Information About STEM

Profile

The STEM: Steps Toward Exhibiting Mastery Program is funded by the State of Michigan Workforce Development Agency (formerly known as Department of Energy, Labor, and Economic Growth) King-Chávez-Parks Initiative 4S (Select Student Support Services) Competitive Grant and the Division of Multicultural Affairs. The program is designed to promote student success through increased acceptance rates into undergraduate students' intended majors and increased college graduation rates of students. Our target population includes WMU undergraduate students who have not declared a major or be admitted into their intended major, are federal financial aid eligible, and are first generation college students.

We provide free one-on-one tutoring for many lower-level courses and select upper-level courses in various subject areas. In addition to tutoring, we provide students academic support through peer mentoring, counseling, multicultural activities, educational seminars, career and graduate school planning, and other resources to enhance their education and college experience, as well as to enable them to achieve a post-secondary degree.

We served 20 participants in the 2006-07 academic year, 280 participants in the 2007-08 academic year, 302 participants in the 2008-09 academic year, 230 participants in the 2009-10 academic year, and 340 participants in the 2010-11 academic year.

The STEM Program employs one full-time professional staff member and over 30 student employees, which includes over 25 peer mentors, two student program assistants, and one budget analyst. We are proud of our diverse staff as well as the diverse student population that we serve.

Updated: January 27, 2012




Fast Facts

STEM has served over 1,000 participants and employed approximately 100 student employees over a course of 5 years.

 

2006-07

2007-08

2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

Total Number of Participants Served

Spring: 8
Summer I: 9
Summer II: 6
Total: 20

Fall: 176
Spring: 112
Summer I: 12
Summer II: 12
Total: 280

Fall: 266
Spring: 277
Summer I: 25
Summer II: 15
Total: 302

Fall: 159
Spring: 150
Summer I: 18
Summer II: 17
Total: 230

Fall: 231
Spring: 178
Summer I: 35
Summer II: 15
Total: 340

Total Number of Peer Mentors

Spring: 4
Summer I: 5
Summer II: 2

Fall: 18
Spring: 20
Summer I: 5
Summer II: 7

Fall: 26
Spring: 25
Summer I:15
Summer II: 11

Fall: 25
Spring: 26
Summer I: 12
Summer II: 10

Fall: 25
Spring: 25
Summer I: 13
Summer II: 11

Total Number of Meetings

72

820

1,648

2,138

3,218

Average Number of Meetings Per Participant Per Week

3.6

2.9

5.4

9.4

9.5

Duration of Meetings (Hours)

144

1,640

3,296

4,276

6,436

Total Number of Hours Worked By Peer Mentor

Spring: 156
Summer: 231

Fall: 1,000.5
Spring: 1,307.15
Summer: 1,507.3

Fall: 2,622
Spring 3,388.75
Summer: 876.25

Fall: 2,009
Spring 2,676
Summer: 990

Fall: 1,597
Spring 2,168
Summer: 1,255

Average Number of Hours Worked Per Peer Mentor Per Week

Spring: 2.78
Summer: 2.36

Fall: 3
Spring: 3.3
Summer: 5.8

Fall: 5.6
Spring 7.5
Summer: 3.9

Fall: 5.9
Spring 6.5
Summer: 4.2

Fall: 7.0
Spring 7.7
Summer: 9.1

Total Number of Returning Participants from Previous Year

N/A

13

67

42

72

Total Percentage of Returning Participants from Previous Year

N/A

65%

22%

22%

21%

Total Number of Individualized Success Plans (ISPs) Completed

N/A

85

53

185

328

STEM Program Participants
All currently enrolled WMU undergraduate students who meet any of the following eligibility requirements:

  • Have not declared a major or be admitted into intended major
  • Are federal financial aid-eligible
  • Are a first generation college student

STEM Program Staff

  • 1 full-time professional staff member
  • Almost 30 student employees:
    • 2 program assistants
    • 1 budget analyst
    • over 25 peer mentors (with a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or better, at least junior status)

STEM’s Advantages

  • Flexibility: Non-traditional tutoring hours
  • One-on-one tutoring by appointment
  • Services provided for most lower-level and select upper-level courses
  • Services available in many academic disciplines including, but not limited to:
    • Formal sciences: Mathematics, statistics, computer science
    • Natural sciences: Physics, chemistry, biology, earth science
    • Social/behavioral sciences: Psychology, sociology, anthropology, geography, political science, economics, women’s studies
    • Applied sciences: Engineering, aviation, business, education, communication
    • Humanities: History, philosophy, religion, foreign languages
  • Individualized Success Plan (ISP) for goal-setting and academic planning
  • Reward system for continued goal achievement
  • ALEKS (Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces), an artificial intelligence-based system for individualized assessment and learning in mathematics and statistics
  • Intensive and extensive peer mentor/tutor training and evaluation
  • Effective and efficient management of resources with an annual budget of $150,000

STEM Partnerships

  • Division of Multicultural Affairs (DMA)
  • Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Academy
  • Kalamazoo Promise Scholarship Program
  • John Seita Scholarship Program
  • Disability Services for Students

Updated: January 27, 2012




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Steps Toward Exhibiting Mastery (STEM) Program

2285 Ellsworth Hall
Division of Multicultural Affairs

Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5233 USA
Phone: (269) 387-3316 | Fax: (269) 387-3390