"Spelman's participation in Preparing Critical Faculty for the Future will be a significant asset to our faculty as they move forward in fulfilling the college's mission to increase the number of Spelman students who earn degrees in STEM fields," said Johnnella Butler, provost and vice president for academic affairs. "For the academic year 2010-2011, 28 percent or nearly one-third of our students are STEM majors. PCFF will assist Spelman faculty with introducing cutting-edge teaching techniques into their classroom and laboratory practice and enhancing their leadership skills, sustaining a robust learning environment for STEM students."
The list of institutions chosen to participate includes:
* Bennett College for Women, Greensboro, N.C.
* Central State University, Wilberforce, Ohio
* J.F. Drake State Technical College, Huntsville, Ala.
* Livingstone College, Salisbury, N.C.
* North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Greensboro, N.C.
* North Carolina Central University Durham, N.C.
* Spelman College, Atlanta, Ga.
* Tennessee State University, Nashville, Tenn.
* University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Pine Bluff, Ark.
* University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Princess Anne, Md.
* University of the District of Columbia, Washington, D.C.
* Wiley College, Marshall, Texas
* Winston-Salem State University, Winston-Salem, N.C.
Spelman College has nominated Rosalind Gregory Bass, assistant professor, biology, and Robynn Cox, assistant professor, economics, to participate in all phases of the project along with colleagues from the other participating institutions. These two faculty members will also be joined by an administrative team (Myra Burnett, vice provost; Lily McNair, associate provost for research; and Tasha Inniss, associate professor, mathematics) from Spelman College who will attend an AAC&U summer institute in July 2011 on "Engaging Departments."
"The individual faculty members participating in this project include many talented faculty members who will be leaders both in their institutions and nationally in the coming years," said AAC&U Senior Scholar and Project Director Alma Clayton-Pedersen. "Through this initiative, we hope to provide support to a network of scholars and teachers who can help each other and the rest of the nation as we all seek to improve undergraduate STEM education for students at HBCU's and for students, especially those historically underserved, at all different kinds of colleges and universities."
The goals of the PCFF project are to: provide professional and leadership development for women of color faculty in STEM disciplines, or NSF natural and behavioral science disciplines; and improve undergraduate STEM education at HBCUs and beyond. This new project will provide participants with the opportunity and the financial support to engage in and influence the national dialogue on improving undergraduate STEM education. Project participants will both contribute to and gain from national efforts to develop and implement innovative STEM teaching and learning practices and effective curricular change strategies. By uncovering useful strategies for preparing women faculty of color for academic leadership in STEM fields, PCFF expects to improve STEM education broadly as well as at HBCUs.
This initiative is supported with a grant from the National Science Foundation. For additional information about the project, see: www.aacu.org/pcff.
Association of American Colleges & Universities:
AAC&U is the leading national association concerned with the quality, vitality, and public standing of undergraduate liberal education. Its members are committed to extending the advantages of a liberal education to all students, regardless of academic specialization or intended career. Founded in 1915, AAC&U now comprises more than 1,200 member institutions-including accredited public and private colleges and universities of every type and size.
AAC&U functions as a catalyst and facilitator, forging links among presidents, administrators, and faculty members who are engaged in institutional and curricular planning. Its mission is to reinforce the collective commitment to liberal education at both the national and local levels and to help individual institutions keep the quality of student learning at the core of their work as they evolve to meet new economic and social challenges.
Information about AAC&U membership, programs, and publications can be found at www.aacu.org.
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Spelman College:
Founded in 1881, Spelman College is a prestigious, highly selective, liberal arts college that prepares women to change the world. Located in Atlanta, Ga., this historically black college boasts a 79 percent graduation rate, and outstanding alumnae such as Children's Defense Fund Founder Marian Wright Edelman; former U.S. Foreign Service Director General Ruth Davis, authors Tina McElroy Ansa and Pearl Cleage; and actress LaTanya Richardson. More than 83 percent of the full-time faculty members have Ph.D.s or other terminal degrees, and the average faculty to student ratio is 12:1. More than 2,100 students attend Spelman. For more information, visit: www.spelman.edu.
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