Impact And Merit Of The Vsu Hbcu Up On The Undergraduate Stem Education

Abstract

The article presents the overall impact of a NSF grant under the Historically Black Universities and Colleges Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP). The alignment between the goals of the University's Strategic Plan and then objectives of the HBCU-UP project is analyzed. The project outcomes are listed. Lessons learned from this project at VSU as well as the intellectual merit of the program are outlined. The broader impact of the project is discussed. The University Virginia State University is a comprehensive, educational land-grant institution founded in 1882, located in Petersburg, 20 miles south of Richmond, VA. VSU is the first fully state supported four-year institution for higher learning for African-American students. VSU has a strong record of attracting out-of-state minority students. The University offers 52 baccalaureate, masters and doctoral degree programs and a certificate of advance study within four schools (18 masters, 2 certificates, and 2 doctorates). VSU is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), the National Council of Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), and the Virginia State Board of Education. The VSU enrollment is about 4700 undergraduate and 500 graduate students. The number of full-time instructional faculty is 206 and number of full-time research and public service faculty is 48. VSU also has about 105 part-time faculty members 2. Needs A study by Howard University reveals that the representation of minority in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professionals is significantly disproportionate to minority representation in the U.S. general population and workforce 3. Minorities, particularly African Americans, are showing an increase in enrollment and subsequent degree attainment in science and engineering (S&E) (US Census Bureau, 2006). However, little increase has been seen at the masters and doctoral levels 3. The National Science Board has concluded that the number of native-born S&E graduates entering the workforce is likely to decline unless the nation intervenes to improve success in