Exposing students to quality STEM education has a multitude of benefits: critical thinking, collaboration, relationship building, and perseverance are all enhanced by involvement in STEM activities (Ugras, 2018). A well-trained and diverse STEM workforce is also critically important for the United States to remain competitive a global economy.…

Since professional learning is about shifting adult mindsets and behavior, it is work that frequently challenges assumptions, expectations, beliefs, instructional practices, and long-standing habits. To have meaningful and productive conversations about evaluation and data, educators must be equipped with effective practices and tools that allow…

Background and Context: Though computer science education is marked by a pronounced racial participation gap, there is little research about effective ways that teachers can be supported in creating racially-just and equitable computer science learning opportunities for students. Objectives: This paper examines how teachers engage in learning…

In an era of educator shortages, continued overrepresentation of racially minoritized students in special education, and limited racial diversity in the PK-12 educator workforce, it is imperative for university trainers in educator professional training programs to consider innovative partnerships that support disabled youth at the intersections…

Purpose: This article explores the effects of sensemaking interventions on a group of educators' race-conscious problem analysis of racial discipline disparities. Research Method: I conducted this research in a predominantly White diversifying suburban high school that served roughly 1,600 students. To understand how sensemaking interventions…

To address the persistent underrepresentation of women and racial and ethnic minorities in STEM, the current study utilized a quasi-experimental posttest waitlist control group approach to examine the effect of a 1-year virtual peer mentoring program on the academic, professional, and psychosocial outcomes of graduate mentors and undergraduate…

This Education Leadership Portfolio (ELP) focuses on addressing the increasing need for more racial diversity in the Delaware teacher workforce. It is a multi-dimensional effort to meet the increasing need for and supply of teachers of color in the state. Therefore, the scope of this ELP centers around the University of Delaware (UD) College of…

African Americans are underrepresented at all points in the STEM pipeline from K-12 coursework into professional careers. The reasons for this underrepresentation are varied and reflect a myriad of contributing factors based on early academic experiences, sociocultural influences, and the effects of standardized testing. The three-fold purpose of…

Advocates call for schools with high suspension rates to receive technical assistance in adopting "proven-effective" systematic supports. Such supports include teacher professional development. This call is justified given evidence that good teaching matters. But what types of professional development should be funded? Increasingly,…

Many college students abandon their goal of completing a degree in science, technology, engineering, or math (STEM) when confronted with challenging introductory-level science courses. In the U.S., this trend is more pronounced for underrepresented minority (URM) and first-generation (FG) students, and contributes to persisting racial and…

This study examined the impact of the Serviceman's Readjustment Act of 1944 (the GI Bill) on African Americans' quest for higher education. The central question guiding this study follows: Why has higher education been so elusive for African Americans? With reference to this question, the following sub-questions were addressed: (1) How can the…