Board 47: Year 2 of an S-STEM Summer Scholarship for a Sophomore Bridge Program

Katie Evans; Mitzi Desselles; Marisa K. Orr

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Conference: 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Tampa, Florida
Publication Date: June 15, 2019
Start Date: June 15, 2019
End Date: June 19, 2019
Conference Session: NSF Grantees Poster Session
Tagged Topic: NSF Grantees Poster Session
Page Count: 5
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--32357
Permanent URL: https://strategy.asee.org/32357
Download Count: 428

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Paper Authors

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Katie Evans Louisiana Tech University

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Dr. Katie Evans is the Associate Dean of Strategic Initiatives, the Entergy Corp LP&L/NOPSI #3 & #4 Professor of Mathematics, the Academic Director of Mathematics and Statistics and Online programs, and the Director of the Integrated STEM Education Research Center (ISERC). She earned her Ph.D. in Mathematics and M.S. in Mathematics at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA. Her research interests include distributed parameter control modeling and simulation, dynamic modeling of physical systems, and STEM education. She has published 20 peer-reviewed publications in these areas, and her research has been funded by the NSF, AFRL, and LA-BOR.

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Mitzi Desselles Louisiana Tech University orcid.org/0000-0003-2806-9838

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Dr. Desselles is Associate Professor and holds the Chester Ellis Endowed Professorship in the Department of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences at Louisiana Tech University. She is a member of the graduate faculty in Industrial/Organizational Psychology.

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Marisa K. Orr Clemson University orcid.org/0000-0001-5944-5846

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Marisa K. Orr is an Assistant Professor in Engineering and Science Education with a joint appointment in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Clemson University. Her research interests include student persistence and pathways in engineering, gender equity, diversity, and academic policy. Dr. Orr is a recipient of the NSF CAREER Award for her research entitled, “Empowering Students to be Adaptive Decision-Makers.”

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Abstract

The Engineering Fast-Forward Program at _______ University (supported by the DUE of NSF) is a summer S-STEM Scholarship Program that serves as a sophomore bridge for engineering majors. Specifically, it is designed to provide rising sophomore engineering majors with a smoother transition into the more difficult mathematics and engineering coursework they encounter after their first year in engineering. The scholarship program takes places over a 12-week summer term in which participants enroll in the first multivariable calculus course, statics, and a professional development course.

The multivariable calculus and statics courses are taught in a manner typical to how the classes would be taught for a non-S-STEM cohort of students, with the only difference being the class size. The S-STEM cohort classes included 18 students in Year 1 and 17 students in Year 2, while typical mathematics and statics sections of these courses have enrollments of 45-48 students per section. Year 1 saw higher than typical success rates in both the calculus and statics S-STEM sections, while the Year 2 cohort calculus and statics course performance more closely mirrored the performance seen in typical sections of these courses.

The professional development course has been designed as an exclusive offering to the S-STEM students. The course went through significant redesign between Years 1 and 2 in response to feedback from the Year 1 student cohort. The Year 2 professional development course included four components: 1) the entire curriculum from “Developing Spatial Thinking” by S. A. Sorby, 2) speakers from and industry trips to area companies utilizing engineering methods in the workplace, 3) faculty mentorship through faculty participation in the industry visits, 4) personal development including strengths assessment, self-reflection, team-building, communication, resume-writing, and interview skills, and 5) course assignments to strengthen, integrate, and apply each of the aforementioned components, including assignments to give students opportunities to hone their professional interactions with industry.

This implementation poster will focus on overall student success in their courses and the changes in the professional development course from Years 1 to 2.

Citation
Format

Evans, K., & Desselles, M., & Orr, M. K. (2019, June), Board 47: Year 2 of an S-STEM Summer Scholarship for a Sophomore Bridge Program Paper presented at 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Tampa, Florida. 10.18260/1-2--32357

TY - CPAPER
AB - The Engineering Fast-Forward Program at _______ University (supported by the DUE of NSF) is a summer S-STEM Scholarship Program that serves as a sophomore bridge for engineering majors. Specifically, it is designed to provide rising sophomore engineering majors with a smoother transition into the more difficult mathematics and engineering coursework they encounter after their first year in engineering. The scholarship program takes places over a 12-week summer term in which participants enroll in the first multivariable calculus course, statics, and a professional development course.

The multivariable calculus and statics courses are taught in a manner typical to how the classes would be taught for a non-S-STEM cohort of students, with the only difference being the class size. The S-STEM cohort classes included 18 students in Year 1 and 17 students in Year 2, while typical mathematics and statics sections of these courses have enrollments of 45-48 students per section. Year 1 saw higher than typical success rates in both the calculus and statics S-STEM sections, while the Year 2 cohort calculus and statics course performance more closely mirrored the performance seen in typical sections of these courses.

The professional development course has been designed as an exclusive offering to the S-STEM students. The course went through significant redesign between Years 1 and 2 in response to feedback from the Year 1 student cohort. The Year 2 professional development course included four components: 1) the entire curriculum from “Developing Spatial Thinking” by S. A. Sorby, 2) speakers from and industry trips to area companies utilizing engineering methods in the workplace, 3) faculty mentorship through faculty participation in the industry visits, 4) personal development including strengths assessment, self-reflection, team-building, communication, resume-writing, and interview skills, and 5) course assignments to strengthen, integrate, and apply each of the aforementioned components, including assignments to give students opportunities to hone their professional interactions with industry.

This implementation poster will focus on overall student success in their courses and the changes in the professional development course from Years 1 to 2.
AU - Katie Evans
AU - Mitzi Desselles
AU - Marisa K. Orr
CY - Tampa, Florida
DA - 2019/06/15
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Board 47: Year 2 of an S-STEM Summer Scholarship for a Sophomore Bridge Program
UR - https://strategy.asee.org/32357
DO - 10.18260/1-2--32357
ER -