Assessment methods across post-secondary STEM education are traditionally constrained by logistics and likely contribute to the widespread inequities in STEM education outcomes. As part of attempts to improve and diversify the methods used in assessment, the authors have developed a flexible and low-tech style known as 'public exams' based in…

Lyman Briggs College is a small residential college within Michigan State University, devoted to preparing students for STEM careers via preparation in the biophysical sciences that is paired with the humanistic and social scientific study of science and sciences humanistic and social dimensions. This paper reports and interprets the quantitative…

We conducted interviews with non-formal environmental education programs aimed at K-12 student participants to: 1) understand the current objectives of non-formal environmental science-focused K-12 diversity pathway programs; 2) learn techniques used to recruit and engage participants with the ultimate goal of advancing them along an environmental…

Undergraduate student participation in out-of-class activities yields a range of documented benefits and represents an area of study that can inform efforts to increase persistence in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) majors, particularly for underrepresented groups. This study was designed to explore the impact of selected…

Increasing persistence and graduation of post-secondary STEM students is a topic of significant focus and research, as are strategies for identifying barriers to success and intervening to bridge related gaps. In the case of underrepresented students, there are many challenges that may impact persistence in STEM majors, many of which, while…

Undergraduate research experiences are an increasingly common component of STEM education practices. Student benefits associated with these experiences include increased interest and retention in STEM and/or research fields. Across the country, twenty-three states and Puerto Rico are supported through the National Institutes of Health's…

Operation STEM (OpSTEM) is an NSF grant-funded program at Cleveland State University to improve retention and graduation among high-risk students seeking STEM degrees by supporting them through early mathematics. OpSTEM focuses on students from underrepresented minority (URM) groups, first-generation college students, and women. The OpSTEM program…

With support from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Merced Anomaterials Center for Energy and Sensing (MACES) was launched in the summer of 2015 at the University of California Merced (UC Merced). MACES is a research and education center, focused on creating innovative materials-enabled solutions for energy and…

The proportion of underrepresented minority (URM) students graduating with Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) degrees, matriculating to graduate programs, and entering the STEM workforce continues to be significantly low. The Virginia-North Carolina Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (the VA-NC Alliance)…

The number of available jobs in environmental science, science, technology, engineering, and math (E-STEM) is growing rapidly. Nonetheless, women and Latinx, Black, and Indigenous people remain underrepresented in these fields. A number of diversity pipeline programs have been established with the goal of attracting and retaining individuals from…

We comment on several major factors that contribute to the underrepresentation of specific groups (i.e. racial and ethnic minorities) in Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) educational programs, particularly at the advanced graduate levels. Recognition of the structural inequalities that create and reinforce these disparities…

LAZARUS is the Lab for the Analysis of Zombie Activity and Research into Undead Simulations. LAZARUS began in 2014 through a [UNIVERSITY] and [ISD] partnership, aimed at engaging K-12 students in rigorous research in a unique way. This partnership was the initial driving force in the conceptualization and creation of a super-computer known as the…

Undergraduate research opportunities have expanded from elite universities in the United States to universities and institutions of all ranks and sizes. Research studies have shown positive outcomes in regards to the research experience for undergraduates (REU), such as enhanced research skills and competencies. However, with the widespread…

Consistent with national trends, only about ½ of students who intend to major in STEM disciplines at Maryville College (MC) complete bachelor's degrees in these fields. The Scots Science Scholars (S[superscript 3] ) program was funded through the National Science Foundation's STEM Talent Extension Program to increase the number of students…

Nearly one half of students planning to earn a STEM degree either change majors or leave college without a degree. The completion percentage is much lower for underrepresented minorities, of whom less than one third complete their STEM degree within six years. At the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, the STEM Boot Camp program was designed to…