Graduation rates of urm students in stem disciplines an examinat

John Fisher College Fisher Digital Publications Education Doctoral Ralph C. School of Education 5-2015 Graduation Rates of URM Students in STEM Disciplines: An Examination of Institutional Differences at Selected Four Year Campuses within a Large System of Public Higher Education Carlos Nelson Medina St. John Fisher College, cnm06675@students.edu Follow this and additional works at: https://fisherpub.edu/education_etd Part of the Education Commons How has open access to Fisher Digital Publications benefited you? Recommended Citation Medina, Carlos Nelson, "Graduation Rates of URM Students in STEM Disciplines: An Examination of Institutional Differences at Selected Four Year Campuses within a Large System of Public Higher Education" (2015). Please note that the Recommended Citation provides general citation information and may not be appropriate for your discipline.

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Graduation Rates of URM Students in STEM Disciplines: An Examination of Institutional Differences at Selected Four Year Campuses within a Large System of Public Higher Education Abstract Graduating well educated students in STEM disciplines has become a national priority, particularly as the nation looks to maintain its global competitiveness in light of continuing racial and ethnic disparities affecting graduation rates. This correlational study examined the differences in institutional success in raising the graduation rates of underrepresented minority students (URMs) in STEM disciplines at 20 selected institutions within a large system of public higher education. The study used secondary data available from both the system’s Office of Institutional Research and the Federal IPEDS reports. Results of the study identified selected institutions that performed the highest at graduating URMs in STEM.

The study also revealed that several institutional factors (Pell Grant Aid, faculty salaries, expenditures and average student age) were not significantly associated with URMs graduation rates. A positive correlation was found between SAT scores, high school GPA and URM STEM graduation rates. These precollege student achievement factors were most prevalent at the highly selected institutions in the study which also had the highest URM STEM graduation rates. Document Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Education (EdD) Department Executive Leadership First Supervisor Guillermo Montes Second Supervisor Richard DeJesus-Rueff Subject Categories Education This dissertation is available at Fisher Digital Publications: https://fisherpub.edu/education_etd/201 Graduation Rates of URM Students in STEM Disciplines: An Examination of Institutional Differences at Selected Four Year Campuses within a Large System of Public Higher Education By Carlos Nelson Medina Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Ed.

in Executive Leadership Supervised by Dr. Guillermo Montes Committee Member Dr. Richard DeJesus-Rueff Ralph C. School of Education St.

John Fisher College May 2015 Copyright by Carlos Nelson Medina 2015 Dedication I’m reminded of the old African proverb that “it takes a village to raise a child,” as such, it has taken an entire community of family, close friends, and colleagues in seeing me through this journey. Without their unequivocal level of support, encouragement, and understanding, I would have never succeeded. To my mother who has always believed in me and not having a formal education beyond grade school, has been proud to live vicariously through my successes. To my loving uncle Rico, who unexpectedly passed away during this journey, and always supported my never-ending desire to take on new challenges.

I will never forget his warm smile and words of encouragement. To my wife Connie for always being there and my two wonderful sons, Justin and Camilo, wise beyond their years, thanks for your confidence, inspiration and trust in me – I achieve because of you. I can’t say enough about the wonderful guidance and support I received from my dissertation committee. To my Chair Dr.

Guillermo Montes, for his guidance, support and high expectations. Richard DeJesus-Rueff, for his wonderful insights and encouragement. A special thanks goes to my advisor, Dr. Marie Cianca, for being there from the very start of the program.

She always made time to listen, lend her expert advice, and encouragement. To my colleagues at the SUNY Institutional Research Office for their assistance in the data gathering process. Last, but not least, are my office staff and colleagues. A very special thanks goes to Ms.

Edelmira Reynoso and Ms. Elizabeth Carrature, for their unwavering support and assistance throughout my doctoral program. iii They never showed boredom or frustration when I needed to bounce ideas off of them while having conversations around my research topic and overall issues centered on URM student success. iv Biographical Sketch Carlos N.

Medina is currently the Chief Diversity Officer and Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at The State University of New York (SUNY). Prior to coming to SUNY System Administration, Mr. Medina worked at SUNY’s Research Foundation and the New York State Education Department. Medina attended SUNY College at Cortland from 1973 to 1978 and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education.

He attended Cornell University in Ithaca, New York and graduated with a Master of Professional Studies with a focus on Human Services Administration in 1989. He came to St. John Fisher College in the spring of 2012 and began doctoral studies in the Ed. Program in Executive Leadership.

Medina pursued his research on the graduation rates of underrepresented students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines under the direction of Dr. Guillermo Montes and Dr. Richard DeJesus-Rueff and received the Ed. v Abstract Graduating well educated students in STEM disciplines has become a national priority, particularly as the nation looks to maintain its global competitiveness in light of continuing racial and ethnic disparities affecting graduation rates.

This correlational study examined the differences in institutional success in raising the graduation rates of underrepresented minority students (URMs) in STEM disciplines at 20 selected institutions within a large system of public higher education. The study used secondary data available from both the system’s Office of Institutional Research and the Federal IPEDS reports. Results of the study identified selected institutions that performed the highest at graduating URMs in STEM. The study also revealed that several institutional factors (Pell Grant Aid, faculty salaries, expenditures and average student age) were not significantly associated with URMs graduation rates.

A positive correlation was found between SAT scores, high school GPA and URM STEM graduation rates. These pre- college student achievement factors were most prevalent at the highly selected institutions in the study which also had the highest URM STEM graduation rates. vi Table of Contents Dedication……………………………………………………………………………….iii Biographical Sketch……………………………………………………………………….vi Table of Contents……………………………………………………………………….vii List of Tables.x List of Figures…………………………………………………………………………….xi Chapter 1: Introduction……………………………………………………………………1 Introduction………………………………………………………………………….13 Statement of Purpose……………………………………………………………….17 Research Questions………………………………………………………………… 17 Significance of the Study……………………………………………………………17 Underrepresented Students in STEM Fields………………………………………. 18 Research Context……………………………………………………………………23 Definitions of Terms……………………………………………………………….26 Chapter 2: Review of the Literature…………………………………….………………28 Introduction and Purpose……………………………………………………………28 Background and Context…………………………………………………………… 31 vii Social/Cultural Capital…………………………………………………………….44 Review of Methods………………………………………………………………….51 Research Gaps and Recommendations for Further Study………………………….54 Chapter 3: Research Design Methodology………………………………………………56 Introduction and Purpose……………………………………………………………56 Research Questions………………………………………………………………… 57 Research Context……………………………………………………………………57 Procedures for Data Collection and Analysis……………………………………….656 Introduction………………………………………………………………………… 656 Data Analysis……………………………………………………………………….

667 Results – Research Question 1 – URM Graduation Rates…………………………. 667 Results - Research Question 2 – Institutional Characteristics……………………… 745 viii URM STEM graduation rate……………………………………………………….790 Introduction………………………………………………………………………… 790 Implications of Findings……………………………………………………………. 945 Policy and Practice…………………………………………………………………. 967 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………100 References………………………………………………………………………………103 4 Appendix A…………………………………………………………………………….1134 ix List of Tables Item Title Page Table 3.1 Characteristics of Selected Institutions 59 Table 3.2 Description of Independent Variables 61 Table 3.3 Independent Variables: Faculty Characteristics 62 x Table 3.4 STEM Classification by CIP Family & Agency 63 Table 4.1 Overall URM STEM Graduation Rates by 68 Table 4.3 Graduation Rates by College 71 Graduation Rates by College Comparing URM Table 4.

NON-URM Graduation Rates 73 Graduation Rates by College Comparing Female Table 4. Male URM Graduation Rates 76 Correlation Matrix of Overall STEM Graduation Rate and Institutional Variables List of Figures xi Item Title Page Figure 4.1 Overall URM STEM Graduation Rates by College 67 Figure 4.2 STEM-URM STEM Graduation Rates 69 Figure 4.3 NON URM-URM Graduation Rates 72 xii Chapter 1: Introduction Introduction As a nation, the goal of fortifying college success in Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) has intensified in the United States due to the ever increasing demand for a highly skilled labor force needed to sustain a global competitive position (Carnevale, Smith, & Melton, 2011). The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) has indicated that our nation’s economic forecasts point to a need to produce one million college graduates in STEM fields to maintain America’s economic advantage. The discussion of STEM as a national imperative, a priority deserving both state and federal support, has focused both on the need to educate many more thousands of graduates in professions from traditional disciplines, as well as those in evolving and allied disciplines.

New York State regions mirror the national predictions that STEM occupations will grow faster than non-STEM occupations between 2010 and 2020 and face the knowledge that 26% of all degree holders in the science and engineering labor force are age 50 or over, and by age 62, half of all bachelor's degree holders in science and engineering are expected to leave full-time employment (National Science Foundation (NSF), 2008). This impending decline in the STEM workforce has contributed to the looming crisis the country and its industry is currently experiencing (Fifolt & Searby, 2010). The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology in a special report to the White House, has espoused the need for skilled workers in STEM fields 1 is expected to require some one million new workers, some facts in this regard include that there has been a nearly 8% increase in STEM-related employment opportunities compared with 2.6% of non-stem related employment (2012). Department of Commerce projects that between 2010 and 2018 there will be a 17% growth in STEM-related professions compared with only 9.8% of non-STEM professions; that STEM workers earn 26% more than their non-STEM counterparts (White House Fact Sheet, 2010).

Yet, there aren’t enough domestic educated workers to take advantage of these opportunities. Clearly, the need for more students pursuing and graduating with degrees in STEM disciplines has never been as great, particularly for those from underrepresented populations. Nelson, Associate Professor, University of Oklahoma said it succinctly: under-represented minorities are projected to constitute almost 32% of the American population by 2020, outnumbering white males (30. Therefore, proactive steps should be taken now in order to insure the proportionate inclusion of such a large part of the U.

population in science and engineering, throughout all levels of academia.2) At the NSF 2012 conference in Chicago, Illinois, another well-known scholar and keynote, Dr. Richard Tapia, from Rice University, spoke eloquently on the need to educate more students in STEM, saying: We need to combat the loss of the precious few underrepresented minority students pursuing STEM. It is a simple matter of the nation’s survival…to make the country healthy. The rate at which the minority population is 2 growing is outpacing the rate at which we are improving our effectiveness in educating these students (Zverina, 2012, p.

General Background One purpose of STEM education is to provide opportunities to develop decision-making skills to understand situations and make informed decisions (National Research Council, 1996). Diverse populations have not been adequately represented in reforms that would increase the numbers of scientifically literate citizens. Between 2001 and 2010, the underrepresented minorities’ (URMs) share of science and engineering bachelor’s degrees has been rising modestly from about 10. Retooling the teaching and learning framework for STEM and science education is both a cultural and economic necessity.

One researcher states, there was one crucial shortcoming in the art and practice of math and science instruction as developed throughout the 1960s saying, the science classroom needs to incorporate the conceptual opportunities to build explanations for the inquiry and interpretive frameworks guiding experimentation (Carey, 2009). That is to say, that creative pedagogical approaches in the teaching of STEM disciplines would benefit a more diverse student population.