Institutional Transformation: Developing Interorganizational Partnerships for Increasing Diversity a

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Institutional Transformation Developing
Inter-organizational Partnerships for Increasing
Diversity and Building Community 2006 WEPAN
Conference
June 13, 2006
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Partners

• Dr. Kenneth Durgans, Vice Provost for Institute
  Diversity
• Dr. Luciano Castillo, Associate Professor,
  Mechanical, Aeronautical and Nuclear Engineering
• Ms. Karen Ferrer-Muñiz, Associate Dean of
  Students and Director, Office of Minority
  Students Affairs
• Mr. Thomas Tarantelli, Director, Career
  Development Center
• Ms. Barbara Ruel, Director, Diversity and Women
  in Engineering Programs, School of Engineering

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Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
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DIVERSITY AND COMMUNITY

• Black Family Technology Awareness Day
• Internal Institute staff (Volunteers), Office
  of Minority Student Affairs, student
  organizations and faculty
• External community, civic and church
  organizations and sponsors

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PARTNERSHIPS

• Institute Diversity, Graduate Education, Faculty,
  Office of Minority Student Affairs, Minority
  Graduate Student Association (Walter Lincoln
  Hawkins Conference)
• Luciano Castillo (AGEP Seminars)

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BENEFITS AND RESULTS

• Benefits
• Deans Enhance Faculty Diversity
• Office of Minority Student Affairs (OMSA) Black
  Family Technology Awareness Day
• Results
• Diversity Training for Faculty
• Over 450 attendees

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The CNY-PR AGEP Program

• Objective to increase the number of minority
  PhDs and to promote their success in academia.
• The CNY-PR alliance is based on mutual commitment
  to promote
• International Domestic Research experience for
  undergraduate and graduate students (i.e.,
  Australia, Italy, Japan, Sweden, France)
• Faculty development programs in an environment
  where recruitment, retention and mentoring are
  essential.
• Summer Faculty Program Sabbatical programs.
• Research/Education Collaboration.

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Increase Minority PhDs in Academia

• National/Industry
• NASA
• Navy
• GE, Pratt Whitney

• Research Centers
• NYSTAR-EQS
• COSMIC
• COE at Syracuse

• Education
• Graduate Undergrad
• Courses
• Faculty/Student

• Institutions
• Victoria University
• Chalmers University
• Univ. Rome

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AGEP Research Educational Integration

• Faculty Summer Program
• Seminar Series
• Faculty Development Workshop
• Sabbatical Program

• New MS/PhD Engineering Science
  Multi-Disciplinary Program
• Plan of study developed according to thrust area
  and topic
• Distance Educational Courses
• International Program
• France, Italy, Australia, Sweden, Spain, Brazil
• Internship with our Industrial Partners
• Exchange of Students between UPRM/RPI
• Students have two advisors one from RPI and one
  from UPRM
• Mentors from academia, industry and international
  sides
• Annual Symposium, Workshops Graduate Student
  Fair (job placement and leadership training).

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Pipeline Initiatives Pre-Collegiate, 7th 12th
Grade Middle High School

• Strategy -
• mathematics, science engineering principles
  as means to improve problem solving skills
• age appropriate, challenging mobile
  curriculum materials
• create sustain university school
  community government corporate
  partnerships
• teacher enhancement
• scholarship incentives
• targeted recruitment enrollment

Summer Enrichment Programs

• Rensselaer Alliance to Increase Student
  Excellence (GEAR UP)
• Goal increase access to, enrollment in and
  graduation from post-secondary institutions for
  low-income students pursuing a college education
  in areas of National need (science, engineering,
  and technological professions
• Target Cohort 1000 students, their teachers,
  their parents, post- secondary institutions, and
  local community and business interests
• Partnership Members Rensselaer Polytechnic
  Institute, Hudson Valley Community College,
  Russell Sage College Cohoes City School
  District, Green Island Central School District,
  Lansingburgh Central School District,
  Rensselaer City School District, Enlarged City
  School District of Troy, Watervliet City
  School District Troy Housing Authority, QUAD
  Graphics

Saturday Scholars Academy
Career, Professional and Leadership Institute
Preparing for Access to Postsecondary
Education (Financial Planning, Admissions Process
Financial Aid)

• Benchmarks -
• college going rates
• eligibility qualification rates
• school performance / GPA
• standardized test / SAT scores
• engineering rate
• other science / math / technology rate
• enrollment of under- represented underserved
  majority students

Parent Family Involvement Component
After-School Enrichment Program
Academic Intervention Program
Science Technology Entry Program (STEP)
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Pipeline Initiatives - Enrollment

• RAISE (GEAR UP) Summer Programs (Late Middle
  School/Early High School, Summer, 2005)
• Rensselaer Engineering Science
• (Biotechnology, Information Technology,
  Engineering, Entrepreneurship)
• Hudson Valley Community College - Technology
  Health Sciences
• Capital District Arts Center

• Strategy -
• transcript analysis (rank, course performance,
  standardized test, parental background, HS GPA,
  extracurricular activities)
• financial aid managing resources
• team building leadership
• career development
• mentoring
• navigating Rensselaer beyond

NACME Vanguard Scholar Program (OMSA)
BRIDGE Summer Program (OMSA)

• Presidential Scholars Program
• (NEW, Summer, 2007)
• rising high school seniors
• academic (4 credit course)
• research (participate on a faculty research
  project)
• enrichment professional, career, and
  leadership development

HEOP Summer Institute (OMSA)

• Benchmarks -
• address risk factors
• based on academic,
• financial and personal assessments
• academic performance
• course registration and
• plan of study
• career goals and aspirations

• PREFACE Summer Program
• rising high school juniors
• introduction to engineering
• 2-week residential program

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RAISE (Gear Up) Mission

• Measuring Success
• Enroll
• Persist
• Graduate
• Principle mission
• develop, sustain and expand partnerships
• increase access to, enrollment in, and graduation
  from a postsecondary institution
• Increase the number entering scientific,
  engineering, and technical professions

Mark Smith, Dean of Students, Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute
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Key Components to Campus Partnerships
Comprehensive, Seamless Pipeline
Family Involvement
Spiritual Integration
Academic Integration
K 16 Integration
Campus Culture
Social Integration
Campus Safety
Aspirations Plans
Career Development, Aspirations, Planning
Co-Op, Internships, Study Abroad, Research
Opportunities
College Characteristics, Standards, Costs
Health Wellness
Mark Smith, Dean of Students, Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute
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• Some Examples
• Adapting to student college life
• Parents letting go
• Affordability and financial aid
• Attitude, maturity, and cultural values
• Family peer influences
• Lifestyle

• Some Examples
• Students aspirations
• Parents aspirations
• Academic preparation
• linked to college expectations
• Study time management skills
• Learning problem solving skills

Intellectual Factors
Social Factors
Student Success Enrollment, Persistence, and
Graduation
Institutional Factors

• Some Examples
• Curriculum, instruction,
• research
• Financial aid process
• Institutional culture and climate
• Academic services
• Student Services

Mapping Student Success
Mark Smith, Dean of Students, Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute
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CAREER DEVELOPMENT CENTER FOUR YEAR PLAN
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CAREER DEVELOPMENT CENTER
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CAREER DEVELOPMENT CENTER

• CUTS ACROSS ALL SCHOOLS AND DISCIPLINES
• INVOLVES STUDENTS, FACULTY, ADMINISTRATORS, AND
  EMPLOYERS
• BASED ON A VISION OF SHARED RESPONSIBILITY FOR
  STUDENT CAREER SUCCESS
• INCLUDES THREE DIMENSIONAL VIEW OF STUDENT CAREER
  SUCCESS FROM SOCIAL, ACADEMIC, AND CAREER
  PERSPECTIVES
• ADDS STRONG EMPHASIS ON CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT OF
  PROGRAMS AND SERVICES THROUGH PLANNING AND
  ASSESSMENT
• IS FLEXIBLE

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Overarching Goals for WiET Programs

• To attract outstanding women scientists,
  engineers and technologists
• To retain and educate technological leaders and
  strategic thinkers who are innovative and diverse
• To inform and educate internal and external
  communities about new disciplines, new scientific
  discoveries as well as emerging technologies and
  technological careers
• To build strategic alliances and collaborate with
  industry, government and academic partners to
  sustain competitive advantage in a global economy

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DIVERSITY AND COMMUNITYwith a focus on
Recruitment and Retention

• Recruitment Undergraduate/Graduate/Faculty
• Partner with stakeholders
• Identify common goals
• Develop implement win-win strategies
• Discuss areas for improvement
• Celebrate shared successes
• Retention Undergraduate/Graduate/Faculty
• Create interconnected communities and
  partnerships
• Identify stakeholders
• Whats important to them?
• Areas for improvement
• Build community through inclusion, understanding,
  respect, empowerment, trust

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Partnerships

• Graduate Recruitment
• Developed diversity goals for School of
  Engineering undergraduate and graduate
  enrollments
• Shared goals and developed strategies with
  Admissions, Department Chairs and Departmental
  Admissions Coordinators
• Provided travel funds to encourage visits from
  prospective RAs who were diverse candidates
• Tracked type of aid offers made to diverse
  candidates
• Share results with departments, Admissions and VP
  for Institute Diversity to sustain and improve
  efforts over time and to celebrate our successes

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Partnerships

• Retention
• Spring 2005 survey of women students
• Shared responses internally and externally
• Identified potential stakeholders
• Developed programs with Career Development
  Center/students/alums to address student requests
• Communicate to students that programs are in
  direct response to their requests

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Results

• Recruitment
• Female undergraduate enrollments for fall 2006
  are at X for Institute, up Y from LY and Z
  for Engineering, up W from LY
• Success of Graduate Fair and impact on graduate
  enrollments
• Retention
• Faculty lunches with Dean
• Institute-wide childcare survey
• Institute-wide mentoring program for female
  faculty
• Graduate Students New GWSA
• Institute-wide childbirth policy
• Involvement in planning local conference
• Female Undergraduate Mentor Program
• 7 student co-chairs (growth factor of 2 every
  year for the last 3 years)
• 90 attendance at mentor training sessions
• Increase in number and diversity of mentors
• Leaders for majors