hub for Innovation in Numeracy Education (SHINE) will address widespread illiteracy in quantitative skills by equipping faculty with professional development in teaching quantitative reasoning and data analysis, developing an engaging online numeracy training platform, and establishing community-based Data Analysis Research Programs (DARP) that apply quantitative research skills to real-world problems. SHINE will also integrate co-requisite math instruction and create a repository of resources connecting students with internships, job opportunities, and educational pathways. Faculty participants will design innovative instructional materials, mentor students in meaningful research projects, and implement evidence-based approaches to strengthen numeracy education. These efforts aim to build sustainable communities of practice that promote collaboration among faculty and institutions, improve educational outcomes for students, and prepare participants for successful careers in STEM. By addressing the needs of both students and surrounding communities, SHINE will create a lasting educational and societal impact, bridging gaps in numeracy education. The SHINE project aims to strengthen faculty capacity for teaching quantitative reasoning and data analysis while improving students’ numeracy skills within the larger process of liberatory identity development, including not only academic (STEM identity, in particular) vis a vis community-based initiatives. Participants will develop instructional materials, lead student assessments, and mentor students in the DARP, which connects classroom learning to real-world applications. The project will also launch an online numeracy training platform with accessible features and co-requisite mathematical support, providing students with effective tools for skill development. SHINE will evaluate its impact through a mixed-methods approach, including surveys, skills tests, interviews, and focus groups, to measure faculty preparedness and student quantitative reasoning skills, STEM identity, and liberatory outcomes. Key research questions will address how SHINE builds empowering outcomes by influencing cognitive skills, attitudes, student retention, graduation rates, and career trajectories. Anticipated outcomes include enhanced faculty expertise, improved student numeracy and STEM readiness, and a national repository of instructional resources to support quantitative reasoning education across institutions. Dissemination of findings will occur through scholarly articles, conference presentations, and open-access materials, ensuring scalability and broad impact. The HSI Program aims to enhance undergraduate STEM education and build capacity at HSIs. Projects supported by the HSI Program will also generate new knowledge on how to achieve these aims. 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.