The mixed methods study aimed to measure the impact professional development programs have on STEM professionals' job satisfaction and organizational commitment, specifically, through the level of participation in the professional development program, and employees' perceived effectiveness of said professional development program. Four research…

The evidence regarding the effectiveness of STEM support programs for K-12 students to spark their interest in the STEM field is mixed. The goals and contents of support programs vary and mostly cover short intervention periods. So far, not many studies exist that cover different learning characteristics of students in long-term STEM support…

This convergent mixed-methods study aimed to evaluate the mentorships in a high school with well-established student mentorship opportunities. Examining the characteristics and role of mentorships for students interested in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) careers determined how mentorships impact STEM career decisions.…

The purpose of this quantitative cross-sectional study was to investigate the role of mentoring on preventing attrition of females in STEM pathways. This particular study examined mentoring sampled women currently in cybersecurity and engineering professions, though the study and subsequent results could be easily applied to other professions. The…

Athena Swan was established in 2005 with the goal of advancing the careers of women in STEMM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine) subjects in higher education. Since then, it has expanded its remit in various ways and has generated some controversy. This paper explains how Athena Swan operates as a policy-scoring scheme,…

The?"Urban STEM Collaboratory" is a five-year project sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) that addresses challenges to student success in STEM disciplines through a multi-institutional collaboration via?the?University of Memphis (UofM), University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver), and Indiana University-Purdue University…

It is essential that all students who are interested in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) have the motivational supports to persist in their STEM career trajectories. "STEM role models," or successful individuals in STEM, can be powerful tools to motivate college students towards STEM careers, particularly if students…

Manufacturers have expressed concerns about talent shortages, citing the perceptions held by students/parents of the industry as a major contributing factor. At the same time, policymakers/educational leaders continue to call for STEM education programming to maintain competitiveness in such industries. Accordingly, manufacturers have launched…

This study investigates the effect of a female STEM professional mentoring program on perceptions among K-12 female participants. Led by STEM professionals, the program aims to enhance understanding of STEM careers. The findings reveal significant changes in the K-12 females' attitude and career aspirations towards STEM following their involvement…

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) areas are one of the fastest-growing majors in the nation, engineering, is projected to add the second largest number of new jobs from 2016 to 2026 with 140,000 new jobs (Torpey, 2018). Unfortunately, there is a disparity between enrollment and graduation rates (Chen, 2015; Lucas &…

Successful retention of STEM majors that then successfully transition into the U.S. STEM workforce is a major challenge for institutions of higher education. The present work represents a quality improvement study of a custom-designed professional development course for undergraduate students characterized by an innovative integration of workforce…

Middle school Black girls in the Chicagoland area encounter challenges when engaging in Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) learning and developing individual STEM identities. Black girls with good grades in STEM courses are reluctant to pursue STEM careers because of the negative stereotypes they face in school (King & Pringle,…

Recent work indicates that gender-inclusive advertisements can increase women's involvement in STEM fields. However, it remains less clear whether these inclusionary efforts would benefit more from focusing on the pragmatic utility or moral need for inclusivity. This study extends this work by determining the extent to which two unique inclusivity…

In 2014, the NIH Diversity Program Consortium (DPC) launched an initiative to implement and evaluate novel interventions at a variety of academic institutions across the country to engage undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds in biomedically-related research. The local intervention examined in the current study provides Critical Race…

Increasing the representation of skilled workers in STEM fields has been a priority in the United States, with a particular emphasis on supporting underrepresented groups. While urban areas with established higher education institutions have made efforts to engage underrepresented students in STEM, this study sheds light on the challenges faced by…