Preliminary Findings of the AIR/IHEP Broadening Participation in STEM Project

1. Preliminary Findings of the AIR/IHEP Broadening Participation in STEM Project 2nd Annual STEMtech Conference October 2, 2011

2. My Objectives Today • A bit about IHEP… • STEM Policy Environment • Broadening Participation in STEM Project • Degree Trends • Qualitative Findings • Q/A and Discussion 2

3. STEM Policy Environment • Increased STEM Demand. There is an increasing demand for US STEM degree production, which is declining despite significant federal investments in STEM education • By 2018, a full 60% of jobs will require some form of postsecondary credential • The fastest-growing occupations are in STEM and health professions • Untapped Talent Pool. Underrepresented minorities (URM) and women are an untapped STEM talent pool and thus represent an opportunity cost for the nation • By 2050, racial/ethnic minorities will comprise 55% of the working-age population, with Latinos at 30%, African-Americans at 12% and Asian-Americans at 8%

4. STEM Policy Environment • Strong National Commitment. Strong language on commitment to STEM and STEM education by the administration • Even given economic downturn and debt debate • College completion goals, including beyond administration • Broaden Perspectives. Broadening participation improves science and spurs innovation • Entrepreneurial spirit, use of technology across cultures • Heightened Role of NSF. Where is the ROI? • The administration, Congress, and other stakeholders have asked for a greater ROI on undergraduate STEM education • To respond to the call (Johnson (D-TX)) for a convening of STEM higher education stakeholders to examine BP efforts 4

5. The Project National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded effort led by the American Institutes for Research (AIR) in partnership with the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) • Our Charge. • To examine and rethink NSF’s investment in programs designed to stimulate undergraduate STEM degree production, particularly among URMs, women, and persons with disability • To provide thought leadership, grounded in evidence, in the area of (undergraduate) STEM talent development • Project Leadership. • Carlos Rodriguez, Principal Investigator, AIR • Lauren Amos, Project Director, AIR • Lorelle L. Espinosa, Director of Policy and Strategic Initiatives, IHEP

6. The Project • Project Advisory Council. • Megan Bang, Director of Education, American Indian Center of Chicago & Senior Researcher, TERC • Steven Castillo, Dean of Engineering, New Mexico State University • Fred M. Diaz, President & CEO, Ram Truck Brand, Chrysler Group LLC • Tina Garza,Professor, University of Texas El Paso • Lino Gonzalez, Scientist, Genentech • Walter M. Kimbrough, President, Philander Smith College • Lindsey Malcom, Assistant Professor, George Washington University • Diana I. Marinez, Emeritus Professor of Biochemistry & Dean, College of Science and Technology, Texas A&M University Corpus Christi • Krish Mathur, Program Manager, US Department of Education • Eduardo Padrón, President, Miami Dade College • Stacy Phelps, CEO, American Indian Institute for Innovation • Lidija Sekaric, Senior Advisor & Science Policy Fellow, Office of the Under Secretary for Energy • Judith Summers-Gates, Senior Chemist, Food & Drug Administration • Margaret Daniels Tyler, Senior Program Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation 6

7. Key Activities • Data Analysis.Conducted ‘national landscape’ trend analyses disaggregated by race/ethnicity, gender, institution type, and discipline • Stakeholder Convenings.Conducted semi-structured focus groups with diverse set of institutional and other stakeholders • Policy Roundtable. Convened administration and agency officials charged with policymaking and funding of STEM education and education outreach • Literature Review. Reviewed the scholarship on discrete NSF-funded BP programs for improving STEM degree attainment among URMs, women and persons with disability

8. Key Project Tasks 1. Dissemination. Provide data and research briefs and commentary to inform and engage various audiences (including NSF and other agencies) in conversations on the condition of STEM education 2. Recommendations. Develop a set of recommendations for the NSF (and others) that: • offer strategies and tactics for improving the return on investment in undergraduate STEM education • identify gaps in the STEM education research literature and data collection infrastructure

9. Stakeholder Convenings • The Stakeholders. Representative sample of over 100 stakeholders from: • Higher education (two- and four-year, MSI, PWI), Federal agencies, Corporations, Non-profit organizations and foundations, Student groups, Professional associations • The Setting. Two weekend convenings in Washington, DC • March and April 2011 • Series of focus groups and plenary sessions • Stakeholder Charge. Help inform effective strategiesfor STEM education in the US • Thoughtful and constructive feedback on effective and less effective strategies designed to broaden participation in STEM • Craft new and innovative ideas

10. Stakeholder Convenings • The Issues. Focus group discussions centered on: • Goals, Metrics and Accountability • Higher Education’s Unique Role • Promising Practices: Broadening Underrepresented Minority Participation in STEM • STEM Talent Development Roles and Record: the Corporate Community • Overall Implications and Recommendations to NSF 10

11. Racial/Ethnic Minorities in STEM Bachelor’s Degree Completion 11

12. Percent Distribution by Race/Ethnicity 12

13. Proportion of Degrees by Race/Ethnicity 13

14. The biological sciences and engineering are the most popular STEM majors among underrepresented minorities; Earth, atmospheric and oceanic sciences are the least common Total STEM Bachelor’s Degree Completions by Race/Ethnicity 14

15. URM STEM Bachelor’s Degree Completions Relative to Census Estimates 15

16. Women in Undergraduate STEM Bachelor’s Degree Completion 16

17. Engineering is the most common STEM major among men; the biological sciences among women Percentage of STEM Bachelor’s Degree Completions to All Bachelor’s Completions by Sex 17

18. 18

19. The total number of URM women graduating in STEM has increased 19

20. Proportion Female Degree Completions 20

21. MAJOR THEMES Stakeholder Convenings 21

22. Stakeholder Convenings • Goals, Metrics, and Accountability. How do we measure progress? What should be accounted for? • Graduation rates are incomplete measures; they do NOT account for quality of instruction or contributions and successes of community colleges and TCUs • Examine outcomes by SES and first-generation college going status instead of just race/ethnicity and gender Other indicators: • Graduate school matriculation • STEM employment • Certificates and transfer • Faculty measures 22

23. Stakeholder Convenings • Goals, Metrics, and Accountability. How do we measure progress? What should be accounted for? • Clear message: All institutions are NOT created equal! • Account for institutions’ baseline • Establish benchmarks by institutional type • Evaluate institutions according to pre/post growth in areas of need specific to institutional context • Incentivize accountability “with teeth”, namely, student learning, gainful employment, departmental as well as institutional 23

24. Stakeholder Convenings • Higher Education’s Role and Innovative Solutions. Specific to two-year institutions? • Two-year institutions are generally marginalized yet often give students immediate entry to the STEM workforce • Funding for STEM research and education is disproportionately allocated to four-year institutions when CCs are the entry point for the largest share of minority students and we know that undergraduate research hooks students into STEM • Four-year institutions have a good deal to learn from tribal institutions and community colleges given their local records of success at educating non-traditional and academically underprepared students • Public and private resources should support efforts for two-year and four-year institutions to learn from each other’s instructional and research strengths as well as to partner in research activities to expand learning opportunities for underrepresented groups. 24

25. Stakeholder Convenings • Higher Education’s Role and Innovative Solutions. Incentivizing Broadening Participation… • Heighten attention to the issue of STEM workforce diversity among senior leadership at research institutions • It is time to increase funding opportunities for institutions that do not yet have the faculty and infrastructure • You cannot do science if you do not DO science – the nation needs to support systemic technical assistance to two and four-year institutions to enhance STEM instructional program design and research facilities development; look to TCUs for model practices of cultural relevance • STEM workforce diversity concerns needs to be accepted as the responsibility of US colleges and universities • Institutions must work to fundamentally change the “culture of attrition” in favor of a true talent development model 25

26. Stakeholder Convenings • Aligning Higher Education and the Workforce. The nation’s higher education institutions are not necessarily focused on the need to respond to workforce and industry demands • Build a diverse, robust STEM workforce in those fields that meet the needs of our citizenry, economy, and national security • We need to assess the extent to which we are preparing or under-preparing graduates in each discipline • Ensure that every college graduate, no matter their field, have more than adequate scientific and technological literacy in the 21st century context to be active participants in US civic life. • Ensure a systemic approach that begins in middle school or before 26

27. Next Steps • Additional Analysis • Final Report to NSF • Seeking Phase II Support • Dissemination, Including Visits to Hill, Agency Community, Administration 27

28. Thank You! For more on this project: www.broadeningparticipation.org Lorelle L. Espinosa, Ph.D. Director of Policy and Strategic Initiatives Institute for Higher Education Policy lespinosa@ihep.org www.ihep.org/stemwatch.cfm 28