486279
research-article2013
JHH12310.1177/1538192713486279Journal of Hispanic Higher EducationCarpi et al.
Development and Implementation of Targeted STEM Retention Strategies at a Hispanic-Serving Institution
Journal of Hispanic Higher Education 12(3) 280–299 © The Author(s) 2013 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1538192713486279 jhh.sagepub.com
Anthony Carpi1, Darcy M. Ronan1, Heather M. Falconer1, Heather H. Boyd2 and Nathan H. Lents1
Abstract Retention rates of undergraduates at large urban universities serving minority populations have been problematic, especially among students in science and technology fields. John Jay College of Criminal Justice has designed a cohesive collegiate retention program according to the Tinto model of retention. This article details the strategies utilized as they relate to known factors affecting college persistence. Preliminary outcomes of this work are also explored in terms of student involvement and institutional support. Resumen Tasas de retención de estudiantes de pregrado en universidades urbanas grandes sirviendo a poblaciones de minorías han sido problemáticas, especialmente entre estudiantes en las áreas de ciencia y tecnología. John Jay College ha designado programas colegiales cohesivos de retención de acuerdo al modelo Tinto de la retención. Este artículo detalla las estrategias utilizadas mientras se relacionan con factores conocidos afectando la persistencia de la universidad. Resultados preliminares de este trabajo también son explorados en términos de involucración de estudiantes y apoyo institucional. Keywords retention, science, persistence, undergraduate research, urban education, Title V 1John
Jay College, City University of New York, New York, NY, USA of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
2University
Corresponding Author: Anthony Carpi, Department of Sciences, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York, 524 West 59th St, New York, NY 10019, USA. Email:
[email protected]
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The Department of Sciences at John Jay College of Criminal Justice (JJC), a federally designated minority- and Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), has implemented a number of interventions to improve academic performance and retention of Hispanic students. This article details the strategies utilized as they relate to known factors affecting college persistence, according to the Tinto (1993) model of retention. Together, these programs form a cohesive collegiate retention program encompassing various aspects of the Tinto model. Preliminary outcomes of this work are also explored in terms of student involvement and institutional support. This article is intended for college and university faculty and administrators who are interested in recruiting, retaining, and graduating Hispanic students in science majors.
Institutional Background John Jay College of Criminal Justice is a senior college within the City University of New York (CUNY). Located in New York City and founded in 1964, the college is dedicated to education, research, and service in the fields of criminal justice and related areas of public service. The college is funded from both state and city governments, and operates under the CUNY Board of Higher Education. In addition to an undergraduate student population of more than 12,000 students, the college offers seven master’s degree programs and two doctoral programs. The college is recognized as both a minority- and Hispanic-serving institution by the U.S. Department of Education and as a primarily undergraduate institution by the National Science Foundation. Due to its success in graduating Hispanic students, the college was recognized by Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education as the leading 4-year HispanicServing Institution in the Northeastern United States (“John Jay College on the Move,” 2006). More than 41% of John Jay College of Criminal Justice undergraduates are first-generation college students, 14% are parents, 81% receive financial assistance, more than 49% come from homes earning less than US$30,000 per year, and 58% work while taking classes (John Jay College, 2011; National Center for Educational Statistics, 2009). The Department of Sciences at JJC prepares students in the disciplines of forensic science. As a result of a deliberate shift to promote higher standards within the department and across the college, the program has grown from one focused primarily on laboratory technician training into a rigorous research-oriented science program. The department offers forensic science training at the bachelor’s and master’s levels, and offers a concentration within the CUNY criminal justice doctoral curriculum.
Theoretical Background A variety of factors affecting retention of urban, Hispanic, and/or first-generation college students have been identified. These include high school preparation, knowledge about college life and career options, ongoing work and family commitments, and financial stress (Arana, Castaneda-Sound, Blanchard, & Aguilar, 2011; Garcia, 2010; Griffith, 2010; Hurtado, Carter, & Spuler, 1996; Vaquera & Maestas, 2009). STEM
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disciplines also face special retention challenges, with attrition rates from science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) the highest of any academic disciplines nationally. Studies suggest that a negative public perception of core STEM subject materials and career options contributes to attrition (Chang, 2002). A survey of students who left STEM majors suggests that the reasons most often given for leaving the field were the belief that non-STEM majors offer greater intrinsic interest, a loss of interest in STEM, and a rejection of the STEM career-associated lifestyle (Seymour, 1992). This problem is of particular concern among minorities, as Hispanics and African Americans, who account for 28.5% of the general population, only account for 12% of the total STEM degrees awarded (Chang, 2002). STEM fields represent the areas of greatest employment opportunity and highest wages in the coming decades, yet these are precisely the areas in which the discrepancies in degree attainment by minorities persist (Carnevale, 1999; Huang, Taddese, & Walter, 2000). Both minority and STEM-related retention factors highlight the importance of students’ attitudes and perceptions of the college experience in predicting continuation with college and desired fields of study. In a seminal work on college retention, Tinto (1993) explores student departure as a function of a variety of academic and social factors. Students bring their own individual characteristics such as prior schooling, skills and abilities, and family background. Individual differences in these characteristics influence the ease with which a student departs his or her home community and integrates within the college community, socially and academically. It is the extent of this social and academic integration that influences a student’s decision to persist or depart. Tinto argues that the institution plays a critical role in this process and can facilitate integration through purposeful and well-coordinated measures. Tinto observes the additional complications of integration and persistence at urban and nonresidential colleges where many students travel to campus only to attend classes. Furthermore, many students require academic remediation, as a consequence of inadequate prior schooling in urban school systems. Students experience the social and academic dimensions of college through both formal and informal means. The formal academic institutional experience is centered around the classroom though students also experience the academic culture informally through interactions with faculty and staff. Students become socially integrated as a result of peer group formation and interactions, which can occur informally or through organized extracurricular activities. Over the past decade, we have implemented a number of interventions at JJC to address Tinto’s factors through a combination of proven and innovative strategies including academic mentoring, college and career advising, scholarships, and research opportunities (Bordes-Edgar, Arrendo, Kurpius, & Rund, 2011; Espinosa, 2011; Lacy, 1978; Martin & Meyer, 2010). Programs at John Jay College of Criminal Justice support students in key areas of the institutional experience such as academic performance, faculty–staff interactions, extracurricular activities, and peer group interactions. The programs also address students’ intentions, goals, and institutional commitments; external commitments; and preentry attributes such as prior schooling and family background. The categories and relationships of the Tinto model are used as a framework for situating the various programs at John Jay College of Criminal Justice (Figure 1).
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2+2 Partnerships PRISM Undergraduate Research Course Credit
External Commitments
Advisement Materials Peer Mentoring Science Awards Math/SciCurr. Align. PRISM Research Symposium Undergraduate Research Course Credit
Intentions, Goals & Institutional Commitments
Peer Mentoring MSRC PRISM Research Symposium Undergraduate Research Course Credit
Peer Group Interactions
PRISM Research Symposium
Extracurricular Activities
Paced Courses Science Awards PRISM Research Symposium Undergraduate Research Course Credit
Faculty/Staff Interactions
Social Integration
Academic Integration
Figure 1. Retention Activities at John Jay College of Criminal Justice according to Tinto Model. Adapted from Tinto, V. (1993).
2+2 Partnerships MSRC Paced Courses
Prior Schooling
Peer Mentoring MSRC Paced Courses Math/SciCurr. Align. PRISM Undergraduate Research Course Credit
Skills & Abilities
Advisement Materials FOS 402
Family Background
Academic Performance Peer Mentoring MSRC Paced Courses Faculty Dev. Seminars
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Undergraduate research course credit
Faculty development seminars Math/science curriculum alignment Departmental student science awards Program for research initiatives for science majors Research symposium
Math and science resource center Paced science courses
Advisement materials and program 2+2 articulation with community colleges Peer mentoring program
Intervention
Knowledge about college and career Knowledge about college and career, financial stress
MSEIP, Title V
Title V
Knowledge about college and career Knowledge about college and career, work and family commitments, financial stress
School preparation
CCRAA
MSEIP, Title V, CCRAA
School preparation
School preparation
Knowledge about college and career Work and family commitments, financial stress Knowledge about college and career School preparation, financial stress
Barriers addressed
Title V, CCRAA
Title V
MSEIP, Title V
MSEIP, Title V
Title V, CCRAA
Title V
Grant(s) funding
Table 1. Summary of Retention Activities at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
2006-present
2008-present
2006-present
2000-present
2007-present
2006-2007
2005-present
2002-present
1999-2001
2005-present
2007-present
Program years
Ongoing, part of regular course offerings
Ongoing, with College support
Institutionalized as part of PRISM Ongoing, with College and Grant support
Materials in use
Ongoing, part of regular course offerings Materials in use
Ongoing, Institutionalized
Ongoing, as part of MSRC
Materials in use, funded by department Ongoing, students matriculating
Current status
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Interventions in the formal academic domain include mentoring, tutoring, curricular interventions, and staff development. Faculty–staff interactions are promoted through innovations in course design and undergraduate research. Peer interactions are also encouraged through interventions in mentoring, undergraduate research, and academic events. Interventions described in this article were funded by grants active from 1999 to 2011, which are identified in Table 1. In the program descriptions below, the interventions are grouped into three categories: new student induction, academic support and success, and career development and mentoring. We summarize how each intervention addresses known challenges and known attrition factors for the student population.
Institutional Interventions New Student Induction Advisement materials and program. In 2007, support from a U.S. Department of Education Title V Cooperative grant allowed the Department of Sciences to create a series of written materials for student advisement. The goals of these materials were to (a) standardize the information presented to students in the major, (b) provide them with resources for self-assessment toward improving study habits, and (c) better orient them to the rigors of the major. Materials include a Forensic Science Program Brochure, a Strategies of Success (SOS) Advisement Booklet, a companion advisement website:http://jjc.jjay.cuny.edu/erc/advise/, and a Science for Forensics Brochure developed by Queensborough Community College. This intervention corresponds to the Intentions, Goals, and Institutional Commitment category of the Tinto model by enhancing students’ knowledge about college, program requirements, and career possibilities. The materials serve as an introduction to the formal academic system of the Forensic Science Program and have been incorporated into a new formal orientation for first-year students. First generation college students benefit especially from these programs, as they navigate a new academic climate and a complex course sequence. The program brochure has been made available in Spanish to help engage more families of incoming students. Each year, almost 1,000 program brochures are distributed to prospective and incoming students, and more than 300 SOS Advisement Booklets are given to new freshman and transfer science majors. In a survey of undergraduate forensic science students, 46 of 61 responding students indicated that they used the SOS Advisement Booklet as a source of advisement information. Grant funds support periodic revisions and production of the Program brochure. In a show of institutional support, the department now funds printing of the advisement booklet through its operating budget. 2+2 articulation with community colleges. Proposed and developed with support from a 2006 U.S. Department of Education Title V Cooperative grant with Queensborough Community College (QCC), this program attracts qualified community college students into upper levels of the Forensic Science major at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. The goal of this program is to provide additional access points to the program
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and therefore additional routes to a bachelor’s degree in science for students at community college. Under the grant, faculty from the two colleges came together to evaluate and align curriculum in the foundational math and science courses so that students from either institution would have similar training in their first two years; specifically, the grant funded major course redevelopment at QCC, forensic seminars at QCC, and other joint activities to help orient students to the major. Since the faculty collaboration, revised courses have been offered at QCC and other community colleges. In addition, a coreader entitled Applications of Basic Chemical and Biological Principles in Forensic Science Investigations was developed with grant funding to provide firstyear community college students with perspective on career opportunities in the field. Many of Tinto’s preentry factors may influence a student’s decision to begin his or her college career in a community college setting. These include previous Academic Performance, competing External Commitments, and the financial stress of higher education. These modified courses at the community college level can remediate deficiencies in prior schooling while building students’ skills and abilities for success in later coursework. However, transferring to a senior college may complicate the process of social and academic integration. This is especially challenging for JJC transfer students given the nonresidential nature of JJC and the transfer student’s relatively short time of engagement. The 2 + 2 program begins the process of integration before the official transfer to ease and enhance the transition. Modeling forensic science activities in community college courses helps to assimilate student’s aspirations with the identity and culture of the senior college. Providing a facilitated transition to JJC enhances the Academic and Social integration of our transfer students with the department. Fall 2011 enrollment in the articulation program at QCC included 82 students (up from five in its first year), and the first cohort is anticipated to matriculate to JJC in the coming years. More broadly, the department and college have used the partnership with QCC as a template and standard for developing robust partnership initiatives with other CUNY community colleges. The department now has an umbrella program, the CUNY Justice Academy, housing five partnerships with targeted CUNY institutions. The CUNY Justice Academy now enrolls 553 students from local community colleges. Across all partnerships, 27 students are on pace to transition in the Fall Semester of 2013. These programs are actively expanding with the support of the University. In 2011 the department was awarded a grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s HSI-STEM initiative to develop resources for this population of students including curricular supports, a new online advisement and tracking system, and career mentoring. Peer-mentoring program. In 1999, funding from a U.S. Department of Education Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP) grant made possible the establishment of the college’s first peer-mentoring program in the department. Through this program, successful upper-class science students were identified and paid to serve as peer mentors and tutors to freshman and sophomores. Peer mentors provided academic support in the foundation science courses and were trained to provide
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advisement to their peers at JJC. The goals of the peer-mentoring program were to provide a student point-of-contact for the questions and concerns of new students, and to minimize barriers to receiving academic support in historically challenging courses. This program aligns with the Tinto model in a few key areas: Prior Schooling, Academic Performance, and Peer Group Interactions. Peer mentoring can remediate incoming students’ poor high school preparation and build academic skills in relevant subject areas. Tutoring support can demystify the path to academic success, promote integration in the intellectual life of the college, and help students stay “on-pace” in the major. Peer mentoring also provides an opportunity for formal peer interactions, an important contributing factor to Social Integration. In 2001, the peer mentoring program grew, as discussed in the following section.
Academic Support and Success Math and science resource center. The peer-mentoring program significantly expanded in 2001 when the college was awarded an Institutional Development grant from the U.S. Department of Education Title V program. Specifically, new funding provided leverage within the college to secure a dedicated space for program operations. Prior to this, the program found space on an ad hoc basis, with peer mentors and mentees meeting in an empty classroom or lounge areas. The Department of Sciences partnered with the mathematics and computer science department, and the college agreed to renovate an underused computer laboratory, rededicating it as the Math and Science Resource Center (MSRC). The MSRC provides a central and monitored location for meetings between peer mentors and students, including group-mentoring sessions. A section of the MSRC is outfitted with computers providing tutoring software, online problem sets, and scientific software such as chemical modeling and statistical analysis software. The MSRC houses copies of every course textbook, which can be checked out for use in the center. Paid peer mentors are recommended by professors after exemplary performance in an introductory course. The goal of the Math and Science Resource Center is to provide all JJC students with access to high-quality, free academic support and resources tailored to introductory courses in science and mathematics. These foundation courses often act as a gateway to progression in the major, so success is critical for persistence. Using the Tinto model, the MSRC addresses the poor high school preparation students may have received in underserved urban high schools. As with peer mentoring, use of the MSRC builds Academic Skills and promotes Peer Interactions with the mentor and other mentees, enhancing both Social and Academic Integration. The “free sessions, paid tutors” model also offers financial benefits, as it is both a free tutoring service and a potential source of employment for students at the college. Informally, the center facilitates social interactions for the tutors, both with the faculty members teaching the courses they tutor and among themselves during off-nights when informal social events commonly take place. The MSRC and the services it offers have grown substantially over the past decade— it offered approximately 150 mentoring sessions in its first year of operation (2002)
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2000 1800 # of Mentoring Sessions
1600 1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0
Academic Year
Figure 2. Number of Peer Mentoring sessions per Academic Year, asterisk indicates formal launch of the Math & Science Resource Center
compared to almost 2,000 sessions in its most recent year of operation (2011). The annual usage of the MSRC is shown in Figure 2. In a multiyear poll of 282 MSRC users, 77.6% of students were “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with their peer mentors, and 78.6% were “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with the overall services provided by the MSRC. As a result of its success, the college partially institutionalized the MSRC in 2007 when they hired a full-time director on the college’s base budget (prior to this, peer mentoring was run by a part-time coordinator hired by the Title V grant) and provided additional funding for mentors. In 2011, the MSRC was fully institutionalized. Paced science courses. During their first two years in the major, forensic science students take a series of required “foundation” courses, including 1 year of biology and 1 year of chemistry. These courses have historically experienced high attrition rates and, as a result, were identified as targets for development in 2006 by a dean of undergraduate studies’ taskforce to study attrition from the science major. In response to the study, the department created “paced” course sequences as alternatives to the traditional first semester courses, BIO 103 and CHE 103. The design of these paced courses was funded by a Title V Cooperative grant. New students are placed into the paced courses BIO 101/102 and CHE 101/102 based on selected preentry performance measures. These two semester sequences are equal in rigor to the traditional first semester courses but provide significantly more contact with the instructors and more time to progress
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A
B
Forensic Science Graduates
30
C 85 % Reten on
# of Students
40
2006
2008 Academic Year
250 200
D
1 year reten on of Forensic Science cohort at JJC
2006
2008 Academic Year
2010
Mean GPA of Forensic Science Graduates
3.4 3.2
80 75 70
3 2.8
65 60 2004
300
150 2004
2010
GPA
# of Graduates
50
20 2004
Forensic Science Cohort Size
350
60
2006 2008 Academic Year
2010
2.6 2004
2006
2008
2010
Academic Year
Figure 3. Student Indicators for the period 2004-2011 (a) Number of Forensic Science graduates each year, (b) Number of intended Forensic Science majors in each new class at JJC, (c) Percent of first-year Forensic Science students retained at JJC after 1 year, (d) Mean grade point average of Forensic Science graduates
toward the course goals. The goals of this intervention are (a) to remove underprepared students from CHE 103/BIO 103 thus improving pedagogy in the advanced courses, and (b) to provide underprepared students with more intensive instruction in science to help advance a portion of them in the major while facilitating a more directed and personal transition to another major for others. The paced “track” specifically addresses students’ poor high school preparation in the relevant content areas. According to the Tinto model, this intervention targets students’ Prior Schooling and resulting Skills and Abilities, improves Academic Performance and therefore enhances Academic Integration. In addition, the extra time and professor contact provides the opportunity for better faculty interactions, especially advising and mentoring, further promoting student integration with the academic dimension of college life. This advising often includes an ushering of students into other majors at the college where their particular skills are better suited, keeping them on track for a bachelor’s degree. Previously, the very high failure rate in traditional foundation courses led many students to simply depart the college altogether. Figure 3 shows the 1-year JJC retention of students enrolled in either the traditional or paced courses over time. One-year college retention of first-year students has held
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steady and in some cases increased while cohort sizes have increased by nearly 50% from historical levels. These courses are now implemented continuously as part of the academic program in the Department of Sciences and have become permanent in the college’s course catalog. Grant-funded staff development sessions were offered to the involved faculty to develop their skills in instructing and advising at-risk students. Since their inception, 778 students have been placed in the “paced” courses in biology and chemistry. Faculty development seminars. In addition to programs targeted directly toward students, additional interventions were also targeted toward the faculty, in particular the full-time faculty in the sciences and mathematics departments both at JJC and partnering community colleges. A series of grant-funded faculty development workshops was created with the goal of improving teaching effectiveness and pedagogical practice. Topics for the seminars included integrating writing into science courses, using instructional technology, using science examples in math courses, and enhancing student engagement through active learning. While the effect on students is indirect, this program was designed to enhance teacher effectiveness and therefore targeted both the Faculty–Staff Interactions and Academic Performance aspects of Academic Integration. An average of 35 faculty members attended 10 seminars during the grant period. Math/science curricular alignment. Recognizing that mathematics skills are a significant predictor of success in the sciences, this intervention is a collaboration between the science and mathematics departments to integrate relevant science examples and context into precalculus and calculus courses at JJC and a partnering community college, the Borough of Manhattan Community College. Problem sets and instructional examples featuring forensic science scenarios were developed using funds provided by a U.S. Department of Education College Cost Reduction and Access Act grant. Calculus courses at JJC now use problem sets and examples that come from the sciences. Additionally, sections of introductory chemistry courses—CHE 101 (“paced” track) and CHE 103 (traditional) are broadly organized by math level, so that the majority of students in a single chemistry section are at the same math level. The college has also created “Science Communities” by linking math and science course sections. In each semester there are 2 to 3 communities, each with no more than 25 students. According to the Tinto model, this “cohort” aspect of the math/science alignment encourages Peer Group Interactions for both social and academic purposes. The use of forensic science examples in mathematics courses also builds students’ Skills and Abilities in interpreting and addressing scientific issues. By familiarizing students with real, level-appropriate science problems, this initiative serves to introduce the field of forensic science and build the Intentions, Goals, and Institutional Commitment of students. The newly aligned curricula and science-enriched problem sets have been implemented continuously and institutionalized through course syllabi and materials. Department student science awards. Originally developed in 2000 with a U.S. Department of Education MSEIP grant and expanded in 2002 with a U.S. Department of
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Education Title V grant, awards were created for outstanding performance in each of the freshman and sophomore major courses (Chemistry, Biology, Organic Chemistry, and Physics) and later an award for excellence in undergraduate research was added. The objectives of the program were to promote excellence in those courses, give recognition to high achievers, and to identify qualified students for employment in the peer-mentoring program. Professors nominated students based on their academic performance and awards were distributed publicly at an annual event. This program addressed the range of students’ high school preparation, balancing those interventions aimed at academic remediation with some aimed at deepening the Academic Integration of high performing students. The nominations and resulting celebration provide opportunities for faculty–staff interaction with the honored students and a strong affirmation of membership in the academic community of the college. These students serve as role models for other students and the knowledge of the award program may serve as motivation for development of Intentions, Goals, and Institutional Commitment in the larger student community. As a feeding mechanism to the Math and Science Resource Center, this program helped to promote other benefits for students. The awards were distributed during the grant period after which the goals of this program were incorporated into PRISM, described below.
Career Development and Mentoring Program for research initiatives for science majors (PRISM). In the late 1990s, the department initiated a limited, but concerted effort to involve undergraduates in mentored research with support from the New York State Education Department’s Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program. In 2006, this tradition was greatly expanded and standardized with the founding of the Program for Research Initiatives for Science Majors (PRISM) using funding from New York State and the U.S. Department of Education’s Title V program. The goal of PRISM is to better prepare students to work as professional scientists through graduate school and career preparation. This goal is achieved through activities planned at multiple stages of their undergraduate careers. Beginning in their freshman year, students are introduced to research through a series of seminars and orientation meetings. In their sophomore year, undergraduates who have succeeded in Organic Chemistry are offered the opportunity to participate in a grant-funded research-training course, offered twice annually. Those who succeed in this course then begin to work in a faculty mentor’s laboratory, paired based on research interest. The program provides undergraduates with stipends on a competitive basis to conduct research. The program also provides money for research supplies and travel funds to attend scientific meetings, social-professional events, and career development sessions. The scope and quality of research projects has been enhanced by improvements in the capacity of the college’s laboratories. Grants from New York State and the U.S. Department of Education have made possible the acquisition of over US$1.2 million in scientific equipment and more than US$400,000 in scientific supplies used in the mentoring of undergraduates. This equipment is broadly available to faculty
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50 45 # of Mentored Students
40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0
Academic Year
Figure 4. Student Participation in Undergraduate Research per Academic Year, asterisk indicates formal launch of the PRISM program
mentoring students in research methods and has significantly expanded the breadth of instrumental methods available to our students. Equipment acquired includes a 1000x light field/dark field/differential interference contrast/fluorescence microscope, a CEQ 8000 Genetic Sequencer, a quadrapole gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer, an Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer, Fourier-transform infrared spectrometers, a cryogenic sample preparation system, a high purity research-grade water system, a bullet analysis polarizing microscope, and many other items that benefit our students. Lastly, grant funds were used to develop a program website (http://www.prismatjohnjay.org). The PRISM website highlights students and their research, recognizes award winners, and lists publications and presentations by students and their faculty mentors. Accessible to all students, it houses contact and application information for interested undergraduates and a platform for alumni outreach. It also contains faculty profiles, allowing students to select a faculty mentor based on research interest. PRISM also produces a monthly printed newsletter and yearly Chronicle showcasing student and faculty work and developments of the program. The growth of PRISM, as measured by student participants per academic year, is shown in Figure 4. In science, faculty–student relationships are fostered effectively through undergraduate research mentoring (Crawford, Suarez-Balcazar, Reich, Figert, & Nyden, 1996; Nagda, Gregerman, Jonides, von Hippel, & Lerner, 1998). Participation in research is one of the best predictors of retention and success beyond graduation across
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60 Undergraduate Researchers* Forensic Science Graduates 50
# of students
40
30
20
10
0
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Academic Year
Figure 5. Undergraduate Researchers and Forensic Science graduates *Undergraduate research students include juniors and graduating seniors
all undergraduates, including groups traditionally underrepresented in science. Students participating in PRISM develop a formal, regular, and prolonged relationship with a faculty member, engaging both the academic and social dimensions of group research. Undergraduate and graduate students sharing a faculty mentor also form a peer group, facilitating formal and informal interactions for both social and academic purposes. Students in the PRISM program are immersed in the work of the department and become contributing members of the academic community. As such, it is in a department’s interest to encourage faculty to train and mentor undergraduates for the development of students as well as the advancement of the faculty member’s research agenda. Since its inception, the number of students participating in PRISM has increased steadily, as has the overall number of forensic science graduates, as shown in Figure 5. In addition, the number of forensic science graduates moving on to graduate school has also increased manifold, from 5 in the decade 1991-2000 to 25 in the decade 2001-2010, the vast majority of whom participated in undergraduate research. The PRISM program addresses important known challenges of first-generation college students, such as expanding knowledge of postbaccalaureate options and careers in the sciences. Furthermore, this program develops students’ ideas about themselves as scientific researchers and scholars, thus impacting their Intentions, Goals, and Institutional Commitment with regard to completing their academic program. Because PRISM provides students with an internal, paid option for research, it is particularly suitable for students who would be unable to participate in unpaid research internships
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because of other work commitments and financial stress. Lastly, raising the caliber of research capabilities enhances the ability of department faculty to conduct high-profile research and attract extramural research funding, which has enhanced the recognition and prestige of John Jay College of Criminal Justice in the scientific community. Partially in response to the success of the PRISM program, the college recently expanded the philosophy and goals of the PRISM model to the rest of the college community by establishing an Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR). The college’s OUR is charged with promoting and supporting undergraduate research experiences in all other departments of the college. This office is supported with a mix of college and grant funding, and has been institutionalized in that the director of OUR is funded from the college’s base budget allocation. Research symposium. In May 2008, the directors of the PRISM program organized the first annual student research symposium. The goals of the symposium are to showcase undergraduate work, to provide PRISM participants an opportunity to gain experience in public speaking and to provide an opportunity for younger students to learn about, and become motivated by, the work of upperclassmen. The symposium contains three distinct components. First, advanced undergraduates in PRISM present their research with a scientific poster during a one and a half hour open poster session attended by students, faculty, and administrators. This is followed by an oral presentation by the Outstanding Undergraduate Research Award winner. Finally, the event culminates in a keynote presentation by an alum of the undergraduate Forensic Science program who has since received a PhD or MD degree, describing his or her research and the impact of the JJC experience on postgraduate success. Within the Tinto model, this event enriches students’ Intentions, Goals, and Institutional Commitments about being scientists and researchers, illuminating the realities of research and scientific problem solving, and especially developing students’ intentions surrounding graduate school. The event is an informal networking opportunity, outside the normal confines of the classroom or laboratory, encouraging faculty–staff interactions. It is an opportunity to celebrate research accomplishments in a public forum, affirming the presenters and displaying the possible endpoints of Academic Integration to younger students. Now in its 5th year, the event has been host to more than 100 student poster presentations. The symposium is one of the most visible departmental events at the college, attended by senior college administrators. In 2009, impressed by the success and impact of the PRISM Undergraduate Research Symposium, the college Provost organized the first of what is now an annual event—Celebrating Student Research and Creativity at John Jay College. This weeklong event provides a similar forum for students from around the college to present their research and artistic pursuits. The PRISM symposium now functions within this larger event. Undergraduate research course credit. As forensic science is an applied field, the program at JJC has always required hands-on experience beyond traditional classroom and laboratory experiences. Prior to 2006, students could complete this requirement in only one way—by registering for the undergraduate course FOS 401—which requires
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students to complete a 400-hr externship in a forensic science laboratory. Despite expansion of undergraduate research in the late 1990s, participation was not yet recognized as a capstone experience. In spring 2006, the Department Administration and College Curriculum Committee accepted a request from several of the science faculty to elevate undergraduate research to the capstone level by approving an alternative course—FOS 402. Establishment of FOS 402 legitimized and acknowledged intramural undergraduate research as a capstone forensic science experience. Both the number and share of graduating students electing this course has increased, with 96 students participating over 5 years and 19 in the most recent year. Because FOS 402 provides a credit-bearing research opportunity, it addresses the External Commitments and constraints that typically act as barriers for involvement in “extra” activities at urban institutions and HSIs.
Analysis and Discussion Underfunded, public, minority-serving institutions are constrained in terms of the support services that they can offer students. Yet these are precisely the institutions most commonly attended by students who require the most academic support. We have successfully leveraged federal and state funding designed to develop the infrastructure of minority-serving institutions in an effort to improve educational opportunities for minority students. These programs have had a significant impact on improving the academic performance of students in our science programs. Further, as evidenced by the institutionalization and permanence of many programs that were initially funded by federal and state grants, these efforts have been highly successful. Of the 11 interventions presented, three are completed or have been folded into other department programs, and eight are actively ongoing with college support. Of these ongoing programs, four receive regular operational funding from department and college sources. The interventions described herein, as designed, address many of the known challenges of the typical population at an urban HSI and address all of the areas of the Tinto model of student retention and success. In addition to model compliance, Tinto’s characteristics of successful college retention programs can be used to evaluate the programs at John Jay College. First, Tinto suggests that successful programs are systematic and systemwide. Our retention programs are accessible to all students and target various phases of a student’s career at JJC. Students are not placed in a formal retention program; instead the retention interventions permeate department activities from a student’s point of entry to his or her graduation. In this regard, they also meet Tinto’s recommendation that programs be consistent and continuous. Many interventions began as “grassroots” efforts championed by interested faculty members. Demonstrated success propelled programs to their current central and transformative role within the department, key leadership personnel within the department are now involved in the design, funding, implementation and evaluation of retention programs. The larger leadership structure of the college has become increasingly aware of the department’s activities. As a result, interest in replicating and broadening the scope of successful interventions has spread throughout various divisions within the college, as
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Figure 6. Timeline of retention activities and Forensic Science graduates at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, 1991-2011. 1Research
mentoring was expanded and formalized in 2006 with the creation of PRISM
predicted by Tinto. Grant-funded retention activities have also served to catalyze program evaluation and data analysis efforts at JJC. As a cohesive repertoire of programs, the retention activities at JJC promise to significantly increase both academic and social integration at the college according to the Tinto model and thus increase persistence within both the Forensic Science major and the college in general. We are currently embarking on a detailed assessment to establish the distinct utility and effectiveness of the interventions provided at JJC. However, as a first step toward examining program effectiveness, we have examined 1-year retention rates of freshman science majors at the college, as seen in Figure 3. During the period 2004-2008, 1-year retention rates averaged 69%, with a maximum of 72% in 1 year. During the period 2009-2011, 1-year retention rates have averaged 77%, with a 1-year maximum of 79%. While preliminary, the data suggests that our interventions are having a substantive affect on improving retention. Further evidence of the combined success of the interventions can be found in the increased number of students, especially Hispanic students, who are completing a Bachelor’s degree in Forensic Science at JJC. In the decade ending 2000, the department averaged 11.5 forensic science graduates a year, with a single-year maximum of 19 degrees awarded. Approximately 36% of those degrees were awarded to minority students. In the decade 2001-2010, the department averaged over 36 forensic science graduates per year, with a single-year maximum of 53. Over 40% of those degrees were awarded to minority students. Figure 6 provides an overlay of the improvements
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in graduation rates we have realized in perspective of a timeline of implementation of the activities herein described. As increasing graduation numbers might be indicative of either improvements in student success or decreasing standards, we analyzed mean GPA of Forensic Science graduates during our intervention period. Mean GPA remained consistent at 3.01 ± 0.05 (95% CI) as the number of graduates has grown, with a slight, though not significant upward trend seen during the period 1996-2011. Mean Forensic Science graduate GPA remained significantly higher than mean GPA for all other majors at the college during this same period (2.92 ± 0.03), an indication of the comparative quality of the graduates across the decades. As a result of our intervention strategies we have seen increases in mean GPA, increases in 1-year retention rates, and increase in graduation numbers even in light of increasing cohort size and thus an increasing demand on resources in the department, as summarized in Figure 3. Finally, these programs have had direct and significant impacts on the postgraduate success of our students in STEM fields. In particular, the number of students moving on from the major to postbaccalaureate training in science is now five times higher in the decade since implementing these programs than in the decade prior. We anticipate continued gains as programs are implemented and cohorts of students progress through the Forensic Science program. Acknowledgment The researchers would like to acknowledge Lawrence Kobilinsky, Chairperson, Department of Sciences and PRISM co-Director; Ronald Pilette, PRISM Project Coordinator; and Robert Rothchild, emeritus professor and co-founder of the peer-mentoring program. The researchers would also like to gratefully acknowledge Sandra Swenson and Michele Doney for their assistance with program implementation and data collection; Sarah Baughman for her help with thematic development of several initiatives; Sasan Karimi, Paris Svoronos, and Kate Szur for activity support; and John Jay College for their support and resources in implementing these activities.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The interventions and programs described in this paper were funded in part by the U.S. Department of Education Title V, MSEIP, and CCRAA programs and the New York State Education Department CSTEP program.
References Arana, A., Castaneda-Sound, C., Blanchard, S., & Aguilar, T. (2011). Indicators of persistence for Hispanic undergraduate achievement: Towards and ecological model. Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 10, 237-252.
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Bordes-Edgar, V., Arrendo, P., Kurpius, S. R., & Rund, J. (2011). A longitudinal analysis of Latina/o students’ academic persistence. Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 10, 358-368. Carnevale, A. P. (1999). Education = Success: Empowering Hispanic youth and adults (Report). Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Service, Communication Services. Chang, J. C. (2002). Women and minorities in the science, mathematics and engineering pipeline (ERIC Digest). Los Angeles, CA: ERIC Clearinghouse for Community Colleges. Crawford, I., Suarez-Balcazar, Y., Reich, J., Figert, A., & Nyden, P. (1996). The use of research participation for mentoring prospective minority graduate students. Teaching Sociology, 24, 256-263. Espinosa, L. L. (2011). Pipelines and pathways: Women of Color in undergraduate STEM majors and the college experiences that contribute to persistence. Harvard Education Review, 81, 209-241. Garcia, M. (2010). When Hispanic students attempt to succeed in college, but do not. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 34, 839-847. Griffith, A. L. (2010). Persistence of women and minorities in STEM field majors: Is it the school that matters? Economics of Education Review, 29, 911-922. Huang, G., Taddese, N., & Walter, E. (2000). Entry and persistence of women and minorities in college science and engineering education. Education Statistics Quarterly, 2(3), 59-60. Hurtado, S., Carter, D. F., & Spuler, A. (1996). Latino student transition to college: Assessing difficulties and factors in successful college adjust-ment. Research in Higher Education, 37, 135-157. John Jay College, Office of Institutional Research. (2011, Fall). Factbook. Retrieved from http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/903.php John Jay College on the move. (2006, December 4). The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine, 17, 35-37. Lacy, W. (1978). Interpersonal relationships as mediators of structural effects: College students’ socialization in a traditional and an experimental university environment. Sociology of Education, 51, 201-211. Martin, N. K., & Meyer, K. (2010). Efforts to improve undergraduate student retention rates at a Hispanic serving institution: Building collaborative relationships for the common good. College and University, 85(3), 40-49. Nagda, B. A., Gregerman, S. R., Jonides, J., von Hippel, W., & Lerner, J. S. (1998). Undergraduate student-faculty research partnerships affect student retention. Review of Higher Education, 22, 55-72. National Center for Educational Statistics. (2009). IPEDS data report. Retrieved from http:// nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/Snapshotx.aspx?unitId=acb4abb1abab Seymour, E. (1992). “The problem iceberg” in science, mathematics, and engineering education: Student explanations for high attrition rates. Journal of College Science Teaching, 21, 230-238. Tinto, V. (1993). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition (2nd ed.). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. Vaquera, G., & Maestas, R. (2009). Pre-college factors impacting persistence at a diverse university. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 10, 425-445.
Author Biographies Anthony Carpi is a Professor of Environmental Chemistry at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. He has spearheaded numerous initiatives at the College aimed at increasing retention and graduation rates in the sciences and improving the post-graduate success of students. In
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2011, he was presented with a Presidential Award for Excellence in Math, Science, and Engineering mentoring by President Barack Obama for his work promoting the success of underrepresented populations in STEM fields. Darcy M. Ronan is a PhD candidate in Science Education at Teachers College, Columbia University and an adjunct instructor of Biology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Her work explores innovative science education throughout the K-16 spectrum with an emphasis on program design and teacher education. Ms. Ronan studied Biology and Education at Boston College. Heather M. Falconer earned a BS in Environmental Science with an emphasis in Ecology from Unity College, a MFA in Writing and Teaching from Emerson College, and a MLitt in Modernism/Postmodernism from the University of Glasgow. She has worked internationally in academic publishing as both an author and editor, and has taught a wide range of topics – from rhetoric to marine biology – in the public and private educational sectors. Ms. Falconer has a special interest in literacy and cross-disciplinary teaching. Heather H. Boyd is Research Development Program Director at University of Notre Dame and holds a PhD in Mass Communications from University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has collaborated with John Jay on Visionlearning and as an external evaluator to the Title V and HSI-STEM projects. She has previously served as an officer in both the American Evaluation Association and American Educational Research Association. Nathan H. Lents holds a BS degree in Biology from Saint Louis University, a PhD degree in Pharmacology and Physiology from S.L.U. Medical School, and postdoctoral training from NYU Medical Center in the area of bioinformatics and gene expression control. Since 2006, he has been on the faculty of John Jay College where he has been extensively involved in program development of the science curricula and especially the undergraduate research program at the college. He is now a tenured Associate Professor and PI or Co-PI on grants from the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Education.
