We describe our efforts at building programs in Earth and space science over the past decade at four Minority Institutions, Medgar Evers College, Norfolk State University, South Carolina State University and the University of…
Startling national statistics continue to illuminate the need for increasing the number of underrepresented minority students graduating with degrees in the geosciences. With increasing minority populations in the U.S., diversity…
People with disabilities make up the largest minority population in the U.S. yet remain sorely underrepresented in scientific disciplines that require components of field-based training such as the geosciences. This paper provides…
Summer camps have proven to be effective tools to engage students in the geosciences. Findings from this study highlight perceptions and experiences of middle school students from predominantly African American school districts in…
This commentary examines the use of Spanish-English bilingual geosciences communication within the United States as a way to broaden information about the discipline and inspire youth to develop a passion for STEM careers.
The Geosciences Institute for Research and Education at the University of Michigan–Dearborn has been an example of a successful and effective model in increasing the participation of underrepresented groups in the geosciences. The…
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) attract, retain and award science degrees to African Americans at a higher rate than majority institutions. Because they offer life-changing and career-orienting experiences for…
Native American nations in the United States have a unique legal status that is rooted in a complex relationship between the United States federal government, individual state and local governments and tribal authorities. Although…
Researchers participated in a week long field experience for high school students to increase the pipeline of diverse students into the geosciences major. Surveys were conducted with students and their parents to understand what the participants had learned about geosciences. About 56% of…
A model deployed at Savannah State University (SSU) for enhancing diversity in the geosciences provides much needed African-American role models in the sciences for school aged children in the surrounding community. The most common…
The geosciences benefit from diverse student perspectives and backgrounds, but the field-based learning requirements pose barriers to students with disabilities. If carefully designed, fieldwork can be made…
The Rural Alaska Honors Institute (RAHI) is an intensive, six-week residential high school-to-college bridging program aimed at preparing talented rural Alaska youth for the social and academic challenges of college. Since its…
The geosciences continue to lag behind the other sciences in both diversity and degree completion rates of students transferring from two-year colleges (2YCs). Critical to strengthening the transfer student…
NOVA interviewed a geoscientist to inquiry about the diversity gap within the geosciences. The geoscientist outlines reasons such as limited opportunities to take geoscience courses in high school as well as limited exposure to earth sciences knowledge through field trips, museum visits or…
Do students really enroll in Introductory Geology because they think it is ‘‘rocks for jocks’’? In this study, we examine the widely held assumption that students view geology as a qualitative and remedial option for fulfilling a…
The geosciences are considered by many to be inaccessible to individuals with disabilities. Challenging traditional perceptions of identity in the geosci- ence community is an important step to removing…
Native American reservation communities nationwide exercise sovereign control over natural resources and land-use within reservation boundaries. With the recent rapid economic growth of many of these communities, development…
This study examines discrepancies between geoscience career knowledge and biology career knowledge among Mississippi science teachers. Principals and in-service teachers were also surveyed about their perception of geoscience…
This paper discusses experiences and lessons learned from developing an interdisciplinary graduate program (IDP) during the last 10 y: The Howard University Graduate Program in Atmospheric Sciences (HUPAS). HUPAS is the first…
Students with physical disabilities encounter challenges in any scientific discipline, yet the geosciences have extremely low participation levels for persons with dis- abilities. Because of the emphasis placed on field research at…
The author of this blog explains how limited exposure to the outdoors as a youth, might be a contributing factor for the lack of representation of underrepresented minorities in the geosciences.