NSF Award
2305721
The Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program assists universities and colleges in their efforts to significantly increase the numbers of students matriculating into and successfully completing high quality degree programs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines in order to diversify the STEM workforce. Particular emphasis is placed on transforming undergraduate STEM education through innovative, evidence-based recruitment and retention strategies, and relevant educational experiences in support of racial and ethnic groups historically underrepresented in STEM disciplines: Blacks and African Americans, Hispanic and Latino Americans, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Native Pacific Islanders. These strategies facilitate the production of well-prepared students, highly qualified and motivated to pursue graduate education or careers in STEM. The need for cultivating STEM talent has been well established. For the United States to remain globally competitive, it is vital that it taps into the talent of all its citizens and provides exceptional educational preparedness in STEM areas that underpin the knowledge-based economy. <br/><br/>The Louis Stokes Mississippi Alliance for Minority Participation (LSMAMP), led by Jackson State University (JSU), will support Cohort 16 of its Bridge to the Doctorate (BD) program. A comprehensive program exists that develops a cohort of twelve BD Fellows to not only complete their M.S. degree requirements, but also the STEM doctoral degree. The two-year program will consist of didactic learning with engaged faculty-led research activities in hands-on laboratory training at state-of-the-art facilities and equipment housed in CORE multi-user research laboratories the institution and in collaboration with other federal, private and non-profit organizations. Enrichment activities include STEM speaker series, community service, professional development workshops. Formative and summative evaluation results will be disseminated broadly to support replication of the model to other graduate programs seeking to diversify STEM graduate education programs and the nation's STEM workforce.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
