STEM Education Innovation Programs
Submit a Program Description » The goal of this database is to serve as a searchable collection of effective practices and programs that support improving undergraduate STEM education. Use the text search and the boxes at the right to narrow the collection based on particular aspects that you are interested in.
You can add your own program to the database by completing the database submission form.
Activity Types
Program Components
Target Audience
- College/University Staff 11 matches
- English Language Learners 4 matches
- First Generation College Students 18 matches
- First-year College Students 17 matches
- Graduate Students 10 matches
- In-Service K12 Teachers 5 matches
- Institution Administration 15 matches
- K12 Students 6 matches
- Non-tenure Track Faculty 16 matches
- Post-doctoral Fellows 4 matches
- Pre-Service K12 Teachers 5 matches
- Teaching/Learning Assistants 6 matches
- Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty 23 matches
- Transfer Students 9 matches
- Undergraduate Majors 24 matches
- Undergraduate Non-Majors 15 matches
- Underrepresented Minority Students 20 matches
Point of Intervention
Results 1 - 10 of 42 matches
InSciTE
Wiline Pangle, Central Michigan University
Our mission is to create an equitable student-driven environment for undergraduate students to develop skills on interdisciplinary communication, collaboration and real-world problem solving to become culturally competent and effective leaders.
Program Components: Professional Development:Advising and Mentoring, Accessibility, Diversity/Inclusion, Pedagogical Training, Curriculum Development, Student Assessment, Course Evaluation, Cultural Competency, Institutional Systems:Interdepartmental Collaboration, Supporting Students:Mentoring Program, Student Engagement, Learning Communities, Undergraduate Research, Quantitative Skills, Academic Support, Scholarships, Grants, Workstudy, Professional Preparation, Cohort Program, Clubs/Social Activities, Outreach:Presentations/Talks, Student Recruiting
Target Audience: Underrepresented Minority Students, English Language Learners, College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration, First-year College Students, Undergraduate Majors, Transfer Students, First Generation College Students
Point of Intervention: College/School
Institution Type: Doctorate-granting Universities:Moderate Research Activity
CCHF Chemistry Summer Undergraduate Research Program (CSURP)
Travis York, APLU
CSURP is a program for undergraduate students, majoring in chemistry or chemical engineering, interested in conducting supervised summer research. The program is supported by the Center for Selective C-H Functionalization (CCHF), which is a network of 23 academic and industrial research laboratories at 15 partner institutions throughout the country. The CCHF is one of eight National Science Foundation (NSF) funded Centers for Chemical Innovation.
Target Audience: Underrepresented Minority Students, Undergraduate Majors, First Generation College Students
Point of Intervention: Major/Department
Health Sciences and Technology Academy (HSTA)
Travis York, APLU
The Health Sciences & Technology Academy increases the number of African American and other underrepresented students in West Virginia who pursue degrees in health sciences and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors, thereby increasing the number of health practitioners and advocates in the medically undeserved communities of West Virginia. HSTA helps West Virginia high school students succeed in health care and other STEM-based undergraduate and graduate degree programs. We marshal the efforts of hundreds of mentors―teachers, community members, and higher-education faculty, staff, and students―to create a framework that supports children facing social and financial challenges in obtaining a diploma and furthering their education.
Program Components: Professional Development:Pedagogical Training, Supporting Students:Mentoring Program, Bootcamp, Student Engagement, Internships, Professional Preparation
Target Audience: K12 Students
Teaching Quality Framework Initiative
Noah Finkelstein, University of Colorado at Boulder
This effort provides framework for supporting and assessing teaching quality across all departments on a campus (i.e. a Teaching Quality Framework, or TQF). The TQF has two essential elements: (1) categories that define teaching as a scholarly activity, and (2) a change process for implementation. To assess teaching quality, we draw on three perspectives--faculty members, their students, and their peers--as sources of data. The TQF scholarly categories are held constant across departments, but each department contextualizes them according to the specifics of their discipline. The implementation strategy is grounded in theories of organizational change and is designed to lead to campus-wide adoption. This strategy is not a top-down mandate; it focuses on bringing together key faculty leaders and departments and providing them with a structure to co-create, test, and evaluate an assessment system in the context that makes the most sense to them.
Program Components: Professional Development:Student Assessment, Course Evaluation, Institutional Systems:Personnel/Hiring, Incentive/Reward Systems, Evaluating Promotion and Tenure, Evaluating Teaching
Target Audience: College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration
Point of Intervention: Institution
Institution Type: Doctorate-granting Universities:Highest Research Activity
Enabling Faculty to Adopt Deliberative Democracy Pedagogy: a tool to broaden and engage
Gwen Shusterman, Portland State University
This project has been focused on catalyzing pedagogical innovation in introductory science courses. In particular, structures have been put in place to facilitate the implementation of the model of Deliberative Democracy Pedagogy (DDP). DDP is an active learning strategy, based on deliberative democratic models of citizen engagement in science policymaking. This integrative pedagogical approach, revises the delivery of conventional introductory science content around modules that engage students with current science policy controversies. Teaching teams of faculty and graduate students have attended summer pedagogical workshops, developed curricular modules, implemented the modules and participated in regular Communities of Practice meetings.
Program Components: Professional Development:Diversity/Inclusion, Pedagogical Training, Curriculum Development, Student Assessment, Institutional Systems:Incentive/Reward Systems, Interdepartmental Collaboration, Supporting Students:Student Engagement, Professional Preparation, Outreach:Presentations/Talks, Outreach to K12 Teachers and Students
Target Audience: Underrepresented Minority Students, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, First-year College Students, Undergraduate Majors, Transfer Students, Teaching/Learning Assistants, Graduate Students, First Generation College Students
Point of Intervention: Course
Institution Type: Doctorate-granting Universities:Higher Research Activity
Institutional Impact of Scaling-up Course-Embedded Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs)
Judy Awong-Taylor, Georgia Gwinnett College
Georgia Gwinnett College was established in 2006 as a public liberal arts institution with a mission to provide open access to all high school graduates regardless of SAT scores. In 2011, The School of Science and Technology (SST) implemented a program for enhancing student engagement and learning in all STEM disciplines. GGC's Four-year Undergraduate Research and Creative Experience (4YrURCE) program is based upon a discipline-specific course-embedded research model which scaffolds multiple research and creative experiences for all STEM majors during all four years of matriculation. To date, 54 courses have been re-designed as CUREs and over 3,000 students (unduplicated count) are impacted annually. Longitudinal program-level assessment data includes student performance, student attitudinal, and faculty attitudinal data gathered over the past five years of the initiative.
Program Components: Professional Development:Diversity/Inclusion, Pedagogical Training, Curriculum Development, Student Assessment, Course Evaluation, Institutional Systems:Incentive/Reward Systems, Evaluating Teaching, Interdepartmental Collaboration, Supporting Students:Tutoring, Student Engagement, Undergraduate Research
Target Audience: Underrepresented Minority Students, College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration, First-year College Students, Undergraduate Non-Majors, Undergraduate Majors, First Generation College Students
Point of Intervention: College/School
Institution Type: Baccalaureate Colleges
LAUNCH: Learning Communities
Travis York, APLU
Learning communities (LCs) are opportunities for students to actively participate in their education. Learning communities connect students with others of similar interests or backgrounds, enrich the learning process and promote greater student success. Creating a rich learning environment, learning communities emphasize relationships and community building among students, faculty and staff. LCs usually feature small group interaction, common intellectual experiences, and mentorship from peers and/or faculty. Students gain insight into the context for course material, develop a social network and support, are exposed to new experiences and develop their critical thinking skills.
Program Components: Supporting Students:Mentoring Program, Learning Communities, Academic Support
Target Audience: Underrepresented Minority Students, First-year College Students, Undergraduate Non-Majors, Undergraduate Majors, First Generation College Students
Point of Intervention: Institution
Unconscious Bias Faculty Training
Travis York, APLU
The Office of Faculty Development and Diversity and The Cornell Interactive Theatre Ensemble (CITE) offer a workshop focused on establishing an effective search and addressing issues such as unconscious bias in active recruitment.
Program Components: Institutional Systems:Personnel/Hiring
Target Audience: College/University Staff, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration
Point of Intervention: Institution
Communities of practice for engaging faculty in STEM course reform
Laura Hahn, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
At large research-intensive universities, teaching STEM at scale has posed instructional challenges to faculty who are unaccustomed to addressing pedagogy in a collective, sustainable manner. At our institution, through strategic implementation of communities of practice, we are beginning to integrate the qualities of a strong, collaborative research culture into the context of teaching.
Program Components: Professional Development:Pedagogical Training, Curriculum Development, Institutional Systems:Strategic Planning, Interdepartmental Collaboration, Supporting Students:Student Engagement, Undergraduate Research
Target Audience: College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration, Undergraduate Majors
Point of Intervention: College/School
Institution Type: Doctorate-granting Universities:Highest Research Activity
Pathways to Career Success: A STEM Career Mentorship Program
Jeffrey Jones
The Pathways to Engineering Success Program focuses on guiding undergraduate STEM students toward thriving careers in chosen fields. This mentorship initiative pairs students with experienced professionals to provide practical insights, career guidance, and leadership development. Through hands-on learning, resume coaching, and exposure to real-world challenges, the program equips participants with the tools and confidence to excel in specialized engineering fields, while promoting diversity and inclusivity in STEM careers.
Program Components: Professional Development:Advising and Mentoring, Institutional Systems:Strategic Planning, Interdepartmental Collaboration, Supporting Students:Bridge Program, Mentoring Program, Quantitative Skills, Professional Preparation
Target Audience: First-year College Students, Undergraduate Non-Majors, Graduate Students, First Generation College Students
Point of Intervention: Major/Department

