CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS AT A R1 UNIVERSITY TO TEACH AND ENGAGE WITH STUDENTS AND FACULTY AT MSI/2YC INSTITUTIONS

The Stanford InTeGrate program is a partnership between the Stanford School of Earth, Energy and Environmental Sciences and STEM faculty at local two-year colleges (2YCs) and minority serving institutions (MSIs). The primary objective of the program is to recruit and increase the retention of underrepresented minorities within the STEM disciplines at all levels of academia. We work towards this objective in two ways:

• Exposing undergraduate students in general science or early geoscience courses to geoscience modules that address global sustainability issues, thereby increasing accessibility and relevancy for URM students.
• Creating opportunities for URM postdoctoral and advanced graduate students to teach these modules in classrooms at our partner institutions.

Pre and post surveys measured changes in undergraduate students’ geoliteracy and attitudes towards the geosciences. Surveys were also used to measure graduate/postdoctoral students’ and faculty mentors’ satisfaction with the program as well as its impact on their career goals. Results indicated that after course participation, 57% of students were more motivated to take action personally or professionally to create a more environmentally sustainable society. Students also reported a 40% increase in their interest in an Earth or Environmental Sciences career path.

By the end of the 2 teaching cycles, 11 postdocs and advanced graduate students participated in InTeGrate module training, pedagogy development, and taught in 9 undergraduate classrooms at our partner MSI/2YC institutions. The postdocs/advanced graduate students also made positive connections with their mentors that served as a source of career networking. All of our postdocs/advanced graduate students finished the program feeling re-inspired in their own sense of purpose regarding their academic careers; whether they chose to pursue full-time lecturing positions at teaching universities, adjunct lecturing, or research at the R1 level, they did so with confidence due to their teaching experience and career insights.

Overall, initial findings indicate program success in increasing undergraduate student interest in creating a more environmentally sustainable society, pursuing a career in Earth or Environmental Sciences, and increasing retention at the post-graduate level.