Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation America's Science and Technology Talent at the Crossroads (2011) / Chapter Skim
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4 Access and Motivation
4 Access and Motivation
Pages 91-102
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From page 91... ...
This pool of underrepresented minorities and women enrolled in postsecondary institutions has increased. As shown in Figure 4-1, total undergraduate enrollment across all fields for each racial/ethnic minority group increased between 1976 and 2008.
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From page 92... ...
Black females accounted for 64 percent of the total undergraduate black enrollment. American Indian/Alaska Native females made up 60 percent of the total American Indian/Alaska Native student enrollment, and Hispanic females made up 58 percent of the total Hispanic student enrollment.
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From page 93... ...
, this is a significant achievement of historical proportions that has its origins in the migration of African Americans to the North during and after World War II, the rapid growth of the U.S. Hispanic population during the past two decades, the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s and its focus on education, and efforts -- including affirmative action, financial aid, and institutional efforts to increase diversity -- to increase the access of underrepresented minorities and economically disadvantaged students to higher education that date from the 1960s and 1970s.2 At the same time that underrepresented minority enrollment has been increasing, the proportion of underrepresented minority freshmen at fouryear colleges and universities who aspire to major in STEM fields has increased and, as seen in the HERI data discussed earlier, is and has been since the early 1990s similar to that of whites and Asian Americans.
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From page 94... ...
The Spellings Commission focused in this regard on college awareness activities during high school, noting that "many students and parents don't understand the steps needed to prepare for college," and there need to be resources for early and ongoing college awareness activities, academic support, and college planning and financial aid application assistance."3 Similarly, a recent report of the College Board argued that, especially to encourage more first-generation students to apply to college, the postsecondary admissions process needs to be simplified and clarified.4 The college admissions process is also a critical gatekeeper for postsecondary education. Since the 1950s, the nation's ongoing dialogue and struggle over civil rights has focused squarely on admissions to college, graduate school, and professional programs.
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From page 95... ...
, after extensive research, noted that underrepresented minority students at selective institutions graduate at lower rates than do white and Asian students and end up with grade point averages in the lower ranks of their class. However, they concurred with Bowen and Bok that the advantages associated with attending a more selective institution trump lower class rank (Box 4-1)
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From page 96... ...
On the whole, the evidence does not support assertions made by mismatch proponents. Instead, affirmative action, which enables more underrepresented minority students to gain access to selective colleges than would a race-blind admission policy, appears to help more than harm minority students' futures.
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From page 97... ...
Outreach efforts from government agencies, industry, and postsecondary institutions can all work to raise interest and awareness of STEM careers in all students, including underrepresented minorities. NACME has argued that this should begin very early in elementary school, urging that businesses "form partnerships with K-12 schools to promote STEM careers and education to underrepresented minority students, including providing STEM employees to serve as role models and mentors, offering on-site internships to students 9 William G
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From page 98... ...
Examples include female LSAMP students visiting high schools to talk to girls about math, LSAMP students participating in a precollege initiative where high school students are invited onto the college campus to learn about science dis ciplines, and science faculty visiting high schools on Saturdays to expose students to science professions and activities.12 There are other NSF programs that provide outreach from postsecondary institutions to K-12 schools, including the GK-12 Program, Opportunities for Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences Program, and Mathematics and Science Partnerships. Some are not targeted directly at underrepresented minority students, but they may benefit them.
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From page 99... ...
To complement efforts to raise awareness of STEM careers generally, counseling in middle and high schools can also provide important and timely information in a practical way about what is academically necessary -- in high school and in college -- to pursue STEM careers. This counseling can also focus on preparing students and families for their initial interactions with higher education institutions, including the application and financial aid processes.
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From page 100... ...
Pearson contends that most American historians and sociologists have largely ignored African American scientists in general and chemists in particular. He recommends that historians and sociologists of science research and publicize -- in school curricula and popular magazines -- the contributions and experiences of eminent African American scientists.17 REPRISE ON FOUR APPROACHES Reflecting for a moment on the four approaches to improving underrepresented minority participation in STEM presented in chapter 3 and in particular in Table 3-1, we can see each of these approaches at play here: • Improving Information for All Prospective College Students: The Spellings Commission recommendation to improve college awareness activities, aimed at all students, is important to and can benefit underrepresented minorities as well as others, including those in STEM.
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From page 101... ...
Substantial amounts of money were spent by the federal government over the past 30 years to address this problem, yet as of last year, the number of PhDs in STEM fields awarded to African Americans climbed to about 2 percent. Why should this matter to you?
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From page 102... ...
102 EXPANDING UNDERREPRESENTED MINORITY PARTICIPATION • Increasing STEM Outreach to Underrepresented Minorities: Programs such as the LSAMP high school outreach activities and the TRIO Upward Bound Program that specifically target underrepresented minorities in mathematics, science, and engineering are important means for reaching these groups and providing a pathway forward in STEM.
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