By Jana Talley, Co-Editor of DUE Point, Jackson State University

The Computer Science and Mathematics (CS/M) Scholars Program (https://mathematics.wwu.edu/csm-scholars) at Western Washington University (WWU) is funded by a National Science Foundation (NSF) Track 2 S-STEM grant (Award Number 1742110). The grant funds scholarships for students majoring in computer science or mathematics and involves a variety of supporting activities, including first-quarter seminar courses, professional development events, explorations of career opportunities, and near-peer mentoring. The project team consists of WWU professors Dr. David Hartenstine, Dr. Perry Fizzano, and Dr. Regina Barber DeGraaff, as well as Old Dominion University’s Dr. Joseph Brobst who serves as the project’s educational researcher. Their fields of expertise are mathematics, computer science, and physics. 

Where did you get the idea for this project?

Many of the features of this project are similar to those of a previous S-STEM project at WWU that also supported computer science and mathematics majors. In the previous project, connections among students within a cohort were strong but it was also clear that students would benefit from better connections between cohorts. The project team had gotten to know students in the program very well during their time at WWU and many of them expressed an interest in staying involved after graduation. The mentoring aspect of our current project began to take shape at an NSF S-STEM Workshop where prospective grant writers were encouraged to involve people in industry and their institution’s alumni in their projects. Recruiting Early Career Professional Mentors (ECPMs) was a way to do both. We were very excited to involve successful WWU alumni as we developed the concept of near-peer mentoring. 

Describe near-peer mentoring and how it is incorporated into your project.

Near-peer mentoring connects alumni with juniors and seniors in the program and newer students with those upperclass students. This means that students in their third and fourth years are both mentors and mentees. Providing structure for these relationships is important. Conversation topics suggested by the project team make the mentoring interactions more productive and help mentees and mentors develop relationships. Mentees are required to submit short reflective summaries of the conversations they have had with their mentors. These summaries have been invaluable for the educational research associated with the project and for continuous improvement of the program. They have allowed the project team to identify students’ interests and struggles as well as led directly to themes for future professional development events and follow-up conversations. 

How will students, your institution, and the broader higher education community benefit as a result of your project?

In addition to the financial relief through scholarship funding and career-focused programming, the students benefit from the support and experience of someone a few steps ahead of them. Whether that is a student mentor a couple of years ahead of a newer student or an alumni mentor for those students nearing graduation, these near-peer mentors provide a different perspective than mid-to-late career professors. The mentoring part of the program will be extended to computer science and mathematics majors outside of the NSF-supported program, which will further our efforts to recruit and retain students, specifically those from underrepresented groups. Involving ECPMs in the project is strengthening connections between the departments and younger alumni who have demonstrated a desire to support their alma mater in a meaningful way. Our project’s mentoring framework will be disseminated for those interested in implementing similar programs at their own institutions. Additionally, an app to streamline the administration of the mentoring conversation is currently under development and will be made widely available. 

What is the biggest adjustment you have had to make due to the pandemic?

We have been very pleased overall with how things have gone given the circumstances, but we know the lack of face-to-face contact affects the quality of interaction, particularly with community-building and mentoring. In April 2020, some of the current students assisted in virtual recruiting efforts that resulted in the successful onboarding of a strong incoming class. We have continued to have regular professional development events via Zoom and almost all mentor/mentee pairs met virtually. As the pandemic has emphasized the importance of mentorship, we have encouraged mentors to contact their mentees more frequently with quick, informal check-ins.    

Tell us about students who have been impacted by the project. 

A second-year mathematics major described her participation in the CS/M Scholars Program as a motivating experience that exposed her to professional development opportunities and national conferences that extended her knowledge base far beyond her course curriculum. She goes on to say that, “…the entire community reinforces the fact that math and computer science can be as inclusive as we make them be.”

Another mathematics major considers her invitation to participate in the program as a critical turning point in her academic career. She is now completing a master’s in Computer Science and planning to pursue a Ph.D. Through the program, she was able to join a community of women mathematicians and computer scientists as well as form strong relationships with alumni. She emphasized that, “The root of many of my successes is being a part of this program...”

Learn more about NSF DUE (#): 1742110

Full Project Name: Preparing Students for Careers in Computer Science and Math

Abstract Link: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1742110&HistoricalAwards=false

Project Contact: David Hartenstine, hartend@wwu.edu

*Responses in this blog were edited for length and clarity.