Recruiting Underrepresented Minorities

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Recruiting Underrepresented Minorities

• Finding the key. . .
• Maricel Quintana-Baker, Ph.D.
• State Council of Higher Education (SCHEV)

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The global perspective. . .

• In 2000, North American
• universities produced less
• than half of the worlds
• science and engineering degrees

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That global marketplace is here in our backyard!

• In Northern Virginia, a public high school in
  Annandale has students from 72 different
  countries
• In 2002, ESL students enrolled in Virginia public
  schools spoke more than 110 different languages

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Increased Diversity . . .

• By 2025, our US population will have 72 million
  more peopleof those, there will be
• 32 million Hispanics
• 12 million African Americans
• 7 million Asian Americans

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2004 U.S. Educational Attainment( of Specific
Population)
All fields iiiiiii Asians Blacks Hispanics White, Non-Hisp.
Bachelors 29.9 12.3 8.8 19.8
Masters 12.2 4.1 2.2 7.6
Doctoral 3.6 .05 .04 1.4
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Earned STEM Doctorates in 2003
Total (all U.S.) 14,571 100
Asian, Pacific Islander 1,030 7
Black 612 4.2
Hispanic 654 4.5
American Indian 71 - 1
of relevant population of relevant population of relevant population
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STEM Doctorates Granted by VSGC Members . . .2003
College of William Mary 20
Hampton University 3
Old Dominion University 16
University of Virginia 55
Virginia Tech 32
All VA Institutions Combined 172
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Increasing the participationof underrepresented
minorities (in STEM) is critical to the health
of this country. No first-class world nation can
maintain the health of its economy or society
when such a large part of its population remains
outside scientific and technological endeavors
Richard Tapia, Ph.D., Rice University, at
http//ceee.rice.edu/Books/DV/continuum/index.html

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Underrepresented Minorities Currently Enrolled in
Virginias Colleges Universities

American Indian 2,233
Blacks 80,684
Hispanics 14,946

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Action!!

• Study Best Practices
• Have a Plan with Strategies
• Identify who will be helpful
• Create collaborative relationships
• Person to person contact works best

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Best Practices

• Look at what other players are doing
• We can all probably name a few proven best
  practices, like . . .
• Research opportunities
• Mentoring
• Academic heuristic support
• Be willing to share your secrets
• Be prepared to sing your own praises!

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Your Plan is Your Road Map!

• Establish Goals and Measurable Objectives
• Develop a Strategy for Accomplishing Each
  Objective
• Establish a Time-line and a Target Date for your
  Objectives

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Whos traveling with you on this Journey?

• Its all about NETWORKING
• Its all about knocking on all the possible doors
• Its all about knocking on the door to see whos
  behind it
• Its all about relationship building
• Its all about finding the CHAMPIONS

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Whos Going to Help You Knock On All Those Doors?

• Current students are a good source for new
  Students
• Colleagues at other institutions are also good
  sources of referrals
• Key people INSIDE your institution
• Key people/organizations OUTSIDE your
  institutionin the community

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Creating a Network of Links

• Whos out there? Where do you look?
• Professional organizations
• Government programs aimed at increasing
  underrepresented minorities
• Campus groups and organizations
• Community organizations
• Special events
• Conferences and meetings

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Professional Organizations. . .

• American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
  Board on Minorities Women
• Center for the Advancement of Hispanics in
  Science Engineering Education (CAHSEE)
• National Council of Black Engineers Scientists
  (NCEBS)
• Association for Women in Science (AWIS)
• See handout for
  others. . .

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Government Programs to Increase Underrepresented
Minorities. . .

• NASA
• Science Technology Institute for Minority
  Institutions
• UNCF Special Programs Corporation
• NSF
• Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation
  (LSAMP)
• The Alliances for Graduate Education and the
  Professoriate (AGEP)
• Model Institutions for Excellence (MIE)
• See Handout
  for others. . .

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Campus Groups Organizations

• Professional organizations with campus chapters,
  such as
• The Society of Professional Hispanic Engineers
  (SHPE)
• Graduate Women in Science-Sigma Delta Epsilon
  (GWIS)
• See Handout for others. . .

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Community Organizations

• Boy Scouts -for example
• Eagle Scouts have special qualities that enable
  them to reach that level.
• Museumsespecially science museums usually have
  targeted activities
• Competitions and Fairs by the American
  Mathematical Association, the National Science
  Teachers Association, the Engineering Education
  Service Center Pre-Engineering Competitions.

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Special Events. . . Did you know
that. . .

• Every year theres a Pi Day?
• Every year the third week of November is
  Geography Awareness Week?
• Every year engineers celebrate National Engineers
  Week in February?

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Conferences Meetings

• Most national professional organizations have
  meetings that students attend.
• For example
• SACNAS-Society for the Advancement of Chicano and
  Native American Scientists
• GEM-National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for
  Minorities in Engineering and Science.

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Think Creatively!! (If you were a young budding
scientist, where would you be hiding??

• Make a list of the schools from where current and
  past students have come recruit there!
• Work the crowdAre you going to a national
  conference? Post a notice and hold
  interviews/conversations with the talented
  students there!!
• Make friends create your own network of
  department chairs and other contacts!!

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Become a Champion and Clone Yourself?!!!

• You must have PASSION!
• Passion is contagious!
• You have to talk the talk and walk the walk and
  preach, preach, preach!!!
• Soon, youll see other CHAMPIONS emerging.
• The power of collaboration and your passion will
  be the KEY!