DESIGNING OUR COMMUNITY: EVALUATING THE SUCCESS OF A PROGRAM TO RECRUIT AND RETAIN AMERICAN INDIAN STUDENTS TO ENGINEERING

摘要

The Designing our Community (DOC) program at Montana State University (MSU), which is supported by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, has three goals: (1) Increase the motivation and pre-entry academic preparation of American Indian students who want to study engineering, (2) Help shape the engineering, engineering technology, and computer science workforce by increasing the number of American Indian students graduating from the College of Engineering, and (3) Improve access to quality engineering and technology to rural and underserved populations by returning highly educated professionals to these communities. In two previous papers, we talked about the need for the DOC program and our program activities. This paper builds on previous papers by discussing program evaluation. In summer of 2004, we developed a comprehensive plan for assessing all aspects of the program. We have used this assessment plan and the data collected to evaluate our progress and to guide changes in the program. In this paper, we provide specific examples of assessment tools for programs that are geared toward increasing diversity in engineering education. Integrated with this discussion is a recounting of some of our results so far. We also report on which of our programs have been most supportive in helping students continue in engineering.