Rice-Houston Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate

Rice-Houston Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) Program Theresa Chatman NSF PI Meeting March 19, 2009

Project Overview AGEP History • Spend a Summer with a Scientist Program: 1989 - 1999 • Rice Minority Graduate Education (MGE) Program: 1998 - 2003 • Rice-Houston Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) Program: 2004 - 2009 2

Project Overview Union of: • Rice Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) • Houston Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (HLSAMP) Program 3

Alliance Successes Summer Program • Research Projects • Community Building Activities • Professional Development Initiatives • Mentoring Part of AGEP Culture 4

Alliance Successes Lecture Series 2007 • Ruth J. Simmons, President of Brown University (Rice) • Valerie Taylor, Chair of Computer Science, Texas A&M University (UH) 2008 • Sylvester James Gates, Professor of Physics, University of Maryland (Rice) • Jennifer West, Professor of Bioengineering, Rice University (UH) 2009 • Warren Washington, National Center for Atmospheric Research (UH) 5

Alliances Successes Distinguished Speakers & Guests Notable speakers give talks and interact with students • Hector Ruiz, CEO, President and Chair of the Board, AMD • Marta Tienda, Princeton, Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs • Arlie Petters, Duke University, Professor of Mathematics • Raymond Johnson, University of Maryland, Professor of Mathematics • Neal Lane, former Science Advisor to the President 6 • Edward Djerejian, former Ambassador to Israel

Alliance Successes AGEP Ph. D. Recipients Former AGEP students give talks and interact with students • Cassandra Mc. Zeal, Senior Research Mathematician, Exxon. Mobil • John Rodriguez, Member, Technical Staff, Silicon Technology Development, Texas Instruments • Illya Hicks, Associate Professor, Rice University • Juan Meza, Department Head, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory • Amanda Mosola, Research Scientist, Exxon. Mobil 7

Alliance Successes Department Interactions • Close relationship to campus admissions committees and departmental representatives • Meetings with faculty to demonstrate AGEP success • AGEP Websites, AGEP brochures, departmentspecific materials, general graduate brochure • Students moved to research dollars --frees up $ for additional students 8

Alliance Successes Department Interactions • Financial support management by AGEP Steering Committee – Negotiate student support with faculty and department heads – Track supporting profiles of faculty – Provide leverage for student recruitment – Provide summer mentors with $500 cost of research supplement – Provide conference participation support 9

Alliance Successes Lessons Learned Faculty assistance with troubleshooting • Summer evaluations of students by faculty (twice) • Pumpkin grades for first-year graduate students • Tutors provided as needed (early intervention) 10

Number of Underrepresented Ph. D Recipients in All STEM Disciplines at Rice University

Alliance Successes Infrastructure Changes Presidential Mentor Award at Rice • Recognizes faculty with a strong commitment to mentoring, especially minority students • Institutionalized • Recognition at Spring faculty meeting by President • Carries monetary award 12

Alliance Successes Infrastructure Changes Rice Presidential Mentor Award Yin Zhang, CAAM, AGEP Mentor • First awardee (2003) • In four years, eight female Ph. D. graduates; two Mexican American, two African American 13

Alliance Successes Evaluation and Assessment Provide data on the progress of the Rice. Houston AGEP Program meeting its overarching goals of increasing recruitment, retention, and production of minority undergraduates and graduates in STEM fields 14

Alliance Successes Evaluation and Assessment Methods and Design Pre- and post-surveys and interviews to assess: • Implementation of the Rice model at the University of Houston (formative evaluation) • Impact on alliance student participants of crossinstitutional community and overall program 15

Alliance Successes Evaluation and Assessment AGEP Graduate Surveyed all Rice AGEP graduate participants from 1991 -2003 Findings: 80% respondents - AGEP had positive or very positive impact on motivation to obtain doctoral degree 92% respondents - experiences in AGEP Program had positive or very positive impact on desire to remain in graduate school and complete degree 16

Alliance Successes Evaluation and Assessment AGEP Graduate Survey • Students rated the following AGEP Program components as having a positive or very positive impact on their desire to remain in graduate school: – AGEP Program overall (88%) – Interactions with other students in program (90%) – Being in company of minority students from other ethnic groups besides their own (88%) – Being in company of students from their ethnic group (86%) – Being involved in AGEP community (88%) 17

Alliance Successes ADVANCE/AGEP Interactions • Annual Negotiating the Ideal Faculty Position Workshop • Bi-monthly Postdoc Luncheons • Dean’s Lecture on Leadership and Diversity 18

University Commitment • High level of university commitment – Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies – AGEP PI – President established Presidential Mentor Award and President’s Lecture Series of Diverse Scholars – President’s Minority Council – AGEP positions institutionalized – project manager, project administrator – Stipend support for AGEP students – Partial support for faculty summer salaries – Office space and meeting space – Campus support for activities 19

Rice President David Leebron “The Rice-Houston AGEP program is a sterling example of what progress can be made with the support of two university administrations, dedicated faculty, exemplary staff, and impassioned students. ” 20