From gateway to 'Pathway': Mentoring-the-mentors to provide academic and motivational support for struggling STEM Majors

Abstract

This paper reports the results of the first two years of a 5-year USDOE project designed to increase the graduation rates of students transferring from two-year (state) community colleges to major in computer science, computer engineering, or electrical engineering (CS). The initial two years of the project focused on the design and piloting of academic support components to improve student success rates in mathematics and computer science gateway courses that provide a foundation for subsequent success in upper division CS courses leading to an undergraduate degree. Working in collaboration with state colleges, this paper overviews the design and piloting of the project mentor support model including the project gateway course refinement component that provides the setting for mentor utilization. Discussed is the role of the mentor component in relation to other key project components.