A Financial, Academic, and Socio-emotional Support Ecosystem for Talented Low-income Students in Biology, Chemistry, and Psychology

This project will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, a Hispanic Serving Institution. Over its 5-year duration, this project will provide scholarships to 36 unique full-time undergraduate students who are pursuing bachelor’s degrees in Biology, Chemistry, and/or Psychology.

Two cohorts of first-year students will receive up to four years of scholarship funds through this project. The project proposes an ecosystem of three components: 1) financial, 2) academic, and 3) socio-emotional support for increasing retention and persistence of undergraduate students in preparation for STEM careers of national demand. It aims to increase student persistence in STEM fields by linking scholarships with effective co-curricular activities, including mentoring, undergraduate research experiences, graduate school preparation, participation in discipline-specific conferences, and a comprehensive emotional support system.

Because the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez has a high population of students who are underrepresented in their pursuit of STEM fields of study, this project has the potential to broaden participation in STEM disciplines and to learn how mentoring, research experiences, socio-emotional support, and other activities support retention and graduation of this student population.

The overall goal of the project is to increase degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduates in STEM fields. Three specific aims guide the execution of the project. First is to provide the financial, academic, and socio-emotional support needed to expand personal and professional capabilities necessary to successfully complete the students' programs of study on time.

Second is to implement an ecosystem of proven financial, academic, and socio-emotional support strategies, and to study the effect of that ecosystem on persistence and student success. Third, and finally, is to contribute knowledge about the implementation and sustainability of effective evidence-based co-curricular activities on student intent to pursue graduate education and/or enter the STEM workforce.

Psychosocial, non-cognitive factors, such as personal crises, parental job instability, and lack of robust support systems, have generally been demonstrated to affect student persistence in STEM. In addition, low-income students often face additional challenges such as natural disasters, family emergencies, income, food and housing insecurity, responsibilities towards siblings, interruptions in education and limited social networks.

An integrated approach encompassing financial, socio-emotional, and academic support for low-income students in this project can effectively address the multifaceted issues faced by this population. This project will investigate the effects of psychosocial and stress factors with a model that directly focuses on addressing these students' socio-emotional and academic support needs beyond financial assistance.

Cohort building activities will be designed to establish a sense of community and belonging among students. The project includes workshops, study groups, site visits, and social events designed to support students. The evaluation of the project’s model will employ a longitudinal observation approach with regular collection of data such as retention rate, academic progress, satisfaction with the program, professional interests, and students’ ability to visualize the possibilities for personal and professional development, job opportunities, and skills required for success.

In addition, researchers will probe stress-coping behavior through student interviews and open-ended questions, and promote growth mindset and social belonging for college students. The collected data will be subjected to comprehensive analysis and evaluation. The findings will provide valuable insights into the impact of the interventions on the cohort's academic, economic, and socio-emotional well-being.

This knowledge will refine and improve the interventions and inform future policies and practices aimed at supporting low-income talented students. Ultimately, the goal is to foster a nurturing environment that empowers these students to thrive academically, overcome economic barriers, and maintain positive overall well-being. The project's findings hold significant potential to benefit other institutions that serve low-income, highly vulnerable STEM students, including minority-serving institutions.

Results of this project will be made available by presentations at national conferences and publications within the education community. To make the project’s approach accessible to a broader audience, researchers will provide online modules for faculty professional development. These modules will cover trauma-informed advising techniques, equipping faculty members with the necessary tools and knowledge to support students effectively.

This project is funded by NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in STEM fields. It also aims to improve the education of future STEM workers, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income students.

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.