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Project Descriptions

Hispanic Pathways to Family Science Literacy, STEM Careers and Green Jobs

September 15, 2012 - August 31, 2013 | Media and Technology, Public Programs
This Pathways project will develop and evaluate a new model for a STEM career exploration program for at-risk Hispanic youth and their families in New Mexico where 46% of the population is Hispanic. The target audience includes Hispanic youth incarcerated in juvenile detention centers. The Hispanic Communications Network will partner with the Juvenile Justice Division of the New Mexico Children, Youth, and Families Department, Youth Development Inc.; and Youth Works in Santa Fe. STEM professionals from Los Alamos and Sandia labs and private sector companies in New Mexico will participate as role models. The evaluation findings will add to the knowledge base about strategies to increase interest and engagement in pursuing STEM careers among hard-to-reach Hispanic audiences including low income families, gang members and incarcerated youth. The project design includes using two main strategies: family evenings with STEM role models; and a social media and Facebook contest focusing on Green Jobs of the Future. The evaluation will use a mixed-methods approach for gathering data including brief questionnaires after the family evenings, pre-and past-activity surveys, observations, and telephone and online surveys. The evaluation will provide ongoing feedback to the project team on how well the strategies are working. The project will hold 8 family nights, involve approximately 16 STEM professionals (role models), and projects about 16 edited media submissions by the youth teams. Toward the end of the project the evaluation will comment on the viability, efficacy and potential transferability of this model to other communities.

Funders

NSF
Funding Program: ISE/AISL
Award Number: 1221538
Funding Amount: 249911

TEAM MEMBERS

  • Carlos Alcazar
    Principal Investigator
    Hispanic Communications Network
  • Trinity Treat
    Former Co-Principal Investigator
    Hispanic Communications Network
  • Alliyah Noor
    Co-Principal Investigator
    Hispanic Communications Network
  • 2013 11 21 Dierking photo
    Co-Principal Investigator
    Oregon State University
  • Discipline: Ecology, forestry, and agriculture | General STEM
    Audience: Youth/Teen (up to 17) | Families | Museum/ISE Professionals | Scientists
    Environment Type: Media and Technology | Websites, Mobile Apps, and Online Media | Public Programs | Community Outreach Programs
    Access and Inclusion: Ethnic/Racial | Hispanic/Latinx Communities | English Language Learners

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