Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program Track 1 Project: Training and Mentoring STEM Teachers in Nebraska

The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program Track 1 at the University of Nebraska at Omaha projects aims to serve the national need for preparing highly qualified STEM teachers, which is crucial for preparing the nation's competitive STEM workforce. Additionally, this project will support 14 Noyce Scholars and 4 STEM Professionals in the areas of Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Environmental Science, Mathematics, and Physics by providing scholarships, mentoring, outreach experiences, and professional development. The proposed project components will enable high-achieving prospective teachers to become secondary STEM teachers with extensive expertise in inquiry-based teaching and learning. This project at the University of Nebraska at Omaha includes partnerships with Omaha Public Schools. Project goals include matriculating 18 secondary STEM teachers to be produced over 5 years including 14 undergraduates and 4 STEM professionals returning to earn their teaching certificates. This project will be iteratively evaluated. Evaluation of the project will be guided by the following evaluation question(s): (a) How does participation of scholars and STEM professionals in the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program Track 1 at the University of Nebraska at Omaha facilitated opportunities influence their social capital and teacher self efficacy? (b) How does participation in Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program Track 1 at the University of Nebraska at Omaha facilitated opportunities influence the academic achievement, program completion, and classroom retention of scholars and STEM professionals? The results of this project will be disseminated to help enhance the field. This Track 1: Scholarships and Stipends project is supported through the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (Noyce). The Noyce program supports talented STEM undergraduate majors and professionals to become effective K-12 STEM teachers and experienced, exemplary K-12 teachers to become STEM master teachers in high-need school districts. It also supports research on the effectiveness and retention of K-12 STEM teachers in high-need school districts. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.