STEM Collaboratives Project

2014 – 2017

Funded by a $4.6 million grant from the Helmsley Charitable Trust and coordinated through the CSU Office of the Chancellor, STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) Collaboratives tasked eight CSU campuses with integrating high-impact practices to create a supportive environment for first-year STEM students.

Highlights

• In 2014, the CSU established the STEM Collaboratives network to identify and scale effective strategies for expanding student success and retention in STEM programs, particularly among historically underserved minority groups, low-income, and first-generation college enrollees.
  
• Eight CSU campuses were awarded funding to test and implement projects incorporating three high-impact educational practices: pre-college Summer Bridge programs, first-year experience courses or programs, and redesigned introductory gateway STEM courses.
• The campuses brought together teams of staff, faculty and administrators from select STEM departments, as well as from Academic Affairs and Student Affairs. Staff from the CSU Office of the Chancellor served as network leads.
• The schools began to implement these practices in summer 2015, extending into academic years 2015-16 and 2016-17. The network leads convened the participating campuses twice a year to discuss progress and lessons learned.
• The CSU engaged The Pullia​s Center for Higher Education, within the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California, to conduct a mixed-methods study of the impact of STEM Collaboratives.