Board 140: "STEP-ing" Up: Building a Successful Student Leadership Program

Adrienne Steele; Warren N. Waggenspack

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Conference: 2018 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Publication Date: June 23, 2018
Start Date: June 23, 2018
End Date: July 27, 2018
Conference Session: NSF Grantees Poster Session
Tagged Topic: NSF Grantees Poster Session
Page Count: 6
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--29941
Permanent URL: https://strategy.asee.org/29941
Download Count: 460

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Paper Authors

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Adrienne Steele Louisiana State University

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Adrienne Steele has over 18 years experience in STEM education. Currently, Adrienne works at Louisiana State University, managing all aspects of the STEP project that consists of a large-scale peer mentoring program in the College of Engineering. Previously, she founded and coordinated the Scope-On-A-Rope Outreach Program (SOAR) in the Department of Biological Sciences, where she worked for 10 years. Prior to her positions at LSU, Adrienne was the Science Education Curator at the Louisiana Art and Science Museum in Baton Rouge. Adrienne has a Master of Science degree in zoology from LSU, where she studied in the Museum of Natural Science collections, and an Education Specialist Certification in science education.

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Warren N. Waggenspack Jr. Louisiana State University

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Warren N. Waggenspack, Jr. is currently the Undergraduate Program Director and holder of the Ned Adler Professorship in Mechanical Engineering at Louisiana State University. He obtained both his baccalaureate and master's degrees from LSU ME and his doctorate from Purdue University's School of Mechanical Engineering. He has been actively engaged in teaching, research and curricula development since joining the LSU faculty in 1988. As Associate Dean in the College of Engineering (2004-2014), he acquired significant funding from NSF to support the development of several initiatives aimed at improving student retention and graduation rates as well as supporting faculty with development of effective learning and teaching pedagogies.

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Abstract

The College of Engineering (CoE) at XX University has built a highly successful student mentoring and leadership program over the past ten years initiated with support from the NSF STEM Talent Expansion Program (STEP). The peer mentor program evolved from the STEP 1a grant in response to a need for upper-level students to assist with the freshman bridge camp. Starting the camp with five mentors in 2008, it now engages over 160 in 2017 and encompasses significant leadership training. Peer mentors are undergraduates from all majors within the College of Engineering including second semester freshmen through graduating seniors. In 2010, the students at XXU established a new organization, the Society of Peer Mentors (SPM) to formalize their efforts at the university. SPM fosters a hierarchy of upper-level students serving as leaders to mentor new members and to create and deliver programs. Peer Mentor Leaders (PML) facilitate the recruiting, application and interview process for new SPM members; they lead projects and supervise other mentors during the freshman camp, and they often serve as officers and chairs of the student organization.

Mentors participate in at least 12 hours of leadership training each year, which in the past two years has grown to include an off-campus, overnight retreat. At these leadership trainings, they learn about mentoring and leadership principles while bonding through team building activities. A strength of this program is that students quickly put their skills to use through developing and leading a wide variety of activities. Mentors serve as engineering supplemental instructors (initiated with the STEP 1b award), work in K-12 schools as mentors for robotics teams, perform several hours of outreach to K-12 students each semester, and mentor incoming freshmen during the bridge camp and introductory courses. Mentors are also encouraged to pursue their own ideas and passions, and they are given support to plan and carry out novel programs. Mentors have written proposals and been given seed funds for innovative activities such as a the first 24-hour computer hackathon in [state], a weekend bootcamp for sophomores in chemical engineering, and a 3-day robot build, each demonstrating leadership and commitment to the community.

Analyses have shown that mentors are retained and graduate in engineering at a 30-40% higher rate than their CoE peers. Over 80 mentors have graduated since the beginning of this program and are now employed across a spectrum of engineering industries. They continue to serve as important role models for our students, returning to share their stories and experiences starting engineering careers.

Citation
Format

Steele, A., & Waggenspack, W. N. (2018, June), Board 140: "STEP-ing" Up: Building a Successful Student Leadership Program Paper presented at 2018 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Salt Lake City, Utah. 10.18260/1-2--29941

TY - CPAPER
AB - The College of Engineering (CoE) at XX University has built a highly successful student mentoring and leadership program over the past ten years initiated with support from the NSF STEM Talent Expansion Program (STEP). The peer mentor program evolved from the STEP 1a grant in response to a need for upper-level students to assist with the freshman bridge camp. Starting the camp with five mentors in 2008, it now engages over 160 in 2017 and encompasses significant leadership training. Peer mentors are undergraduates from all majors within the College of Engineering including second semester freshmen through graduating seniors. In 2010, the students at XXU established a new organization, the Society of Peer Mentors (SPM) to formalize their efforts at the university. SPM fosters a hierarchy of upper-level students serving as leaders to mentor new members and to create and deliver programs. Peer Mentor Leaders (PML) facilitate the recruiting, application and interview process for new SPM members; they lead projects and supervise other mentors during the freshman camp, and they often serve as officers and chairs of the student organization.

Mentors participate in at least 12 hours of leadership training each year, which in the past two years has grown to include an off-campus, overnight retreat. At these leadership trainings, they learn about mentoring and leadership principles while bonding through team building activities. A strength of this program is that students quickly put their skills to use through developing and leading a wide variety of activities. Mentors serve as engineering supplemental instructors (initiated with the STEP 1b award), work in K-12 schools as mentors for robotics teams, perform several hours of outreach to K-12 students each semester, and mentor incoming freshmen during the bridge camp and introductory courses. Mentors are also encouraged to pursue their own ideas and passions, and they are given support to plan and carry out novel programs. Mentors have written proposals and been given seed funds for innovative activities such as a the first 24-hour computer hackathon in [state], a weekend bootcamp for sophomores in chemical engineering, and a 3-day robot build, each demonstrating leadership and commitment to the community.

Analyses have shown that mentors are retained and graduate in engineering at a 30-40% higher rate than their CoE peers. Over 80 mentors have graduated since the beginning of this program and are now employed across a spectrum of engineering industries. They continue to serve as important role models for our students, returning to share their stories and experiences starting engineering careers.
AU - Adrienne Steele
AU - Warren N. Waggenspack Jr.
CY - Salt Lake City, Utah
DA - 2018/06/23
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Board 140: "STEP-ing" Up: Building a Successful Student Leadership Program
UR - https://strategy.asee.org/29941
DO - 10.18260/1-2--29941
ER -