Rola, K., & Anderson, C. (2023, June), Work in Progress: Efficacy of a Peer Mentoring Program for Underrepresented First-Year Students at a Predominantly White Institution  Paper presented at 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Baltimore , Maryland. 10.18260/1-2--44227

\bibitem{asee_peer_44227}
  Rola, K., \& Anderson, C. (2023, June), \emph{Work in Progress: Efficacy of a Peer Mentoring Program for Underrepresented First-Year Students at a Predominantly White Institution}
  Paper presented at 2023 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, Baltimore , Maryland.
  10.18260/1-2--44227

Kelyn Rola and Caitlin Anderson.  "Work in Progress: Efficacy of a Peer Mentoring Program for Underrepresented First-Year Students at a Predominantly White Institution".  2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Baltimore , Maryland, 2023, June.  ASEE Conferences, 2023.  https://peer.asee.org/44227 Internet.  15 Jun, 2024

\bibitem{asee_peer_44227}
  Kelyn Rola and Caitlin Anderson.
  "Work in Progress: Efficacy of a Peer Mentoring Program for Underrepresented First-Year Students at a Predominantly White Institution".
  \emph{2023 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, Baltimore , Maryland, 2023, June}.
  ASEE Conferences, 2023.
  https://peer.asee.org/44227 Internet.  15 Jun, 2024

@INPROCEEDINGS{asee_peer_44227
author = "Kelyn Rola and Caitlin Anderson"
title = "Work in Progress: Efficacy of a Peer Mentoring Program for Underrepresented First-Year Students at a Predominantly White Institution"
booktitle = "2023 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition"
year = "2023"
month = "June"
address = "Baltimore , Maryland"
publisher = "ASEE Conferences"
note = {https://peer.asee.org/44227}
number = {10.18260/1-2--44227}
}

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - This work in progress paper explores student-related outcomes associated with participation in a novel peer mentoring program (PMP) for underrepresented first-year students in an engineering school at a private, predominantly White institution (PWI). The PMP’s mission is to support traditionally underrepresented (TU) students in engineering, including racial minorities (Black, Hispanic, and Native American students), first-generation students, and Pell-eligible students.  To be eligible to participate in the PMP, a student must possess at least one TU identity, be enrolled full-time in the school of engineering, and be an incoming college student. The PMP features two main components: peer mentoring and weekly programming. Program participants are paired with an upper-class, paid peer mentor who supports them in the formation and pursuit of academic, professional, and social goals. Peer mentors also guide their mentees during the transition to college by providing insights on course selection, resume development, professional organization membership, and other relevant issues. Program leadership and various student support offices facilitate weekly seminars for PMP participants with the intent of building community and introducing students to success strategies, such as time management, financial literacy, and stress mitigation. Each program component engages participants in complementary ways to provide a multidimensional approach to supporting students during their first year of college.   
The first full year of PMP implementation was 2022-23; thus, this work in progress paper explores preliminary data related to program participants’ retention and academic performance. Specifically, we compared the retention rates, first-term grade point averages (GPAs), and completed term hours of PMP participants and PMP-eligible students who did not participate in the program to those of all non-traditionally underrepresented (non-TU) engineering students for the 2021 and 2022 first-year cohorts. The results of chi-square tests indicated that significant differences existed in the retention rates of TU and non-TU students. A series of independent samples t-tests highlighted significant differences between the first-term GPAs and number of completed term hours of TU and non-TU students. Further analyses examined the differences in academic outcomes for PMP-eligible students and PMP participants. PMP participants had higher first-term GPAs than their eligible peers, and while the difference was not statistically significant, the difference may have a practical impact on students’ financial aid, scholarship eligibility, and major acceptance. Additionally, we found a significant difference in the number of term hours completed of PMP participants when compared to their eligible peers, which may have implications for students’ ability to graduate in four years.  
Reducing achievement gaps between traditionally underrepresented students and their majority peers is an intended outcome of this program. Preliminary data presented in this work in progress paper appear to indicate that the PMP represents a successful intervention for increasing the academic outcomes and retention of traditionally underrepresented students in engineering, which is an important step towards broadening participation. 
AU  - Kelyn Rola
AU  - Caitlin Anderson
CY  - Baltimore , Maryland
DA  - 2023/06/25
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Work in Progress: Efficacy of a Peer Mentoring Program for Underrepresented First-Year Students at a Predominantly White Institution
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/44227
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--44227
ER  -