NSF Award
1060482
This project focuses on Engineering Leadership Education and Development (E-LEAD) at Alfred University. Designed specifically to address some of the social and environmental factors that contribute to underrepresentation, the project has three main objectives: (a) to develop and deliver a dynamic outreach program to attract high-schoolers to the field of engineering, (2) to increase the number of engineering students at Alfred University by awarding engineering scholarships to academically talented but economically disadvantaged students, and (3) to develop and deliver effective co-curricular programming that will help engineering students succeed as leaders in the profession. Informed by gender-and-education research, co-curricular programming will be centered around three main themes: community building, leadership training, and career development. Community-building features include peer mentoring, co-located student housing, and networking events. Building upon the current activities of the Women's Leadership Center at Alfred University, leadership development activities include seminars, workshops, and a two-credit course on Gender and Leadership. Additionally, the scholars will hone their leadership skills by developing and delivering an outreach-and-recruiting program for high-schoolers. Career development activities include on-campus research experiences for first-year scholars, resume and interviewing workshops, and optional co-op educational experiences and summer internships. The long-term goal of the project is to develop a sustained scholarship and leadership at Alfred University.
