STC Broadening Participation Workshop

1. STC Broadening Participation Workshop Keith Oden, PhD. Diversity Director Center for Materials and Devices for Information Technology Research (CMDITR) Keith.Oden@chemistry.gatech.edu STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

2. URG Initiatives • FutureTech Workshop • GEM-STC Partnership • Norfolk State University (NSU) PhD Program Partnership STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

3. FutureTech Workshop • CMDITR partnered with three other STCs to introduce minority students to research opportunities within NSF funded STCs • A total of eight hands-on workshops were offered during a one day conference, November 4, 2006 • 140 minority students participated – Native American, Hispanic and African American – from over 30 institutions STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

4. This event showcased four National Science Foundation funded Science & Technology Centers, allowed students to interactively: • Experiment with sensors in multi-scalable applications (CENS) • Explore trapping and spectroscopy of single cells with lasers to diagnose disease (CBST) • Perform interference modulation with visible light (MDITR) • Learn about random lasers and Nanoplasmonics (CMR-PREM MetaMaterials) PREM MetaMaterials Come and get hands-on experience on leading edge science and technology that shapes our future. FutureTech Workshop 2nd Hands-On FutureTech Workshop November 4th, 2006 @ Norfolk State University STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

5. FutureTech Workshop If I knew then what I know now, I would have… • Prior to event survey student participants for their need areas and interests (funding, grad school myths, applying to grad school, choosing a grad school) • Build in interactive elements into your event • Leverage resources and funds with institution/department • Review exit evaluations and make adjustments • Sponsor one-day FutureTech event for local/regional STEM colleges and students • Utilize event database for recruitment and tracking STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

6. GEM-STC Partnership • Established in 1976 www.gemfellowship.org • Offers 140+ portable fellowships annually to underrepresented students • MS & PhD-Engineering; PhD-Science • 650+ Database - Minority STEM students • 95 Universities; 50 Employers • $20K in funding support + tuition & fees • Paid summer internship • GEM sponsored career/retention activities STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

7. GEM – STC Partnership • Partner with GEM and STCs to create a direct pipeline for minority candidates to gain research experience and to join STC graduate programs to complete advanced degrees GEM Fellowships • GEM-STC consortia awarded 4 GEM-STC Fellowships of $20K each for the 2006-07 academic year. • Each STC will sponsor at least one GEM-STC fellowship per year GEM-STC Partnership Building • STCs Annual participation in GEM’s “Future Faculty Symposium & Grad Lab” • Thesis and Proposal Writing • Locating Funding Sources • Mentorship • Career information tracks (industry, academia, entrepreneurial) • Networking • STCs host reception, STC Information workshop, participation on panels http://www.gem-stc.org STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

8. GEM – STC Partners Materials and Devices for Information Technology Research Center of Advanced Materials for Purification of Water with Systems Center for Integrated Space Weather Modeling Nanobiotechnology Center Sustainability of Semi-Arid Hydrology and Riparian Areas National Center for Earth-Surface Dynamics Center for Biophotonics Science and Technology Center for Coastal Margin Observation & Prediction STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

9. GEM – STC Partnership • Development and Utilization of GEM-STC Partnership • Website for Minority Recruiting • Website has existed for 2 years, and had 11,300 visits. • Provides descriptions of research at all partner STCs. • Students can fill out questionnaire to find out which STCs match their research interests. • To date: • 230 students have completed the matchmaker questionnaire. • 61 students requested to be contacted • 19 students that completed the matchmaker questionnaire applied for the GEM fellowship. • 56 GEM applicants listed an STC as one of their top-3 employer choices. STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

10. GEM-STC Partnership Challenges and Opportunities • STCs must be pro-active in recruitment • GEM database access -- Late November • Grad Admissions deadline – Feb/March • Some STCs need students with specific interests and backgrounds • Great STEM talent pool – numbers needed are relatively small STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

11. GEM – STC Partnership If I knew then what I know now, I would have… • Diversity recruitment is a long term pro-active initiative (non-traditional students) • Understand and research all the nuances of the conceptual model • Industry internship vs. research internship • Why should we change our current practices for funding students • What value does the relationship bring to other stake holders at your university • Understand the processes and the time frames (admissions deadlines vs. contact time with students) • STCs have particular needs for students with specific interests and backgrounds (e.g., geoscience students that have a specific interest in geomorphy or hydrology) • Enhance STC Recruitment information on GEM website STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

12. GEM – STC Partnership What Works… • Utilize all resources – national organizations, role models, faculty referrals, REUs, faculty visits and Partnership Relationships • Grow your own talent pool through outreach • Initiate creative programming • Be flexible • Listen to others STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

13. Fostering Diversity Recruitment 2006 REU Four students participated in REU CMDITR programs Graduate Admissions Eight students applied and were accepted into Ph.D. programs at Center institutions for Fall 2006; three of these students enrolled and joined Center research teams in Fall 2006. 2006 FOCUS on Faculty Program 10 Faculty from MSIs 30 High-achieving students CMDITR faculty led workshops on organic electronics and photonics in the undergraduate curriculum for professors at primarily undergraduate institutions. Under-represented faculty and faculty from under-represented institutions attended.An integrated set of laboratory experiments on nonlinear optical materials. Faculty were given a briefing on opportunities within CMDITR as well as GEM. 2007 FOCUS on Faculty Program 6 Faculty from MSIs 18 High-achieving students STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

14. NSU PhD Program Partnership Ph.D. Program in Materials Science and Engineering is Approved by the State of VirginiaCMDITR has been collaborating with NSU faculty in the development and implementation of a new Ph.D. program in Advanced Materials Science and Engineering (www.nsu.edu/cmr) • This is NSU’s first Ph.D. program in Science or Engineering and only the second MSE Ph.D. program in an historically black college or university. • CMDITR faculty have assisted NSU in preparing and piloting lecture and supplemental materials and has been providing advice on the implementation and management of the Ph.D. program. • NSU held its first student recruitment workshop on November 17, 2006 with 45 participants from various US colleges and universities. • The implementation of the program will begin in fall 2007 semester and NSU has received 28 applications as of March 15, 2007. NSU’s Ph.D. recruitment workshop is attended by 45 students on November 17, 2006. STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

15. NSU – PhD Program Goal : To ensure successful implementation of a new PhD program in advanced Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) at Norfolk State University beginning in September 2007 Accomplishments: • Development of course material and curriculum: CMDITR faculty have assisted NSU in preparing and piloting lecture and supplemental materials for two core courses that make up the PhD curriculum. • At least a dozen of these lectures were recorded, and prepared for viewing using Tegrity software. These are available for CMDITR participants on the website. • NSU has funding to support 10 students in the coming academic year. Impact: The new PhD program will contribute significantly to increasing the workforce diversity in the areas of information technology, material science, and nanotechnology. Future Plans: Sustainability • The plan is to accept 10 students per year into this PhD program with the expectation that the ultimate student body will be between 40 and 60. • CMDITR institutions will provide at least three mini sabbaticals for NSU faculty. STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

16. NSU – PhD Program If I knew then what I know now, I would have… This is a major undertaking Have buy-in from many supportive groups and leverage their participation (administrators, faculty, industry, STC) Provide research infrastructure (assist school with securing grants; NASA,NSF, etc.,) Faculty “release-time” for recruitment, to develop course curriculum, materials, policies & procedures, and internship placement Identify leadership among faculty to spearhead initiatives Adjust administrative processes to allow for required expansion Cover all your bases – have broad participation STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

17. NSU – PhD Program Keith,To tell you the truth, I feel quite confident that we did as well as we could have done thus far (among ourselves). I would like to have some extra support this summer – so you can add that as a plan: receive advice on how to manage the program, guide for qualifiers, candidacy, students’ mentoring system implementation, ethics and professional development course, internships, collaborative projects, etc. So I would say that the partnership has been a great success in giving us the support and exposure to resources that can make our PhD program unique in providing more minority students with excellent research and education experiences in an interdisciplinary field. We are writing 2 proposals (RISE and IGERT) on the strength of our collaborations and the new PhD program.The support from Larry Dalton really made a difference on the administrators here and in Richmond. (Thanks a bunch :-)).Suely Dr. Suely Black NSU PhD Program Coordinator STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007

18. Questions? STC Broadening Participation Workshop March 21-23, 2007