An Interactive Dashboard for Showcasing Institutional, Economic, and Community Outcomes of the Tribal Colleges and Universities Program

A goal of the Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) is to increase the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) instructional and research capacities of designated institutions of higher education. Expanding the STEM curricular offerings at these institutions expands the opportunities for their students to pursue challenging and rewarding careers in STEM fields, provides for research studies in areas that are significant, and encourages a community and generational appreciation for science and mathematics education. Sustainability of capacity gains is significantly enhanced by supporting, retaining, and growing the talent of credentialed STEM faculty, and strengthening the grant management capacity of the TCUP institutions. And part of that goal is the dissemination of what has been learned by the institutions the conduct the work, and the communities that have envisioned and benefited from the work. This project aligns directly with that goal. Westat and its partners are creating the TCUP Hub-Hosted Institutional, Economic, and Community Indicators (THIECI) Interactive Dashboard. The longitudinal trends displayed on this dashboard will enable the U.S. National Science Foundation and other interested parties to document the institutional, economic, and community gains associated with TCUP funding. Identifying and tracking these outcomes will inform policymakers and practitioners’ understanding of the benefits of supporting science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) instruction and research opportunities. The project’s goals are to (1) develop and refine an inventory of TCUP indicators and corresponding data collection strategies and (2) reach consensus on specific institutional, economic, and community indicators that should be highlighted on the dashboard. The significance to the field will be a comprehensive accounting of TCUP-focused indicators. 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.