INCREASING WORKFORCE DIVERSITY THROUGH “STIMULATING HISPANIC PARTICIPATION IN THE GEOSCIENCES” (SHIP-GEO) PROGRAM AT RIO GRANDE VALLEY/SOUTH TEXAS

The SHIP-GEO Program at University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) was funded by NSF-Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Pathways into Geoscience (IUSE: GEOPATHS). The program addresses NSF’s goal of increasing diversity in the geoscience pipeline by attracting, supporting, and preparing Hispanic students for careers in geosciences.

SHIP-GEO has built up a great platform between two major colleges between Sciences and Engineering. It has become a recognized name among the mainly Hispanic (~90%) student body and Rio Grande Valley community in South Texas.

The program continues to impact students in South Texas through growing the Environmental Sciences program at UTRGV with the specific aim to recruit and retain students in geoscience; increasing community awareness of Earth Systems by providing field and laboratory extracurricular research and training opportunities; guiding local 2-year community college and high school students into geoscience careers; and exposing students to research as a path to graduate school.

Towards this goal, major accomplishments after two years of SHIP-GEO include: (1) well-developed local and regional field trips (five field trips per academic year impacting more than 200 students); (2) hosting external guest speakers for career and graduate school opportunities (state/federal agencies and research intensive universities; ten students in 2018 summer); (3) awarded thirty-three scholarships (double applicant pool from 2017); (4) excelled outreach and community engagement (average 3000 local K-12 students); (5) paired undergraduate students with alumni who are working in the field of interest of the student (six student-alumni-faculty teams); and (6) student research projects presented at regional, national and international meetings such as South-Central section of Geological Society of America (GSA), Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies (GCAGS), Soil Science Society of America (SSSA), and Canadian Society of Soil Science (CSSS).