@article{6df25bfb7d9c4237afbe287a75491fd3,
title = "The contribution of HBCUS to the preparation of African American women for stem careers: A case study",
abstract = "This study uses case study analysis to explore the ways that Spelman College, a historically Black women's college, promotes the attainment of African American women in STEM fields. Although limited to one institution, the findings shed light on the ways that institutional characteristics, policies, and practices may mitigate the barriers that limit attainment of African American women in STEM fields. Drawing on the findings, the paper concludes with recommendations for improving policy and practice as well as recommendations for additional fruitful research.",
keywords = "Black colleges, Equity, Institutional practice, STEM",
author = "Laura Perna and Valerie Lundy-Wagner and Drezner, {Noah D.} and Marybeth Gasman and Susan Yoon and Enakshi Bose and Shannon Gary",
note = "Funding Information: Second, future research should explore the ways that institutions can address students{\textquoteright} financial challenges. Although less prominent than other themes, a small number of participants{\textquoteright} comments suggest that financial challenges may be particularly problematic for students in STEM fields, given the academic rigor of these programs. While this study suggests the financial benefits of summer and other research opportunities, other studies suggest that providing sufficient financial aid to cover the price of tuition, books, and room and board has a positive impact on the educational experiences of minority students in STEM fields (Maton et al. 2000). Specifically, Maton and colleagues (2000) found that, compared to two different comparison samples, high-achieving African American students who participated in the Meyerhoff Scholars Program at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County had higher rates of graduating with a science, engineering or math major, higher grade point averages in science, engineering, and math courses, and higher rates of enrollment in science, engineering, and math graduate programs. While the researchers do not attempt to disentangle the relative contribution of particular program components to students{\textquoteright} outcomes, participating students believed that financial support was the most important component. Based on this finding, the authors speculate that the financial support provided by the program reduces students{\textquoteright} need to work and motivates students to achieve the levels of academic performance that are required to maintain the scholarship (Maton et al. 2000). Funding Information: Acknowledgments This research was supported by funding from the Graduate School of Education and the University of Pennsylvania{\textquoteright}s Diversity Fund. The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the funders. An earlier version of this paper was presented in November 2007 at the annual meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education in Louisville, Kentucky.",
year = "2009",
month = feb,
doi = "10.1007/s11162-008-9110-y",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "50",
pages = "1--23",
journal = "Research in Higher Education",
issn = "0361-0365",
publisher = "Springer Netherlands",
number = "1",
}