Research, Revive, Recruit: Reimagining Recruitment and Program Pathways for Rural STEM Educators at Tennessee Wesleyan University

The project aims to serve the national need to prepare high-quality STEM educators and to fill a critical shortage of STEM teachers in rural areas of eastern Tennessee. This project aims to increase the number of Tennessee Wesleyan University (TWU) graduates who are prepared to teach STEM disciplines in high-need local education agencies (LEAs). To achieve this, the project aims to: identify barriers limiting enrollment in STEM teacher programs; strengthen partnerships with Cleveland State Community College (CSCC) and regional LEAs; and boost awareness and interest in STEM and STEM teaching among students at TWU and partnering schools.

The project plans to provide students with the knowledge, skills, and opportunities necessary to succeed in STEM fields and contribute to Tennessee’s long-term economic prosperity. A set of tools and procedures such as engaging recruitment activities and materials, aligning curriculum across STEM and education departments, and welcoming transfer agreements with CSCC are proposed to attract students into TWU’s STEM teacher preparation program. The ultimate goal of this project is to provide the groundwork for a Noyce Track 1 proposal.

This project is housed at Tennessee Wesleyan University and will leverage partnerships with Cleveland State Community College and regional high-need LEAs in rural area of east Tennessee. The underlying goal of this project is to build capacity to increase the number of TWU graduates who are certified and highly prepared to teach secondary education in STEM disciplines, particularly in biology, chemistry, and mathematics, to serve students in high-need LEAs.

The project has four accompanying goals: 1) Identify barriers and investigate potential solutions for STEM majors who wish to pursue careers in teaching. 2) Develop a STEM education transfer pathway with CSCC. 3) Develop and implement activities to promote STEM awareness as a recruiting mechanism among students in partner LEAs. 4) Evaluate the effectiveness, outcomes, and impact of the capacity building impetus of the project. These efforts are grounded in the recognition that STEM education is vital for preparing students to thrive in a technology-driven society and to meet the demands of the modern workforce.

The quasi-experimental project evaluation will provide formative and summative assessment and feedback and generate new knowledge with respect to barriers and best practices for recruiting and increasing the number of graduates certified and prepared to teach secondary STEM education, particularly in the rural arena. Analysis of the collected data and outcomes will be presented at national and local conferences and shared through the TWU website.

This Capacity Building project is supported through the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (Noyce). The Noyce program supports talented STEM undergraduate majors and professionals to become effective K-12 STEM teachers and experienced, exemplary K-12 teachers to become STEM master teachers in high-need school districts. It also supports research on the effectiveness and retention of K-12 STEM teachers in high-need school districts.

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.