NSF Grant Bolsters Geosciences Education Support for Underrepresented Students
|
|
Under the NSF-sponsored GeoPATH-IMPACT program, Stony Brook faculty will provide research and fieldwork opportunities for students, including during a six-week summer program. |
|
|
GeoPATH-IMPACT program leader Professor Brian Colle (back row, second from left) with Stony Brook GEoPrep teachers involved in educating underserved students in the geosciences. |
Stony Brook, NY, December 21, 2016 – Stony Brook University (SBU) has received a three-year grant for more than $400,000 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to expand the University’s decades long commitment to engage underrepresented minorities in the geosciences. The grant will be used to develop the Stony Brook GeoPATH-IMPACT program, which will cultivate STEM education and pathways into the geosciences to increase underrepresented student involvement and experience from high school through community college to 4-year institutions.
Led by Professor Brian Colle from Stony Brook’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS), this project will: (1) Provide a research experience for community college (CC) students interested in the geosciences through the development of a six-week summer program at SBU; (2) Collaborate with CCs on joint club activities, seminars, and mentoring of CC students by SBU faculty, senior undergraduates, and graduate students, and (3) Work with local CCs to develop curriculum that results in a smoother transition for students from the CC to a 4-year institution, such as SBU. Overall, this program will help mitigate the anxiety that transfer students often feel when confronted with the challenges of math and physics, while also enhancing their understanding of atmospheric science, geology, and marine sciences.
GeoPATH-IMPACT involves educational and research collaborations with SoMAS, the Department of Geosciences, and the STEM Smart program within the Department of Technology and Society. The Co-PIs for this project are Dr. Gilbert Hanson (Geosciences), Dr. Kamazima Lwiza (SoMAS), Dr. Hyemi Kim (SoMAS), and Dr. Edmund Chang (SoMAS). Senior personnel are Mrs Lauren Donovan and Mr. Paul Siegel (Department of Technology and Society). Off campus collaborators are Mr. Sean Tvelia and Dr. Candice Foley from Suffolk County Community College and Dr. Lisa Bastiaans from Nassau Community College.
###
About Stony Brook University
Stony Brook University is going beyond the expectations of what today’s public universities can accomplish. Since its founding in 1957, this young university has grown to become one of only four University Center campuses in the State University of New York (SUNY) system with more than 25,700 students, 2,500 faculty members, and 20 NCAA Division I athletic programs. Our faculty have earned numerous prestigious awards, including the Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, Indianapolis Prize for animal conservation, Abel Prize and the inaugural Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics. The University offers students an elite education with an outstanding return on investment: U.S.News & World Report ranks Stony Brook among the top 40 public universities in the nation. Its membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU) places Stony Brook among the top 62 research institutions in North America. As part of the management team of Brookhaven National Laboratory, the University joins a prestigious group of universities that have a role in running federal R&D labs. Stony Brook University is a driving force in the region’s economy, generating nearly 60,000 jobs and an annual economic impact of $4.65 billion. Our state, country and world demand ambitious ideas, imaginative solutions and exceptional leadership to forge a better future for all. The students, alumni, researchers and faculty of Stony Brook University are prepared to meet this challenge.
Greg Filiano
Media Relations Manager, School of Medicine, Stony Brook University
Office: 631.444.9343
gregory.filiano@stonybrookmedicine.edu
