This dissertation is an evaluation of an intervention designed to (a) increase the number of minority students who pursue graduate degrees in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines, and (b) to develop a cadre of qualified individuals from minority backgrounds who, upon finishing their training, are ready to take positions as faculty members and mentors. The Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) is a program funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support a pathway from undergraduate to graduate school and to a career in the professoriate. AGEP is part of an effort by the U.S. Government to keep the nations' competitive edge; redress historical gender and racial inequalities still prevalent at the higher levels of science and academia; and to use those who have reached the top of their professions as effective role models for the thousands of talented youth who are excluded from STEM fields due to real or perceived social, economic, or cultural barriers. As of September 2012, there were 178 colleges and universities grouped in 37 alliances nationwide and serving approximately 22,000 minority doctoral students. Specifically, this evaluation focuses on one alliance situated in the North Region of the United States, and presents the approaches, rationale, and findings of evaluation activities conducted during 2011 through 2012. The overarching goals of this evaluation were to assist program managers and staff in their efforts to improve the quality and effectiveness of the program, and to provide them with information related to the program's contribution to increasing the recruitment and retention of students from underrepresented minorities (URMs) in STEM graduate programs, their transition into the professoriate, and the strength of the program's theory of change. To achieve these goals the evaluation design included a) the reconstruction of the program's theory, b) a systematic review and meta-analysis of existing research; and c) analysis of primary data collected from a sample of current AGEP students, alumni, faculty, staff, and program officers. Primary data were collected through focus groups, interviews, and electronic surveys for current and former participants. The evaluation found evidence that the North Region program has been largely successful in contributing to the number of URM receiving STEM graduate degrees at both the master's and doctoral levels in North Carolina since its inception in 1999. Those who have received their graduate degrees are employed in academic and non-academic settings as practitioners, researchers, and as university faculty. Probably the most significant weakness was the absence of a systematic or coherent evaluation design of the program that could be found throughout the history of the program.

Despite the demand for a diverse STEM-educated population and workforce, college students have consistently turned away from these disciplines in large numbers, creating a persistent problem that many are trying to address. The aim of the National Science Foundation's Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program is to inspire, attract, and retain STEM majors. Funding supports undergraduate STEM students' engagement in real-world research alongside STEM mentors. As colleges and universities compete for funding for REUs, it is important to understand the mechanisms within summer research programs that resonate most deeply with undergraduate STEM researchers. While many studies reveal strong correlations between research experiences and STEM aspirations, less is known about the mechanisms within REU programs that support these gains. My research used quantitative and qualitative self-reported data from 20 REU students, 18 of whom were underrepresented minorities in STEM. Over two summers, these students, in cohorts of ten, came to the University of Vermont to participate in a team-oriented, 10-week REU: Interdisciplinary Research on Human Impacts in the Lake Champlain Ecosystem. Two mixed-methods studies, guided by the frameworks of the theory of possible selves, theory of self-efficacy for research, and social cognitive career theory, revealed four important program mechanisms that gave rise to gains in research skills, confidence and self-efficacy for research, and STEM career aspirations, particularly for individuals from underrepresented minority groups in STEM. Findings suggest that the program fostered student capacity building within a safe, inclusive, and positive setting where students experienced what it feels like to be an active participant in the world of research. Within this context, critical mechanisms that gave rise to gains in research skills, confidence and self-efficacy for research, and STEM career aspirations included: (1) experiential education through interdisciplinary research experiences, (2) student independence and ownership balanced with expert researcher guidance and support, (3) formal and informal mentoring networks where students were mentored and where they mentored others, and (4) the establishment of an intentional learning community that advanced leadership, research skill building, perseverance, and reflection. Results from this research cannot be generalized beyond the context of the Lake Champlain REU, however, findings are in alignment with the body of literature that highlights the positive effects of REUs on STEM majors' research skills, confidence and self-efficacy for research, and STEM career aspirations. Using mixed methods to identify and understand the within-program mechanisms that support student gains is a valuable new research approach for this field. Recognizing programmatic mechanisms across REU programs can lead to expansion, replication, and application of these models beyond one institution, resulting in more positive gains for more undergraduate STEM researchers.

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