Fostering Success of Ethnic and Racial Minorities in STEM: The Role of Minority Serving Institutions

To maintain competitiveness in the global economy, United States policymakers and national leaders are increasing their attention to producing workers skilled in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Given the growing minority population in the country, it is critical that higher education policies, pedagogies, climates, and initiatives are effective in promoting racial and ethnic minority students’ educational attainment in STEM. Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) have shown efficacy in facilitating the success of racial and ethnic minority students in STEM and are collectively responsible for producing nearly one-third of the nation’s minority STEM graduates. In Fostering Success of Ethnic and Racial Minorities in STEM, well-known contributors share salient institutional characteristics, unique aspects of climate, pedagogy, and programmatic initiatives at MSIs that are instrumental in enhancing the success of racial and ethnic minority students in STEM education. This book provides recommendations on institutional practice, policy, and lessons that any institution can use on their campus to foster better retention and persistence among minority students. Higher Education leaders and administrators interested in encouraging achievement among racial and ethnic minority students in STEM education will find this book a welcomed and timely addition to the discourse on promoting minority student success.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1. Learning from Minority Serving Institutions: Implications for Racial and Ethnic Minority in STEM Robert T. Palmer, Assistant Professor of Student Affairs, SUNY Binghamton; Dina C. Maramba, Assistant Professor of Student Affairs, SUNY Binghamton; Marybeth Gasman, Associate Professor, University of Pennsylvania Chapter 2. The impact of the institutional climates of MSIs and their ability to foster success for Racial and Ethnic minority students Terrell Strayhorn, Associate Professor of Higher Education, The Ohio University Chapter 3. Faculty Preparation and Pedagogical Considerations in MSIs: Teaching from Culturally Responsive Perspectives T. Elon Dancy, Assistant Professor of Adult and Higher Education, University of Oklahoma Chapter 4. Increasing Women and Underrepresented Students in STEM: Role of Minority Serving Two-Year Colleges Frankie Santos Laanan, Associate Professor of Higher Education, Iowa State University; Dimitra L. Jackson; Postdoctoral and Research Associate; Iowa State University Chapter 5. Dedicated to Success: The Relationship between Supportive Faculty and Success for Racial and Ethnic Minorities in STEM at MSIs Shannon Gray, Associate Dean of the Pennoni Honors College and Director of the Honors Program at Drexel University Chapter 6. Engineering the Academic Success of Racial Ethnic Minority Students at Minority: Serving Institutions via Mentoring and Research Darnell Cole; Associate Professor of Education, University of Southern California Araceli Espinoza, PhD students, University of Southern California Chapter 7. Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving-Institutions (AANAPISIs): Mutable Sites of Intervention for STEM Opportunities and Outcomes Robert Teranishi, Associate Professor of Higher Education, New York University; Dina C. Maramba, Assistant Professor of Student Affairs, SUNY Binghamton; and Samuel D. Museus, Assistant Professor of Higher Education, UMass Boston Chapter 8. Measuring Campus Effort: An Essential Practice for 21st Century Assessment at HSIs Estela Mara Bensimon, Professor of Education, University of Southern California Alicia C. Dowd, Associate Professor of Education, University of Southern California; Misty Sawatzky, Advanced PhD, University of Southern California Chapter 9. Academic Integration for Racial and Ethnic Minorities in STEM: Examining Differences Between Minority Serving and Predominantly White Institutions Idara R. Essien, PhD., Director for Academic Success Programming, Legacy Institute. J. Luke Wood, PhD., Director of the Doctoral Program in Education and Assistant Professor of Leadership & Organizational Studies at Lincoln Memorial University. Chapter 10. Examining Programs of Success in STEM Education at MSIs to Facilitate the Retention and Persistence of Racial and Ethnic Minorities in STEM at Predominantly White institutions Robert T. Palmer, Assistant Professor of Student Affairs, SUNY Binghamton