Scholars in Engineering: Promoting Student Success through Cohort-Building and Industrial EngagementIntroductionThe National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering andMathematics (S-STEM) program provides grants to institutions of higher education to supportscholarships for academically well-prepared undergraduate students with demonstrated financialneed. The goal of the program is to contribute to the number of well-prepared scientists andengineers in the workforce by increasing the number of students with financial need who enterthe STEM workforce after completing a degree program in science or engineering1,2.In spring 2012, we received an S-STEM grant to establish the “CLEAR Scholars in Engineering
realized that a number of things need to be done to produce moredomestic students that are strong candidates for PSPE, other graduate degree programs, andimmediate employment.In 2011, TTU Electrical and Computer Engineering was awarded an S-STEM scholarship projectfrom the National Science Foundation. The primary goal of the project was to provide a strongerpipeline to the semiconductor device industry for students with financially need and highacademic capabilities. The TTU project is known as Scholarships in Semiconductor Engineering.It was designed to capitalize on the infrastructure and successes of PSPE. Over the first threeyears of the four year project, approximately 20 students per year are supported at some level byNSF funds while an
exchange of ideasbetween all participants. Annually implementation of outcomes will create a feedback loop,cultivating continuous growth of research and educational excellence.There currently exist several transdisciplinary NSF programs, such as REU and RET Sites, S-STEM, STEM+C, STELAR, INCLUDES and ITEST, which integrate STEM teaching, learning,and research for preK-post secondary students in formal and informal settings. The vision of theSTEM Culture of Excellence Center is to extend these programs by simultaneously bringingknowledge and innovation to school districts and community colleges, as well as broadeningparticipation, by supporting active research and mentorship opportunities between teachers, HS,UG, and graduate scholars, and provide
education experiences to enhance and develop the capstone design course. In 2015 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition. ASEE Conferences, June 2015. https://peer.asee.org/24428.[13] F. Mistree, Z. Siddique, M. Pournik, and B. Bodie. An industry-university partnership to foster interdisciplinary education. In 2016 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, New Orleans, Louisiana, June 2016. ASEE Conferences. https://peer.asee.org/26210.[14] L. Massi, M. Georgiopoulos, C. Young, C. Ford, P. Lancey, D. Bhati, and K. Small. Internships and undergraduate research: Impact, support, and institutionalization of an nsf s-stem program through