Virginia Wesleyan University

EMERGENCY GRANTS TO INSTITUTIONS UNDER THE CORONA VIRUS AID, RELIEF AND ECONOMIC SECURITY (CARES) ACT

EMERGENCY FINANCIAL AID GRANTS TO STUDENTS UNDER THE CORONA VIRUS AID, RELIEF AND ECONOMIC SECURITY (CARES) ACT

IMPACTING STUDENT SUCCESS IN STEM THROUGH THE INTEGRATION OF MENTORING, PROGRAMMING, AND COHORT TRAINING AT A LIBERAL ARTS INSTITUTION -THIS PROJECT WILL CONTRIBUTE TO THE NATIONAL NEED FOR WELL-EDUCATED SCIENTISTS, MATHEMATICIANS, ENGINEERS, AND TECHNICIANS BY SUPPORTING THE RETENTION AND GRADUATION OF HIGH-ACHIEVING, LOW-INCOME STUDENTS WITH DEMONSTRATED FINANCIAL NEED AT VIRGINIA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY. THIS INSTITUTION IS A PRIVATE, PRIMARILY UNDERGRADUATE ONE IN SOUTHEAST, COASTAL VIRGINIA, COMPRISING 34% UNDERREPRESENTED STUDENTS. OVER ITS FIVE-YEAR DURATION, THIS PROJECT WILL FUND SCHOLARSHIPS TO 30 UNIQUE FULL-TIME STUDENTS WHO ARE PURSUING BACHELOR?S DEGREES IN BIOLOGY, BIOCHEMISTRY, CHEMISTRY, COMPUTER SCIENCE, CYBERSECURITY, EARTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES, AND MATHEMATICS. FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS WILL RECEIVE SCHOLARSHIP SUPPORT THROUGH GRADUATION. THE PROJECT WILL SUPPORT AND ENGAGE SCHOLARS IN MULTIPLE WAYS, INCLUDING FACULTY AND PEER MENTORING, RESEARCH AND INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCES, CAREER PLANNING SERVICES, AND NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES. ADDITIONAL PROJECT ACTIVITIES INCLUDE A SUMMER STEM BRIDGE, A REVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY'S GENERAL EDUCATION CURRICULUM TO INCREASE ITS RELEVANCE TO STEM MAJORS, AND A SUMMER EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITY. THIS PROJECT WILL CONTRIBUTE TO A BROAD UNDERSTANDING OF HOW TO ENGAGE, SUPPORT, AND RETAIN LOW-INCOME, ACADEMICALLY TALENTED STUDENTS, INCLUDING REPRESENTATIVES OF HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED GROUPS, AT A SMALL, PRIVATE LIBERAL ARTS UNIVERSITY. THE LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE EVALUATION OF THE PROJECT ACTIVITIES WILL HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE BROADER STEM STUDENT POPULATION AT VIRGINIA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY. THE OVERALL GOAL OF THIS PROJECT IS TO INCREASE STEM DEGREE COMPLETION OF LOW-INCOME, HIGH-ACHIEVING UNDERGRADUATES WITH DEMONSTRATED FINANCIAL NEED. MAJOR GOALS INCLUDE TO: 1) RECRUIT 30 SCHOLARS THAT WILL RECEIVE THE MAXIMUM IN SCHOLARSHIP SUPPORT; 2) PROVIDE COHORT-BASED LEARNING ENVIRONMENT WITH INTENSE FACULTY MENTORING FOR EACH SCHOLARS; 3) SUPPORT STUDENT ENGAGEMENT IN EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING, CAREER PLANNING AND NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES; AND 4) INCREASE FIRST-TO-SECOND-YEAR RETENTION AMONG LOW-INCOME STEM STUDENTS AND INCREASE RATES OF PERSISTENCE RESULTING IN STEM DEGREE ATTAINMENT. THIS PROJECT WILL EXPLORE FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE SUCCESSFUL RETENTION AND DEGREE OF TALENTED, LOW-INCOME STEM STUDENTS. PROJECT EVALUATION WILL SPECIFICALLY ANALYZE THE IMPACT OF HOLISTICALLY SUPPORTING STUDENT ACADEMIC AND CAREER PATHWAYS IN STEM ON STUDENT ATTITUDES, BEHAVIOR, PERFORMANCE, RETENTION, AND POST-GRADUATION PLACEMENT OF STUDENTS. SCHOLAR OUTCOMES WILL BE COMPARED TO A SAMPLE OF SIMILAR STUDENTS FROM OUTSIDE OF THE PROJECT. PROJECT OUTCOMES WILL BE DISSEMINATED TO PEER INSTITUTIONS AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS THROUGH PUBLICATIONS, CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS, AND A QUARTERLY WEB CONFERENCE FOR OTHER SIMILAR-SIZED INSTITUTIONS. THIS PROJECT IS FUNDED BY NSF?S SCHOLARSHIPS IN SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, AND MATHEMATICS PROGRAM, WHICH SEEKS TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF LOW-INCOME ACADEMICALLY TALENTED STUDENTS WITH DEMONSTRATED FINANCIAL NEED WHO EARN DEGREES IN STEM FIELDS. IT ALSO AIMS TO IMPROVE THE EDUCATION OF FUTURE STEM WORKERS, AND TO GENERATE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT ACADEMIC SUCCESS, RETENTION, TRANSFER, GRADUATION, AND ACADEMIC/CAREER PATHWAYS OF LOW-INCOME STUDENTS. THIS AWARD REFLECTS NSF'S STATUTORY MISSION AND HAS BEEN DEEMED WORTHY OF SUPPORT THROUGH EVALUATION USING THE FOUNDATION'S INTELLECTUAL MERIT AND BROADER IMPACTS REVIEW CRITERIA.- SUBAWARDS ARE NOT PLANNED FOR THIS AWARD.

VWU: BRIDGING, CONNECTING, AND BUILDING STUDENT SUCCESS (BCB)

TRANSFORMING EFFECTIVE EDUCATORS OF MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE IN SOUTHEAST VIRGINIA -THE PROJECT AIMS TO SERVE THE NATIONAL NEED OF DEVELOPING HIGHLY EFFECTIVE MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE TEACHERS. EDUCATING AND SUPPORTING PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS AND IMPROVING THEIR RETENTION IN THE SECONDARY STEM EDUCATION WORKFORCE ARE CENTRAL FOCI OF THE PROJECT. PARTICIPATING PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS WILL ENGAGE IN A RANGE OF ACTIVITIES FOR PREPARATION AS EFFECTIVE EDUCATORS. PROJECT ACTIVITIES WILL INCLUDE STEM INTERNSHIPS, FIELD WORK IN HIGH-NEED SCHOOL DISTRICTS WITH DIVERSE STUDENT POPULATIONS, INTERVIEW AND JOB PLACEMENT ASSISTANCE, CONTENT AREA SUPPORT, PREPARATION FOR TEACHING AND CONTENT AREA EXAMS, AND PURPOSEFUL ADVISING AND MENTORING FROM EDUCATION AND STEM FACULTY. THE PROJECT?S INDUCTION PROGRAM WILL PROVIDE ONLINE MODULES, A SUMMER WORKSHOP, AND OBSERVATION AND COACHING FROM MASTER TEACHERS. THESE ACTIVITIES HAVE POTENTIAL TO ADDRESS TEACHER TURNOVER IN HIGH-NEED PUBLIC SCHOOLS THROUGH INCLUSION OF TARGETED SUPPORTS FOCUSED ON CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT, CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE TEACHING STRATEGIES, AND STATE CONTENT STANDARDS. PROJECT OUTCOMES WILL RESPOND TO THE CRITICAL NEED FOR WELL-QUALIFIED STEM SECONDARY EDUCATORS IN SOUTHEAST VIRGINIA AND NATIONWIDE. THIS PROJECT AT VIRGINIA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY (VWU) IS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE PORTSMOUTH PUBLIC SCHOOLS (PPS). PROJECT GOALS INCLUDE (1) RECRUITING AND GRADUATING FIFTEEN SECONDARY STEM EDUCATORS WITH TEACHING LICENSURE IN MATHEMATICS, CHEMISTRY, BIOLOGY, OR EARTH SCIENCE; (2) INCREASING THE DIVERSITY OF VWU?S STEM AND EDUCATION GRADUATES; AND (3) PROVIDING PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS WITH NEEDED PREPARATION IN CULTURAL COMPETENCE AND CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE PEDAGOGIES. PARTICIPATING PROSPECTIVE EDUCATORS WILL RECEIVE UP TO THREE YEARS OF SCHOLARSHIP SUPPORT, TWO YEARS AS AN UNDERGRADUATE WHILE THE STEM BACCALAUREATE DEGREE IS COMPLETED AND A THIRD YEAR OF SUPPORT AT THE GRADUATE LEVEL DURING COMPLETION OF SECONDARY TEACHER CERTIFICATION. THE PROJECT WILL MEASURE THE EFFICACY AND IMPACT OF RECRUITMENT ACTIVITIES, INTERNSHIPS AT PPS, AND THE VWU KEEP PROGRAM, A 3-YEAR INDUCTION PROGRAM DESIGNED TO REDUCE TEACHER TURNOVER, AS WELL AS OTHER PROJECT COMPONENTS. RECRUITMENT ACTIVITIES ARE DESIGNED TO EDUCATE STUDENTS AT PPS, LOCAL COMMUNITY COLLEGES, AND VWU ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF STEM TEACHING AND THE OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE. RESULTS FROM THE PROJECT WILL BE DISSEMINATED LOCALLY AND TO STEM EDUCATION COMMUNITIES. THIS TRACK 1: SCHOLARSHIPS AND STIPENDS PROJECT IS SUPPORTED THROUGH THE ROBERT NOYCE TEACHER SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM (NOYCE). THE NOYCE PROGRAM SUPPORTS TALENTED STEM UNDERGRADUATE MAJORS AND PROFESSIONALS TO BECOME EFFECTIVE K-12 STEM TEACHERS AND EXPERIENCED, EXEMPLARY K-12 TEACHERS TO BECOME STEM MASTER TEACHERS IN HIGH-NEED SCHOOL DISTRICTS. IT ALSO SUPPORTS RESEARCH ON THE EFFECTIVENESS AND RETENTION OF K-12 STEM TEACHERS IN HIGH-NEED SCHOOL DISTRICTS. THIS AWARD REFLECTS NSF'S STATUTORY MISSION AND HAS BEEN DEEMED WORTHY OF SUPPORT THROUGH EVALUATION USING THE FOUNDATION'S INTELLECTUAL MERIT AND BROADER IMPACTS REVIEW CRITERIA.

CONGRESSIONAL EARMARK VIRGINIA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY

SEE NOTICE OF AWARD, ATTACHMENT 1 - TERMS AND CONDITIONS, ATTACHMENT D - STATEMENT OF WORK, ABSTRACT.

STRATEGIC MODERNIZATION OF UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH FACILITIES IN SCIENCES

SCIENCE & MATHEMATICS SCHOLARS PROGRAM AT A LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGE

EMERGENCY FINANCIAL GRANTS TO PROVIDE INSTITUTIONAL RELIEF OR STUDENT AWARDS AS A RESULT OF COVID-19.

MRI: ACQUISITION OF A SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPE TO ENHANCE UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH TRAINING IN THE NATURAL SCIENCES

THE NOAA CHESAPEAKE BAY WATERSHED EDUCATION AND TRAINING (B-WET) PROGRAM WILL BE PROVIDING A 3-YEAR, $193,513 GRANT TO VIRGINIA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY (VWU) TO SUPPORT THE MEANINGFUL AND ACCESSIBLE ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION PROJECT. THE PROJECT WILL PROVIDE ACCESSIBLE AND MEANINGFUL WATERSHED EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES (MWEES) FOR ELEMENTARY STUDENTS, INCLUDING STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES WHO HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO FULLY PARTICIPATE IN MWEES IN THE PAST. VWU AND ITS PARTNERS WILL WORK WITH TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS FROM THREE INDEPENDENT PRIVATE SCHOOLS: CHESAPEAKE BAY ACADEMY, RIVERMONT HAMPTON, AND RIVERMONT TIDEWATER AS WELL AS ALL 3RD GRADE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN ISLE OF WIGHT COUNTY SCHOOLS (IOWS). BY THE END OF THE PROJECT, THE VWU AND ITS PARTNERS WILL COMPLETE SYSTEMIC IMPLEMENTATION OF MWEES IN ALL PARTNER SCHOOLS IMPACTING 7 ADMINISTRATORS, 27 TEACHERS, AND APPROXIMATELY 860 ELEMENTARY STUDENTS.

MRI: ACQUISITION OF A GCMS TO ENHANCE UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH TRAINING IN THE NATURAL SCIENCES AT VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE

FY 12 SUMMER UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP (SURF) - MML/MATLS, MML/CHEM

THE PROJECT WILL STUDY THE USE OF PHYCOREMEDIATION TO REMOVE WATER POLLUTANTS FROM STORMWATER PONDS AND TREATMENT WETLANDS. HARVESTED ALGAE WILL BE ALSO STUDIED AS A POTENTIAL MEDIUM FOR USE IN VERMICOMPOSTING. THIS RESEARCH HAS THE POTENTIAL TO BE AN EASILY IMPLEMENTED, LOW-COST, SUSTAINABLE PRACTICE TO MINIMIZE THE RELEASE OF AQUATIC POLLUTANTS, SUCH AS MERCURY AND NUTRIENTS THAT IMPACT ECOSYSTEMS AND PUBLIC HEALTH. (PROVIDE FOR CLEAN AND SAFE WATER).