Student-centered Strategies for Promoting Inclusive, Supportive, Diverse Environments in Graduate STEM Education

Kara Moloney; Colleen Elizabeth Bronner; Alin Wakefield; Jean S. VanderGheynst

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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: Improved Pathways to Graduate Studies
Tagged Division: Graduate Studies
Tagged Topic: Diversity
Page Count: 12
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--33305
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/33305
Download Count: 440

Paper Authors

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Colleen Elizabeth Bronner University of California, Davis

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Colleen Bronner is faculty member in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at University of California, Davis. She has a Ph.D. in Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering from the University at Buffalo, where she also earned a B.S.in Environmental Engineering, and a M.S. degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. Her current research interests include inclusion of underrepresented groups in engineering, effectiveness of active learning strategies, and engineering in PK-12 education.

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Alin Wakefield University of California, Davis

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Alin Wakefield serves as the Research and Graduate Studies Development Coordinator in the College of Engineering at UC Davis.

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Jean S. VanderGheynst University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth

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Jean VanderGheynst is Dean of the College of Engineering and Professor of Bioengineering at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, and Adjunct Professor of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at the University of California, Davis. Prior to joining UMass Dartmouth, she was Executive Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies in the College of Engineering and Professor of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at University of California, Davis.

Dr. VanderGheynst’s research focuses on next generation biofuels and bioproducts and agricultural biotechnology. Current projects examine the management of microbial communities in applications including water treatment, food and energy production, and soil treatment for the control of pests and pathogens. Dr. VanderGheynst received her BS degree from Syracuse University in Chemical Engineering in 1991 and PhD degree in Agricultural and Biological Engineering from Cornell University in 1997.

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Kara Moloney Ph.D. University of California, Davis

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Abstract

The 2018 Graduate STEM Education for the 21st Century report calls for a transformation from the current STEM graduate education to a system that is 1) student-centered, 2) provide diverse, equitable, and inclusive environments; 3) support graduate student mental health; 4) provides core competencies; and 5) allows for career exploration. One reason for the need for change is the STEM graduate education is not meeting the needs of students from all backgrounds, especially students from underrepresented groups. The Preparing Engineering Graduate Students for the 21st Century (PEGS21) at UC Davis is an NSF-funded S-STEM program targeting graduate student applicants who are academically talented, low-income and/or first generation. Through a cohort-building seminar, multi-pronged mentoring activities, and a stipend to ease the transition, this student-centered program supports about 15 first-year graduate students each year in an attempt to increase retention of students from underrepresented groups. A critical component of the program are professional development workshops and seminars in which PEGS21 scholars participate in their first year. After three years, program researchers are noticing trends among which types of seminars and workshops are most beneficial to first-year students. While the program organizes a weekly seminar series, additional workshops are offered through the university’s GradPathways program. PEGS21 scholars are required to attend six workshops (2 per quarter) in their first year. Workshops and seminar topics range from proactive mentoring to impostor syndrome to improving communication skills with improv.

In this paper, the authors will provide a brief introduction of the PEGS21 program, assessment methods used by the program, and lessons learned about effective professional development of students. Using survey data, student written workshop reflections and focus groups of former PEGS21 scholars, the authors will identify which workshops are valuable to our targeted graduate student and why and how. The paper will further explore how the workshop intersect with common barriers to graduate school retention for students from underrepresented groups (e.g., living in two worlds, knowing the rules, and seeking support). With this knowledge, other programs will be able to start similar student-centered programs that can help transform the graduate STEM education system.

Citation
Format

Bronner, C. E., & Wakefield, A., & VanderGheynst, J. S., & Moloney, K. (2019, June), Student-centered Strategies for Promoting Inclusive, Supportive, Diverse Environments in Graduate STEM Education Paper presented at 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Tampa, Florida. 10.18260/1-2--33305

TY - CPAPER
AB - The 2018 Graduate STEM Education for the 21st Century report calls for a transformation from the current STEM graduate education to a system that is 1) student-centered, 2) provide diverse, equitable, and inclusive environments; 3) support graduate student mental health; 4) provides core competencies; and 5) allows for career exploration. One reason for the need for change is the STEM graduate education is not meeting the needs of students from all backgrounds, especially students from underrepresented groups. The Preparing Engineering Graduate Students for the 21st Century (PEGS21) at UC Davis is an NSF-funded S-STEM program targeting graduate student applicants who are academically talented, low-income and/or first generation. Through a cohort-building seminar, multi-pronged mentoring activities, and a stipend to ease the transition, this student-centered program supports about 15 first-year graduate students each year in an attempt to increase retention of students from underrepresented groups. A critical component of the program are professional development workshops and seminars in which PEGS21 scholars participate in their first year. After three years, program researchers are noticing trends among which types of seminars and workshops are most beneficial to first-year students. While the program organizes a weekly seminar series, additional workshops are offered through the university’s GradPathways program. PEGS21 scholars are required to attend six workshops (2 per quarter) in their first year. Workshops and seminar topics range from proactive mentoring to impostor syndrome to improving communication skills with improv.

In this paper, the authors will provide a brief introduction of the PEGS21 program, assessment methods used by the program, and lessons learned about effective professional development of students. Using survey data, student written workshop reflections and focus groups of former PEGS21 scholars, the authors will identify which workshops are valuable to our targeted graduate student and why and how. The paper will further explore how the workshop intersect with common barriers to graduate school retention for students from underrepresented groups (e.g., living in two worlds, knowing the rules, and seeking support). With this knowledge, other programs will be able to start similar student-centered programs that can help transform the graduate STEM education system.
AU - Colleen Elizabeth Bronner
AU - Alin Wakefield
AU - Jean S. VanderGheynst
AU - Kara Moloney Ph.D.
CY - Tampa, Florida
DA - 2019/06/15
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Student-centered Strategies for Promoting Inclusive, Supportive, Diverse Environments in Graduate STEM Education
UR - https://peer.asee.org/33305
DO - 10.18260/1-2--33305
ER -