scholarly journals More than “Getting Us Through:” A Case Study in Cultural Capital Enrichment of Underrepresented Minority Undergraduates

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Ovink ◽  
Brian D. Veazey
Keyword(s):  
Minority Students ◽  
Intervention Program ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Academic Preparation ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Underrepresented Minority ◽  
Academic Preparedness ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Career Attainment

Minority students continue to be underrepresented among those who seek graduate and professional degrees in the sciences. Much previous research has focused on academic preparation. Equally important, however, are the psychological–social barriers and lack of institutional support encountered by many minority students. We present a case study of a university-sponsored intervention program for minority science majors that addresses not only academics, but also socialization into the academic community, networking, and the ability to practice newfound skills and dispositions through undergraduate research. In examining this case, we suggest that concerted, formal efforts toward expanding habitus and thereby augmenting cultural and social capital may have positive effects for underrepresented minority (URM) college students’ academic and career prospects. Moreover, we argue that these differences complement the gains program participants make in academic preparedness, showing that attention to academics alone may be insufficient for addressing longstanding inequities in science career attainment among URM students.

scholarly journals Influence of NSF-Funded Undergraduate Research Assistantships on Underrepresented Minority Students

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadir Yilmaz ◽  
Francisco Vigil ◽  
Miquela Trujillo ◽  
Isabella Acevedo-Rodriguez ◽  
Ricardo Jacquez
Keyword(s):  
Minority Students ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Underrepresented Minority ◽  
Underrepresented Minority Students

Supporting scientists from underrepresented minority backgrounds

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kimberly Griffin ◽  
Vicki Baker ◽  
KerryAnn O’Meara ◽  
Gudrun Nyunt ◽  
Tykeia Robinson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
Graduate Education ◽  
Minority Students ◽  
Students Of Color ◽  
Psychosocial Support ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Underrepresented Minority ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Developmental Networks ◽  
Underrepresented Minority Students

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore the developmental networks of graduate students of color participating in PROMISE, Maryland’s Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate program, a National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded graduate retention and support program. The authors specifically examine how underrepresented minority students gain access to needed supports through building individual mentoring relationships and broader networks of support.Design/methodology/approachThe authors rely on a case study approach to explore developmental networks and support accessed by students participating in the PROMISE program. A total of 16 students of color in STEM fields from three institutions in the University of Maryland System have participated.FindingsStudy findings reveal that scientists from underrepresented backgrounds construct and draw from diverse developmental networks that include individuals from within and outside of the academic community. Key relationships include advisors; faculty with whom they share identities, peers in and outside of their programs; and administrators. Developers play distinct roles within the networks including shaping students’ emerging professional identities as scientists and providing psychosocial support. Student agency and initiative as well as faculty engagement and programs like PROMISE further enhanced student access to mentorship.Research limitations/implicationsThis study offers unique insights into the nature, cultivation and resources gained from the relationships that make up the developmental networks of science graduate students from underrepresented backgrounds.Originality/valueTraditional notions of mentoring and support, particularly in graduate education, highlight the role and importance of the student’s advisor in their growth and development. This study is unique in its focus on the multiple relationships students of color in science form. This study offers specific insight into the nature, construction and resources gained from developmental networks formed by a group of underrepresented minority students in STEM graduate education.

Effects of a Group Program to Increase Cognitive Performance Through Cognitively Stimulating Leisure Activities in Healthy Older Subjects

GeroPsych ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valentina A. Tesky ◽  
Christian Thiel ◽  
Winfried Banzer ◽  
Johannes Pantel
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Function ◽  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Older Persons ◽  
Intervention Program ◽  
Leisure Activities ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Cognitive Stimulation ◽  
Group Program ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Older Subjects

To investigate the effects of leisure activities on cognitive performance of healthy older subjects, an innovative intervention program was developed. Frequent participation in cognitively stimulating activities (i.e., reading, playing chess, or playing music) is associated with reduced risk of dementia. AKTIVA (active cognitive stimulation – prevention in the elderly) is an intervention program designed to enhance cognitive stimulation in everyday life by increasing cognitive stimulating leisure activities. The present study determines the effects of AKTIVA on cognitive function, mood and attitude toward aging in a sample of older participants from the general population. Several measurement instruments were used including the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale (ADAS-Cog), the Trail-Making Test (TMT), and the Memory Complaint Questionnaire (MAC-Q). Initially, the sample consisted of 307 older persons (170 female, 72 ± 7 years). The intervention was evaluated with a randomized, controlled pre-post follow-up design. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: AKTIVA intervention (n = 126), AKTIVA intervention plus nutrition and exercise counseling (n = 84), no-intervention control group (n = 97). The AKTIVA intervention consisted of 8 weekly sessions and two booster sessions after a break of 4 months. Participation in the group program resulted in positive effects on cognitive function and attitude toward aging for subassembly groups. Older persons (≥ 75 years) showed enhanced speed of information processing (by TMT Version A) (F = 4.17*, p < .05); younger participants (< 75 years) showed an improvement in subjective memory decline (by MAC-Q) (F = 2.55*, p < .05). Additionally, AKTIVA enhanced the frequency of activities for leisure activities for subassembly groups. The results of this study suggest that the AKTIVA program can be used to increase cognitively stimulating leisure activities in the elderly. Further research is necessary to identify the long-term effects of this intervention particularly with respect to the prevention of dementia.

scholarly journals The Wetland Contract as a Tool for Successful Wetland Governance: A Case Study of Ljubljansko Barje Nature Park, Slovenia

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 425
Author(s):  
Katarina Polajnar Horvat ◽  
Ales Smrekar
Keyword(s):  
Wetland Management ◽  
Stakeholder Participation ◽  
Shared Responsibility ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Wetland Ecosystems ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Management And Development ◽  
Nature Park ◽  
Ljubljansko Barje

Our research focuses on implementing multilevel governance of wetlands to achieve an effective participatory process and its overall positive effects on wetland ecosystems and their protection as well as on local sustainable development. The aim of the research is to develop a methodology for establishing the Wetland Contract, a voluntary agreement to foster sustainable management and development of wetlands, to ensure greater coordination and consensus building between various stakeholders involved in management and to limit conflicts between preservation issues and economic activities in wetlands. The Wetland Contract and the integration process for establishing it in Ljubljansko barje Nature Park proved itself able to overcome conflicts between institutional and legal jurisdiction and is showing itself to be a dynamic path capable of activating a desirable relationship between various interests and supporting new forms of multi-sectoral stakeholder participation in wetland management. It has also contributed to a dialogue and shared responsibility among stakeholders.

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