COLLEGE OF EDUCATION & HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Texas A&M University

Education Faculty Awarded $1 Million NSF Grant For Gifted African Americans

9/3/07

By Jenna Kujawski

Three education faculty in the College of Education and Human Development, Mary Alfred, Fred Bonner and Chance Lewis, will be partnering with two engineering faculty at Prairie View A&M University to identify and evaluate the factors that contribute to the success of academically gifted African-American students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines who are enrolled at historically black colleges and universities (HBCU).

The study titled, An Empirical Investigation of the Success Factors Impacting African- American Students in Engineering and Technology at Historically Black Universities, is a $1 million, three-year education research project funded through a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).

This grant is based on Bonner's prior research on gifted African-American males that he conducted in 2001, which also serves as a model for other research initiatives at institutions like Purdue University.

"Exploring what educators in K-12 and higher educational settings can do during the educational process to improve the academic plight of African-American students is critical to our land-grant mission," Lewis, associate professor of urban education, said.

Alfred, associate professor of adult education and associate head of the Department of Educational Administration and Human Resource Development, added, "Our approach to this research project demonstrates our commitment to collaboration across programs, departments and institutions to find innovative ways to respond to the educational needs of under-represented groups in STEM and other disciplines."

Bonner, associate professor of higher education administration, added that education research projects provide support to carry out research that pertains to the HBCU community and has the potential to strengthen STEM education and research programs at HBCUs.

"Prairie View A&M University is a noted leader in producing outstanding African- American engineers and scientists; thus, it is important to connect to faculty members at the institution who can provide essential feedback and information for this project," Bonner, said.  "A major strength of this partnership is that it brings together the expertise of outstanding faculty who represent two dynamic colleges."

The research team hopes to determine the collegiate experiences needed to increase both the quantity and quality of academically gifted African-American students graduating with a STEM degree as well as the factors necessary to influence the retention and success of these students in STEM fields after college.

"As a graduate of a HBCU, I have a first-hand understanding of the culture of HBCU life and how it is critical in assisting African-American students in reaching their academic goals," Lewis said. "My experiences in this setting allow me to relate to students, faculty, staff and administrators to replicate what may be working in HBCUs at predominately white institutions across the country."

The first phase of the project will include studies at the 10 four-year universities accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, including Prairie View A&M. Once these initial studies are complete, the research team will incorporate their findings in all 103 HBCUs in the nation with STEM programs.

"This grant represents our investigative team and Texas A&M University's commitment to collaborative research and interdisciplinary dialogue among institutions within the Texas A&M University System and the National Science Foundation's faith in the faculty and scholars here," Bonner said. "Our team is cognizant of the fact that we stand on the shoulders of several faculty members at both of our respective institutions, those who have gone before us to establish a solid record of critical research under the auspices of NSF."

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