STEM Mentoring Supplement to the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring

in the full Elements, and references Benchmarks and Enhancements described more fully in that document. INTRODUCTION S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 2 But while the popularity of STEM mentoring has grown, the research on what makes these programs effective, either in isolation or in combination with other supports, has lagged behind. While the past decade has seen tremendous progress in identifying program practices that can potentially improve outcomes for youth in mentoring programs more generally, there hasn’t been much direct research on the unique nuances and strategies that can make STEM mentoring programs work most effectively. One major review of the literature on relationship-based STEM interventions found that the research to draw from was so thin that instead of producing a set of recommended practices, the authors took note of the gaps in our understanding of STEM interventions to set a research agenda that might shed light onto best practices 9 . BRINGING EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICES TO STEM MENTORING As a leading research-to-practice organization in the youth mentoring space, MENTOR has always worked with researchers and practitioners to develop and disseminate evidence-based and practice-informed guidelines for mentoring programs. Our cornerstone publication, the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring10 , now in its fourth edition, is heavily informed by research on the program practices that tend to yield safe and strong adult-youth mentoring relationships. This resource is widely considered to be the most globally applicable set of recommendations for mentoring practitioners, providing a broad set of practice recommendations across an increasingly diverse field, including STEM mentoring programs. Despite the global applicability of the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring (hereafter referred to as the Elements), there is a growing body of research in implementation science indicating that not all interventions, even ones that are remarkably similar in services and populations served, will benefit from following the exact same practices 11 . We certainly see this dynamic in the mentoring field, with mentoring programs serving youth across the age spectrum in diverse settings with diverse goals in mind and varying resources at their disposal. There has been a growing sense that broad standards of practice such as the Elements might not provide the nuanced and context-specific guidance on practices that matter for mentoring programs using alternative models, serving narrower populations of young people, or emphasizing a narrow set of prescribed outcomes (e.g., pursuing a STEM career). Thus, in the spirit of supporting the increasingly diverse youth mentoring field, MENTOR has launched a series of “supplements” to the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring. The closer examination of STEM mentoring research and practices in this guide represents the first entry in this series and we hope that it can bring sharper focus to the work of STEM mentoring programs and ensure that all young people get the psychosocial and instrumental support they need to persist in STEM through the help of dedicated mentors. Development of This Guide This supplement was developed by the same team of researchers and technical assistance providers who developed the full fourth edition of the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring through generous funding provided by STEM mentoring leaders at Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, which operates several mentoring programs designed to get youth interested in STEM and persevering all the way through the undergraduate experience. As with the full Elements, the recommendations in this guide are as grounded in the available research evidence as possible. To facilitate this effort, the team conducted an extensive literature review focused on identifying peer reviewed journal articles, government reports, and corporate literature detailing the structure and effectiveness of STEM mentoring programs. See the text box on the next page for additional details about our literature search process. Reflections on the STEM Mentoring Literature When looking at the results of the literature review as a whole, there are several characteristics that stand out for the research-to-practice work of this guide: ► The overall volume of research on STEM mentoring programs for youth is rather thin Very few STEM mentoring programs have been formally evaluated using any kind of experimental or quasi- experimental design. Most of the evaluations we encountered in this review either used qualitative methods to track and understand participant experiences or provided pre-post assessments of youth outcomes without utilizing a comparison or control group. None of the studies we reviewed tested variations in practices, meaning they shed little light on how STEM mentoring programs can improve services or try new approaches. And given that STEM mentoring programs often state long-term goals of helping youth matriculate through STEM higher education pathways and INTRODUCTION S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 3 L I T E R AT U R E S E A R C H P R O C E S S A comprehensive search of the literature was conducted to identify articles about mentoring related to the STEM fields. Both computer-based and manual search methods were used to locate studies. The computerized databases utilized were PsycINFO, ERIC, and Web of Science. The search of each computerized database included the following terms and combinations of terms: These searches yielded peer-reviewed articles and program evaluation reports. Articles of prominent youth mentoring programs in STEM and literature reviews were manually searched to identify additional articles. To be considered for inclusion, articles had to address the utilization of mentoring to increase interest, skill, ability, engagement, or vocational goals in science, technology, engineering, and/or mathematics. This process resulted in 102 articles that met these criteria. Once identified, articles were coded for participant and program characteristics. The age group of the target population of mentees (i.e., youth or adult) was coded, as well as any specific foci of the program/article (e.g., gender, underrepresented populations, disability). In addition, articles were coded for their STEM content (i.e., whether they focused on science, technology, engineering, math, or general STEM). Articles were also coded based on whether they addressed the following topics: mentor, mentee, and staff recruitment; mentor, mentee, and staff screening; mentor, mentee, and staff training; matching procedures; initiating (i.e., first meeting) procedures; monitoring of matches; support for matches; and match closure. The 102 articles included the following breakdowns: ► EIGHTY-TWO PEER-REVIEWED JOURNAL ARTICLES; 20 were a different kind of paper (e.g., a conference paper or program report); ► FORTY-FIVE PROGRAM EVALUATIONS; 57 were other types of papers (e.g., literature reviews, empirical articles that were not program evaluations); ► FORTY-NINE ARTICLES FOCUSED ON YOUTH MENTORING (K–12): 44 on undergraduate/graduate student focused mentoring, and 9 on STEM career/workplace mentoring. Following this systematic search, the authors of this guide then supplemented this initial scan by manually retrieving additional articles and reports from related disciplines, such as general STEM education; concepts that influence STEM attrition, such as stereotyping and implicit bias; and group and workplace mentoring more broadly. These additional articles were critical in reinforcing and clarifying the final recommendations detailed in this guide. Including these articles, a total of 204 documents informed the content presented here. ► Youth + mentor + science ► Youth + mentor + technology ► Youth + mentor + engineering ► Youth + mentor + mathematics ► Mentor + science ► Mentor + technology ► Mentor + engineering ► Mentor + mathematics ► College student + mentor + STEM ► College student + mentor + science ► College student + mentor + technology ► College student + mentor + engineering ► College student + mentor + mathematics INTRODUCTION S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 4 into STEM careers, few of the studies attempted to track youth participants through some of these distal points to see if the program changed educational trajectories in a meaningful way. Most of the outcome evaluations were centered in higher education settings, examining programs offered on campus for undergraduate students. Few studies on programs led by STEM businesses as part of creating a talent pipeline were found in our review. ► The diversity of STEM mentoring programs raises challenges when developing broad practice recommendations The research we reviewed covered everything from programs designed to get elementary and middle school students first interested in STEM activities all the way through providing undergraduate students with intensive hands-on research opportunities on a college campus. It included programs whose goals were purely around academic success and progress, as well as programs designed to shift demographic patterns in a specific STEM industry. Some were set in schools, others were housed at STEM businesses or nonprofit spaces. And each program emphasized unique relational aspects to meet very specific youth needs. All this diversity of programming and purpose made it challenging to develop recommendations that could globally apply to all STEM mentoring programs. Thus, readers should note that many of the recommendations in this guide come with caveats or clarifying statements that can help practitioners decide how critical a recommendation is to their work. ► More rigorous evaluation is needed As noted above, very few of the studies in this review examined how mentors supported STEM development in a rigorous way. While we found many wonderful examples of qualitative research that described what participants gained from the experience and how their mentors encouraged them, most of the studies did not compare or contrast different mentor approaches, examine variations in program practice, or explore subgroup findings to see if mentoring was more or less effective for certain types of youth. We also found few studies examining one of the most critical questions regarding STEM mentoring: the “value added” of having a mentor in on top of simply engaging in STEM activities in educationally focused programs. A better understanding of how mentoring relationships enhance and deepen engagement beyond just participation in STEM learning opportunities and exploration would help in developing practice recommendations that would facilitate those relationships. Please see section 3, “Program Evaluation and Outcome Measurement in STEM Mentoring,” for further discussion of recommended practices for studying these types of programs. The STEM Mentoring Working Group In addition to our review of the literature, we also convened a working group of representatives from high-quality STEM mentoring programs around the country (see sidebar for participants), as well as researchers with expertise in career- focused mentoring. These experts were instrumental in: ► Suggesting practices that they felt were critical to their work in the STEM mentoring space. ► Confirming, clarifying, or, in some cases, rejecting suggested practices from the research literature. Their review was especially helpful on issues related to matching mentors and mentees, match support and supervision, and closure of matches. ► Reviewing and approving of the final recommendations of this guide. This group met a total of four times to discuss best practices, review drafts of recommendations, and to share details about their work and the outcomes they track. You can read more about the practices employed by these STEM leaders throughout this guide. STEM WORKING GROUP MEMBERS CATHARINE B. SHAY 3M EILEEN YANG Genentech's Futurelab Initiative JENNIE MATHUR Girls Inc. CHRISTINE BANKS CALDERÓN New York City Science Research Mentoring Consortium LAURA MORAN San Francisco Chamber of Commerce MICHAEL KENNEDY Science Club, Northwestern University LAURA BATT Sea Research Foundation WENDY MARCINKUS MURPHY Researcher Babson College JEAN RHODES Researcher UMASS-Boston Please see the end of this section for more details about the programs and organizations that contributed to the development of this guide. INTRODUCTION S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 5 THE GUIDE IS DIVIDED INTO THREE MAJOR SECTIONS: GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS This section builds on our review of the research and the guidance of our Working Group to review some of the major features and components of quality STEM mentoring programming. This section will be most useful to start-up efforts, or for STEM mentoring programs looking to refine or clarify their theory of change or the services they offer. An accompanying typology of STEM mentoring models and theories of change is also included in the Appendix. STANDARDS OF PRACTICE FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS This section covers the six core Standards of the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring. Specific recommendations for STEM mentoring programs are offered around Benchmarks and Enhancements related to: ► RECRUITING ► SCREENING ► TRAINING ► MATCHING AND INITIATION ► MONITORING AND SUPPORT ► CLOSURE PROGRAM EVALUATION AND OUTCOME- MEASUREMENT IN STEM MENTORING This section offers tips for STEM mentoring practitioners on how they can strengthen their program evaluation strategies, as well as a list of common outcomes that STEM mentoring programs reported assessing based on their goals and target population of youth. Throughout each of these sections, you will find small case study examples from our Working Group members of these practices in action. We hope these real-life examples help other practitioners better understand and implement innovations in their programs. Readers are also encouraged to have a copy of the full Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring handy as they review this guide so that they can have access to the full complement of practices that MENTOR recommends they implement in their STEM mentoring work, when applicable. U S I N G T H I S G U I D E Readers should note that this guide serves as only a supplement to the full Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring. It is intended to provide additional guidance and nuance to the items found in the full Elements, and references Benchmarks and Enhancements described more fully in that document. Here we cover only the Benchmarks and Enhancements that we felt needed additional recommendations for STEM mentoring programs. However, STEM mentoring programs are still encouraged to implement all of the Benchmarks (and as many Enhancements as possible, when appropriate) from the entire set of Standards in the Elements. Please keep the supplementary nature of this resource in mind when considering how to start or improve a STEM mentoring program. 1 2 3 INTRODUCTION S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 6 ABOUT THE PROGRAMS WHOSE WORK INFORMED THIS GUIDE At 3M, we apply science in collaborative ways to improve lives daily. With $32 billion in sales, our 91,000 employees connect with customers all around the world. Learn more about 3M’s creative solutions to the world’s problems at www.3M.com or on Twitter @3M or @3MNews. As a science-based company that has thrived for 115 years, we understand the importance of investing in the next generation of scientists and innovators. That’s why we’re committed to generating interest and increasing achievement in STEM especially among underrepresented populations—and our student mentoring program is one of the ways we do this. STEP is one of four Science Encouragement Mentoring Programs that 3M created to empower employees and retirees to spark students’ interest in STEM. Another opportunity, the 3M Visiting Wizards, is especially popular among 3M retirees. With a kit of science experiments in hand, the Visiting Wizards perform the magic of science in classrooms in the Twin Cities metro area. Through STEM-focused mentoring and outreach programs, 3M supports equitable education outcomes and equips the next generation of scientists with tools and experiences to support success. GENENTECH'S FUTURELAB INITIATIVE In South San Francisco, more than 30 percent of students are English-language learners and 40 percent come from low-income families. And, while schools here have higher graduation rates than the state average, only one in three students goes on to attend a four-year university. Futurelab, Genentech’s partnership with South San Francisco schools, aims to change this. In 2015, Genentech launched Futurelab—a hyper-local science education initiative, in deep partnership with SSFUSD, which gives all students K–12 the opportunity to get excited about science, to equip and engage them in rigorous hands-on science, and to inspire them to pursue STEM-related careers. Through Futurelab, we’re focused on achieving our ultimate goal: to inspire students to reach their potential as the next generation of innovators and to engage them in a lifelong exploration of science. GIRLS INC. inspires all girls to be strong, smart, and bold. Our comprehensive approach to whole girl development equips girls to navigate gender, economic, and social barriers and grow up healthy, educated, and independent. These positive outcomes are achieved through three core elements: PEOPLE: trained staff and volunteers who build lasting, mentoring relationships. ENVIRONMENT: girls-only, physically and emotionally safe, where there is a sisterhood of support, high expectations, and mutual respect. PROGRAMMING: research-based, hands-on and minds-on, age-appropriate, meeting the needs of today’s girls. Informed by girls and their families, we also advocate for legislation and policies to increase opportunities for all girls. Join us at girlsinc.org. THE NYC SCIENCE RESEARCH MENTORING CONSORTIUM is a group of New York City academic, research, and cultural institutions committed to providing NYC high school students from high-potential/under-resourced and underrepresented backgrounds with mentored, authentic research experiences in STEM. A key tenet of the Consortium is providing foundational coursework to these students to increase their comfort and competency when entering the lab, and ultimately result in a more successful experience for both the student and mentor. Together, the 22+ partners of the Consortium share experiences and expertise, and identify opportunities and strategies to effectively support youth in developing science research skills and competencies. The Consortium model cultivates a community of practice that creates a social network of scientists, graduate students, educators, and like-minded peers with shared values and research endeavors. In building access in STEM academics and careers, we also provide students with college and career readiness resources and supports. INTRODUCTION S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 7 The STEM TALENT PATHWAY is a signature project of the SF Chamber of Commerce Education and Workforce Initiative, UniteSF. This collective impact effort was launched in 2015 with the Mayor’s Education Council and the SF Chamber of Commerce to create stronger pathways for SFUSD students into STEM careers. The STEM Talent Pathway works closely with the city My Brother and Sister’s Keeper initiative to address the lack of diversity representation in STEM college and career programs and in pursuing STEM degrees and careers. The role of the SF Chamber is to increase awareness and connection with business and education leaders to expand and align investments to increase the number of mentors, internships, and scholarships along a connected pathway of support for San Francisco youth into STEM careers. SCIENCE CLUB is an award- winning after school program that utilizes a long-term mentoring strategy to raise underserved middle school (grade 5-8) students’ science engagement, scientific skills, and support the long-term pursuit of STEM careers. The program was developed in 2008, in partnership with staff and leaders at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Chicago (BGCC) and teachers in Chicago Public Schools (CPS). Each week throughout the academic year, youth and mentors work in small groups—four youth and two mentors—on challenging, hands-on investigations at a community site (Boys & Girls Club, YMCA etc.). With key input from teachers and community site staff, youth groups are formed in an age- and aptitude-specific way. Curricula, each lasting 7–10 weeks (90-minute meeting sessions per week), were developed collaboratively by CPS teachers and Northwestern staff to provide deeper exploration into scientific areas of strong interest to kids. These range from food science to biomedical engineering. Units are strongly grounded in authentic applications of science, and the eight scientific practices as outlined in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Finally, mentor training and ongoing support are key program elements. Mentors receive ongoing professional development in the areas of pedagogy, youth engagement, science communication, cultural awareness, program design, and evaluation. In this way, Science Club trains both the scientists and science education providers of tomorrow. SEA RESEARCH FOUNDATION (SRF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to inspire people to care for and protect our ocean planet through conservation, education, and research. SRF operates Mystic Aquarium — one of America’s premier nonprofit marine science research and education institutions, and an accredited member of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums and the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums. STEM Mentoring is SRF’s national group mentoring program for youth ages 6–10. The program brings together small groups of youth and mentors for fun, hands-on activities about STEM, with a particular focus on conservation. The overall goal of STEM MENTORING is to positively impact the social development and academic achievement of participating youth. Through weekly group mentoring sessions and additional STEM enrichment activities, youth are exposed to inspiring scientists, engineers, and conservationists, who represent a variety of careers and education pathways. By providing consistent, high-quality, STEM-focused mentoring experiences for youth, STEM Mentoring encourages decreased engagement in risk factor indicators, improvement of academic success indicators, and an overall increase in knowledge of and interest in STEM topics and careers. Since its inception in 2015, STEM Mentoring has engaged more than 6,000 youth and 1,500 mentors at more than 100 after-school sites across the country. R E S E A R C H E R S W H O I N F O R M E D T H I S G U I D E WENDY MARCINKUS MURPHY, PHD, is an associate professor of Management at Babson College. Her research is at the intersection of careers, mentoring, and work-life issues, with particular attention to nontraditional developmental relationships and learning. She has served as the faculty adviser for the Mentoring Programs through the Center for Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership (CWEL) at Babson. In addition, she created an e-mentoring program at Northern Illinois University to connect students to working professionals. Murphy has published her work in a range of journals, including Academy of Management Learning & Education, Human Resource Management, Gender in Management, Journal of Management, and the Journal of Vocational Behavior, among others. Her book with Dr. Kathy Kram, Strategic Relationships at Work: Creating Your Circle of Mentors, Sponsors, and Peers for Success in Business and Life, bridges mentoring scholarship and practice. In 2014, she was recognized by Poets & Quants as one of the “40 Most Outstanding B-School Profs Under 40 in the World.” JEAN RHODES, PHD, is the Frank L. Boyden Professor of Psychology and the director of the Center for Evidence-Based Mentoring at the University of Massachusetts Boston. She has devoted her career to understanding and advancing the role of intergenerational relationships in the intellectual, social, educational, and career development of youth. She has published three books, four edited volumes, and more than 100 chapters and peer-reviewed articles on topics related to positive youth development, the transition to adulthood, and mentoring. Dr. Rhodes is a Fellow in the American Psychological Association and the Society for Research and Community Action, and was a Distinguished Fellow of the William T. Grant Foundation. References 1 National Science Board. (2010). Preparing the next generation of STEM innovators: Identifying and developing our nation’s human capital. Arlington VA: National Science Foundation (NSB-1033). 2 President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. (2010). Report to the President. Prepare and inspire: K–12 education in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) for America’s future. Retrieved from https://nsf.gov/attachments/117803/public/2a--Prepare_and_ Inspire--PCAST.pdf 3 Kuenzi, J. J. (2008). Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education: Background, Federal policy, and legislative action. Congressional Research Service Reports, Paper 35. http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/crsdocs/35 4 Freeman, C. E. (2004). Trends in educational equity of girls & women: 2004 (NCES 2005–016). U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. 5 Leddy, M. H. (2010). Technology to advance high school and undergraduate students with disabilities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Journal of Special Education Technology, 25(3), 3–8. 6 National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine. (2011). Expanding underrepresented minority participation: America’s science and technology talent at the crossroads. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. Retrieved from https://www.nap.edu/read/12984/chapter/1 7 National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. (2017). Women, minorities, and persons with disabilities in science and engineering: 2017. Special Report NSF 17-310. Arlington, VA. www.nsf.gov/statistics/wmpd/ 8 Hernandez, P. R., Schultz, P. W., Estrada, M., Woodcock, A., & Chance, R. C. (2013). Sustaining optimal motivation: A longitudinal analysis of interventions to broaden participation of underrepresented students in STEM. Journal of Educational Psychology, 105(1), 89–107. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0029691 9 Gamse, B. C., Martinez, A., Bozzi, L., & Didriksen, H. (2014). Defining a research agenda for STEM Corps: Working white paper. Cambridge, MA: Abt Associates. 10 Garringer, M., Kupersmidt, J., Rhodes, J., Stelter, R., & Tai, T. (2015). Elements of effective practice for mentoring (4th ed.). Boston, MA: MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership. Retrieved from http://www.mentoring.org/images/uploads/Final_Elements_Publication_Fourth. pdf 11 Fixsen, D L., Naoom, S. F., Blase, K. A., Friedman, R. M,. & Wallace, F. (2005). Implementation research: A synthesis of the literature. Tampa, FL: University of South Florida, Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, The National Implementation Research Network (FMHI Publication #231). INTRODUCTION S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 8 S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 9 As noted in the Introduction, our literature review highlighted the tremendous diversity of programming that falls under the umbrella of “STEM mentoring.” The programs discussed in the literature varied considerably in terms of the ages of youth served, their program goals, the structure and activities of the mentoring relationships, and the outcomes measured to determine success. In this section, we offer an overview of some of the common features and objectives of STEM mentoring programs across the age spectrum, from elementary and middle school all the way through the undergraduate experience (for the purposes of our literature review’s definition of “youth” we did include programs serving young adults up to the age of 24, allowing us to include undergraduate and early-career mentoring efforts, but leaving out most programs aimed at older doctoral students or internal mentoring programs for mid-level adult employees in STEM companies). This section should be helpful to those looking to start a new STEM mentoring program or refine an existing one. To facilitate adoption of stronger STEM mentoring models, we review several general program format and design considerations that emerge from the literature. We also include a discussion of program goals and activities. These recommendations and program traits may not be applicable to all STEM mentoring programs, but they should be helpful to funders or practitioners who are interested in serving particular groups of youth or looking to better align program goals and activities. We also provide a chart (see Appendix A) that offers a general typology of STEM mentoring programs and an overview of common STEM mentoring models, goals, mentors, settings, activities, and outcomes differentiated by the ages of the youth served roughly corresponding with elementary, middle, and high school programming, as well as undergraduate STEM mentoring at higher education institutions. GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS1 Photo courtesy of Midlands Mentoring Partnership GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 10 P R O G R A M F O R M AT S In reviewing the literature on STEM mentoring, we find that both in-person and online approaches are common. In-person mentoring, whether one-to-one or in groups, seems to be most common in programs intended to either spark initial interest in STEM for young children or in programs aimed at supporting older youth through some transition point (e.g., applying to college as a STEM major). Online models tend to be used in programs that seek to build large numbers of STEM relationships or to provide access to a wide variety of role models and perspectives. Online formats are also popular when in-person relationships are not possible due to geographic distance or other factors such as individual disability 1 . Both in-person and online formats demonstrated evidence of effectiveness in our review, but these different program formats often differ in key ways related to their structure and the focus of their mentoring relationships. In-Person STEM Mentoring In addition to models where one mentor is paired with one mentee, there are several additional varieties of in-person mentoring found in STEM mentoring: ► One mentor to many youth (often in programs that emphasize hands-on experiments) ► Many mentors to one youth (with each mentor filling a unique role or perspective) ► (Near) peer group programs (common in undergraduate mentoring programs where masters or doctoral students mentor groups of undergraduates, as well as programs where undergraduates mentor high school students) ► Many mentors to many youth (most common in online platforms or models where a cohort of youth is placed in internships together) Another common configuration for STEM mentoring programs is what might be called a “layered” approach to mentoring. In these programs the primary mentor is supported by a more senior scientist or faculty member while in turn serving a child or adolescent mentee 2. The most common configuration for this approach has a senior faculty member supervising/mentoring an undergraduate mentor who is in turn working with a high school or middle school student. These programs have the potential to both spark STEM interest and efficacy in younger students, while also strengthening the undergraduate experience and supporting persistence and completion of STEM majors 3 . As noted above, we also encountered examples of multi-men- tor approaches where youth get several mentors or “engaged adults” working with them at once. The most common configurations for these programs have a student mentor working in tandem with a faculty mentor (in higher education settings) or a worksite supervisor offering mentoring related to job skills while another employee mentor offers more social and emotional support around workplace culture, belonging, and “soft skills” such as networking and professionalism. The appeal of these programs is to ensure that young people get support on multiple fronts and that those with some authority or supervisory obligation over mentees are not also tasked with providing deeper social and emotional support that might conflict with their supervisory role. A good example of this type of multi-mentor approach can be found in the case study of 3M’s mentoring model (see sidebar). Online STEM Mentoring Online mentoring formats are mostly used in programs where exposing youth to a large variety and volume of STEM professionals or academics is important to the goals of the program. This approach is common, for example, in programs designed to help high school–age girls engage with a number of female scientists so that they can develop a sense of belonging in STEM and access a wider variety of scientists who could be helpful to their academic or career aspirations 4 . Online platforms allow for considerable networking within STEM fields, offer youth a wider variety of perspectives and supports, facilitate youth finding rare STEM role models who come from similar genders or backgrounds, and may offset the negative experiences that can occur when one-to-one matches do not meet participants’ satisfaction 5 . The research also suggests, however, that for some youth a closer personal relationship with one mentor may be most impactful for overcoming personal barriers to STEM participation 6 . These more intensive dyadic relationships can offer more focused and intensive support than a dispersed group of online mentors online. For programs using an online platform, the research suggests that the frequency of interactions between mentor and mentee is a key factor in the success of the relationship. For programs using a group online format, the number of mentors communicated with by youth may also be an important metric that speaks to the amount and quality of support a young person is getting and how personally engaged they are with STEM as a whole 7 . GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 11 T HE 3M STEP (SCIENCE TRAINING ENCOURAGEMENT PROGRAM), now in its 46th year, brings high school juniors and seniors into the 3M’s laboratories to learn alongside scientists. This unique experience offers students from Minnesota’s Saint Paul Public School District the opportunity to develop mentoring relationships with professionals in the STEM field. And, for numerous past participants, the program offers a stepping stone into a career as a 3M corporate scientist. Through STEP, students are matched with two mentors—a Technical Mentor and a Networking Mentor—who serve distinct yet complementary roles throughout the internship. The Technical Mentor oversees the student’s lab projects and provides feedback and support as the student learns new skills and collaborates with the team. On the other hand, the Networking Mentor interacts outside the lab and focuses on helping the student navigate professional obstacles and personal challenges, as well as connecting the student with additional opportunities, professionals, and experiences. Together, the two mentors meet with the student to get to know one another and discuss the student’s goals. This team mentoring approach provides students with a rich support system and comprehensive sounding board. Mentors are intentionally paired to have different areas of expertise, offering students access to a varied network of professionals with diverse skill sets. Encouraged to reach out with personal and career-related topics, students receive multiple perspectives in return. Some students find they’re comfortable approaching different mentors for different topics, while other students connect better with just one mentor. Having two mentors increases the likelihood that the student will develop a personal connection with at least one, and it also enables students to develop a more robust professional network. STEM MENTORING IN ACTION: The Value of Multiple Mentors at 3M Photo courtesy of 3M GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 12 Y O U T H A G E A N D P R O G R A M P U R P O S E As noted above, our scan of the field identified programs serving youth across the K12 spectrum and into undergraduate higher education contexts. But we also noted a shift in program purpose as youth matriculate through their education. Programs serving youth in elementary and middle school tend to use mentoring to generate enthusiasm for STEM, show how STEM subjects apply to real world settings and issues, share more information about STEM careers and the roles scientists play in solving problems, and nurture self-identification as someone who could someday be a scientist or apply STEM skills. Because many of these programs are set in schools, they often also have an explicit goal of improving performance and grades in STEM subjects. However, we did also note a theme that many of these programs taught “soft” skills that would also be very applicable to STEM careers, such as teamwork and collaboration, organizational skills, and clear communication, in addition to more academically focused goals. Once students move into high school and undergraduate settings, the focus of these mentoring programs tends to shift to solidifying STEM identity (rather than creating it), building practical skills, offering hands-on research or laboratory experiences, and helping youth overcome systemic barriers. These programs tend to pair mentors and youth for longer periods of time and frequently use “embedded” experiences, such as internships or a role on a research team as a way of building both practical skills and a sense of belonging in STEM work. They also frequently emphasize planning for, or direct completion of, various transition point activities, such as applying to college as a STEM major, presenting research at an academic conference, or securing a first job at a STEM company. There is some sentiment in the literature that creating the initial interest in spark is something that needs to happen before high school 8,9,10. However, we did find examples of programs that were explicitly about trying to entice high school students, especially girls and youth of color, who might have potential in STEM but who had not connected to or identified with a STEM-related future 11 . In spite of these exceptions, most programs for younger students tend to focus on creating that STEM “spark” while those for older youth are more instrumental in nature and focused on maintaining STEM engagement. There was considerable consensus in the literature, though, that neither approach was likely to be successful in the long-term without the other, that a more continuous series of mentoring opportunities might be most effective in growing the number of STEM professionals generally and closing race and gender gaps in STEM industries and academia 12,13,14 . What seems to be most needed, yet rarely provided to youth, are STEM opportunities across their childhood into adolescence and young adulthood 15,16 . Varied mentoring relationships (and programs) over time, each providing the right boost to engagement and self-efficacy at the right moment, may be most effective for helping youth overcome barriers to their STEM participation and persist in the face of institutional or systemic inequities. A good example of this form of intentional “handoff” from one program to another over a student’s matriculation can be found in the profile on the next page highlighting the transitioning of mentees across Genentech’s many Futurelab STEM mentoring programs. Photo courtesy of Genentech Photo courtesy of Genentech GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 13 F UTURELAB is a hyper-local STEM education initiative that supports all K–12 students in the South San Francisco Unified School District (SSFUSD) and provides rigorous, hands-on science. While there are a number of programs that engage South San Francisco (SSF) students and teachers, there are three signature programs that highlight a continuum of programming that engages elementary, middle, and high school students: Gene Academy, Helix Cup, and Science Garage. Gene Academy is an elementary after-school mentoring program for SSF third- through fifth-grade students that pairs approximately 200 students with two Genentech mentors to work together on homework and hands-on science experiments for an entire academic year. Helix Cup is an annual, semester-long science competition designed to engage all eighth-grade students—approximately 630 students—from SSF middle schools to help them develop problem solving, teamwork, and science skills with the help of more than 100 Genentech coaches who guide student teams throughout the competition. Science Garage is a high school classroom and lab that provides a four-year, and lab-focused biotech curriculum pathway. This program gives 1,000+ high school students in the district the chance to gain lab skills and increase their awareness of careers in biotech with the help of more than 140 Genentech scientists or “teachers assistants” who go into the classroom every week during the entire academic year to support lab execution and share more about their career journeys. This continuum of programming establishes multiple touchpoints to engage students in STEM and helps students develop multiple relationships with STEM professionals from Genentech throughout their educational journey. In a field as challenging as STEM, students are at an advantage if they have multiple supportive relationships that can help them find a STEM internship or complete STEM programs. This continuum of programming empowers students to foster a passion for STEM at an early age that they can build upon during middle school and high school, as they develop practical STEM competencies and consider careers in STEM. Based on third party evaluation, this comprehensive approach has been successful in fostering excitement about STEM, boosting confidence in doing hands-on STEM, and cultivating STEM skills. STEM MENTORING IN ACTION: Genentech’s Futurelab Initiative GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 14 O T H E R I N F L U E N C E S O N P R O G R A M P U R P O S E In addition to age-related shifts in program purpose, there were a few other factors that tended to shape the activities and areas of emphasis for STEM mentoring programs: Closing Demographic Gaps in STEM Fields The majority of the STEM programs discussed in the literature had an explicit focus on helping youth from underrepresented groups engage with and persist in STEM academic and career pursuits. These groups included girls and young women, members of specific racial and ethnic groups, youth with disabilities, and youth living in poverty. Even when programs did not explicitly state that their intentions were to close these gaps, they often noted that they worked in schools or nonprofit settings that served high numbers of youth of color or low-income youth or that some special outreach was conducted to support the involvement of similar groups. Interestingly, we found examples of programs designed to support struggling and disengaged students 17,18,19 , as well as programs that were explicitly supporting talented and gifted students who were already deeply engaged in STEM, keeping them on an existing pathway toward an eventual STEM career 20,21,22 . Obviously, mentors in these programs engaged in different strategies and forms of support, but this finding further highlights that mentors can be important for all types of students, regardless of their STEM abilities or current level of future STEM planning. Mentoring relationships seem to be valuable across the entire spectrum, especially when deployed in an effort to maximize the long-term engagement of groups that have traditionally struggled to show interest or persist in STEM fields. Direct Talent Pipelines Less frequent in the literature were examples of programs sponsored by STEM companies or industries. These programs tend to focus on engaging high school age youth, providing them with internships, summer bridge research opportunities, or other projects that would develop youth skills and potentially help identify students with high aptitude for specific STEM careers23 . While these types of programs were not referenced much in the peer-reviewed literature (reflecting a lack of emphasis on producing academic papers as an outcome of evaluating these types of programs), our Working Group of STEM practitioners certainly reflects this emphasis on nurturing the pipeline of STEM talent with programs sponsored by organizations as varied as a teaching aquarium (Sea Research Foundation), a biotechnology company (Genentech), and a multi-industry corporation like 3M. Each of these programs serves as an example of a company or industry investing in the next generation of workers directly through mentoring. P R O G R A M G O A L S A N D A C T I V I T I E S As noted above, the main intentions of STEM mentoring programs are largely reflective of the ages of the youth served with corresponding activities that are appropriate for their developmental stage and current level of STEM engagement. In general, when looking across all ages, we see that specific goals of STEM mentoring programs tend to cluster around three main outcomes: ► Changing mentees’ attitudes, beliefs, and plans related to STEM Much of the work of STEM mentoring programs focuses on building confidence and feelings of self-efficacy around STEM subjects. These programs are grounded in a belief that youths’ desire to continue in STEM pursuits will be strengthened if they feel like they have the ability to do well in STEM subjects. In addition to building confidence, these programs also tend to build a sense of belonging and “STEM identity,” in which youth feel like a STEM class or career is a place that fits who they are and where they are welcomed and encouraged 24 . We found support in the literature for programs that help develop feelings of “self as scientist,” in which mentored youth are able to not only see their future self in a STEM career or role but feel that engaging in STEM is an essential part of who they are as a person 25 . Helping youth see themselves in this light is particularly important in programs serving groups traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields who may need the extra support and personal connection with mentors to truly embrace STEM in this deep way. For a good example of a program that emphasizes making students feel welcome in the “culture of science” see the case study on the work of the New York City Science Research Mentoring Consortium later in this section. Lastly, we find that STEM mentoring programs often take these mentee gains in confidence and belonging and leverage that change in service of increased planning to participate or continue in STEM classes, applying to college as a STEM GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 15 major, or transitioning into graduate school or a STEM career. While helping youth feel at home in the world of STEM is valuable, it means little if they don’t actually follow through on practical steps along the pathway toward a STEM career. Thus, many programs provide instrumental supports (e.g., help with college access 26 or internships to gain job experience) that make those gains in confidence and belonging actionable. ► Increased participation in STEM In addition to changes in attitudes and plans, another set of goals is focused on measurable increases in engagement and participation in STEM activities27 . This can be measured in terms of taking more STEM classes, consuming more STEM-related media, engaging in additional STEM opportunities outside the program, and enrolling in higher education as a STEM major. Many STEM mentoring programs view themselves as a “gateway” to a world of other STEM opportunities, often providing that first initial spark or hint of success that helps a mentee connect to STEM subjects or see STEM careers in a new light. Mentors in these programs encourage their mentees to engage more in STEM activities, including at home and with parents and siblings who can be instrumental in facilitating additional learning. ► Increased STEM knowledge, skills, and achievement These are common goals for programs working in educational settings, where the involvement of STEM mentors is intended to produce improvements in mentees’ STEM test scores, grades, and other markers of academic achievement. While these goals are hoped for across the age spectrum, they are most common in programs for older students that offer hands-on research opportunities, longer-term projects, and embedded experiences in STEM settings. These programs tend to emphasize “mastery skills” that allow mentees to take the next steps in their STEM education or careers and apply what they have learned to real-world projects and tasks 28 . Many of the programs described in the literature combine all three by getting youth engaged in STEM mentoring activities and conversations with their mentor that, in turn, build confidence and feelings of belonging in STEM, which further translates into increased knowledge and attainment in STEM. Northwestern’s Science Club program is one such example (reference; see vignette on p.71). It is worth noting that most STEM mentoring programs address more than one of these goal areas. Many of the programs described in the literature combine all three by getting youth engaged in STEM mentoring activities and conversations with their mentor that, in turn, build confidence and feelings of belonging in STEM, which further translates into increased knowledge and attainment in STEM. Mentors in these programs, however, may be tasked with a role related to only one of these goal areas. For example, a program may choose to have volunteer mentors talk with youth about overcoming racial, gender, or other systemic barriers to a STEM career, while program staff or other professionals lead tutoring or other instructional time designed to increase STEM skills and knowledge. Alternatively, mentors may be focused on direct teaching of STEM skills and processes for doing research, while others address the more relational or social-emotional aspects of engaging in STEM. Programs should think carefully about what roles mentors need to fill and if there is a need to have a wider range of caring adults step in to address barriers to youths’ STEM engagement. In addition to these broad goals, it’s worth noting that many programs, particularly those trying to get traditionally underrepresented groups engaged in STEM, also provided additional tutoring or hands-on instruction, along with mentoring, as part of their services 29,30 . These programs rightly recognize that it is unrealistic to expect mentees to become more engaged with STEM or to see themselves in a STEM career if they are struggling in the classroom or are behind their peers in STEM knowledge. Thus, one strategy of many programs is to help youth “catch up” to their peers in order to lay the foundation for the growth in confidence and burgeoning STEM identity that follows. There is no “right” configuration of activities for STEM mentoring programs, but each program should have a theory of change that explains which of these goals are important to them and how mentors and others work together to address these three broad program goals. Program Activities for Older Mentees For older mentees, particularly high school–aged students who have already expressed an interest or aptitude in STEM, one of the more prominent activities was participating in direct research experiences, often as part of a summer bridge program. These types of summer programs offer a chance for mentees to work directly alongside more experienced scientists and build their GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 16 Programs within the NEW YORK CITY SCIENCE RESEARCH MENTORING CONSORTIUM are committed to immersing mentees into the culture of science. As with many fields, scientists have a unique set of norms that influence how professionals generally approach teamwork and collaboration, literature and language, and work in laboratories. Consortium mentors strive to bring mentees into that culture so they can better understand how science operates and are empowered to develop their own identity within the science community. Mentors expose mentees to various aspects of science culture by inviting them to meetings and events within the science community. Mentees often attend their lab’s meetings, where the principal investigator, other researchers, and students in the lab provide updates on their research. Some labs ask mentees to present their own work or discuss a challenge and receive feedback from the team; this provides mentees with experience communicating about their research and offers them insight into how their work fits into the team’s overarching goals. Science is rarely done in isolation—something that is often surprising to high school researchers—and learning to collaborate with others within the science community is critical. Mentors might also invite mentees to attend presentations by visiting researchers, where they can learn what types of questions people ask regarding a researcher’s methods and results, or to journal clubs, where mentees can acclimate to the language used in scientific literature. Mentees often don’t have STEM role models before participating in a Consortium program, so this experience exposes mentees to different types of scientists and enables them to build a professional network that can help connect them with science opportunities later on. They are also exposed to professional behavior and learn the often unspoken expectations of how to interact with professionals at many levels. Mentees who integrate into the culture of science are able to foster an identity as part of the science community and develop skills that equip them to succeed and persist in the field. Some mentees participating in a Consortium program get published, while others get additional research placements based on skills they’ve developed. Because mentees have been active in science experiences, they can see themselves belonging to the science community. STEM MENTORING IN ACTION: New York City Science Research Mentoring Consortium GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 17 research skills, while also maintaining and deepening engagement in STEM during the summer months when youth may lose interest. Longer direct research experiences during the school year were also offered via internships, often at STEM companies or in collaboration with a local college or university. These types of activities can help youth get a sense of truly being part of the “STEM world” and can build or reinforce a sense of STEM identity. When possible, STEM mentoring for older youth provides opportunities to experience a tangible feeling of what it would be like to be in a STEM career or environment. But this type of real-world experience can come with challenges. One of the key considerations in bringing older mentees to laboratories, workplaces, and universities is that youth may need some coaching and training around behavioral expectations and professionalism in these environments 31 . Several of the programs in our literature review noted challenges around helping mentees understand rules of workplace behavior, which ranged from participating in meetings, staying on task, and communicating effectively with other employees or team members, to more procedural topics such as laboratory safety or rules around use of equipment. These are the subtle nuances of professionalism and exposing youth to these concepts in a supportive mentoring context can serve them well in any professional setting down the line. See the “Training” section for more details on how programs can address this consideration. Programs serving older mentees, particularly those who already have solid STEM engagement, often directed mentors or other adults to provide practical information about the college application process. In one study, youth in the program (and their parents) made substantial gains in knowledge about the application process and next steps, even though the program had spent limited time on the topic 32 . This suggests that combining STEM engagement activities with college access services might be a potent combination for ensuring that more youth enter higher education as STEM majors. The “Training” section of this supplement offers more guidance on preparing mentors to support college attendance work. Program Activities for Younger Mentees Programs serving mentees in grades K–8 often focus on hands-on STEM activities that generate enthusiasm and excitement, facilitate teamwork or peer sharing, and allow students to learn and apply science or math concepts. These activities are often mentor-led, with a STEM professional or older student assisting mentees in conducting an experiment or a completing a STEM project. When selecting specific activities for youth and mentors to engage in, programs working to spark youths’ initial interest in STEM may prioritize activities or experiments that support an inquiry-based approach, designed to get students thinking about the scientific process, reasons behind results, and lessons learned from how they approached the challenge or question at the heart of the activity 33 . These types of activities emphasize asking questions, explaining results, and thinking about practical implications regardless of the result of the activity. They are less focused on finding a “right” answer, which can discourage mentees who are struggling with the content, instead focusing on the problem-solving and creative thinking aspects of science. Programs working with elementary and middle school youth also frequently emphasize fun activities that are not directly related to STEM learning or content, but are instead intended to build rapport, trust, and connectedness between mentors and mentees. We did find some examples across our literature review of programs for older youth that stressed relationship- focused activities 34 , even into college-age programs 35 , but generally, programs serving older youth focus much more on skill-building and work toward goals, while programs for younger students offered a more even blend of STEM-learning and relationship-developing activities. It is worth noting that one of the key challenges for STEM mentoring programs⎯one that was suggested in the research reviewed for this guide 36 and reflected in the experiences of our Working Group members⎯is ensuring that program activities aren’t so task-focused that the relationship at the heart of all good mentoring is neglected. Because STEM mentoring programs can rely so heavily on hands-on activities and completion of research tasks and academic skill building exercises, the relationship itself may not receive the attention it deserves. Programs may struggle to offer mentors and mentees the time they need to get to know each other, to talk about things other than STEM, and to share a good laugh or connect in ways that will make their STEM work more authentic and meaningful. If there is one core recommendation at the heart of this guide, it is that STEM mentoring programs should embrace and facilitate true mentoring by implementing and adhering to practices that ensure the expected frequency and duration of mentoring interactions and foster the development of a real mentoring relationship that goes beyond doing experiments and cool projects together. GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 18 O T H E R K E Y P R A C T I C E S I N I M P L E M E N T I N G S T E M M E N T O R I N G There were several other aspects of STEM mentoring program design and implementation that were noted in the research reviewed: ► Many STEM mentoring programs, particularly those serving the younger grades, offered some form of parent and family engagement. This commonly took the form of activities that mentees could take home and do with their parents or siblings. Programs serving older youth often engaged parents in college access supports37. Those that involved a longer-term research project often engaged parents in some kind of presentation or capstone event at the end of the program where they could see the STEM work their child and mentor had engaged in. See the Training and Closure sections for more information on how parents and families can be brought into the work of STEM mentoring programs. (And for a good example of STEM parent engagement in action, see the sidebar on Sea Research Foundation’s end-of-year events.) ► Transportation challenges were noted in studies of programs in our literature review 38—and confirmed by our practitioner Working Group. We found examples of this impacting both rural and urban programs. Getting youth out to STEM businesses or off-site locations to participate in STEM activities can be challenging. Frequently, these programs were located at mentees’ schools or other easy-to-get-to locations, rather than asking mentees and families to travel to a company or university. Having the school as a central location to host the STEM program can alleviate transportation and resource concerns. But there can also be challenges in bringing mentors to the school site, especially when trying to get STEM employees or college students who might have different schedules to the same location at once. Programs may find it easier to arrange transportation themselves, if possible, in an effort to increase participation. ► Regardless of how mentors and mentees get to their meetings, STEM mentoring programs can also face challenges in securing appropriate meeting spaces for matches to conduct hands-on STEM activities. Finding space to do mentoring activities in schools can often be a challenge, but it is especially important for STEM mentoring where mentors and youth often need larger or open spaces where they can conduct experiments or do other hands-on STEM projects. This issue can be most acute in programs where a nonprofit or university-based coordinating agency is bringing mentors to meet with students at their school or in another physical space the program does not manage. Some physical space limitations can be mitigated by proactively selecting activities that match what the school can realistically offer during the design and planning stages (e.g., avoiding selecting an experiment that requires ventilation for smoke for a school setting where matches are meeting in small, unventilated rooms). ► Finally, one common practice in programs utilizing a structured curriculum to guide mentoring activities is to review and refine the curriculum annually based upon mentor and mentee feedback. This practice ensures that activities that don’t quite work as expected are improved or replaced with something better and that training for mentors can be adjusted or reworked to give next year’s mentors and mentees a stronger experience. Additional considerations for program design and implementation are covered in the following section 2, “Standards of Practice for STEM Mentoring Programs.” GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 19 References 1 Sowers, J., Powers, L. E., Shpigelman, C-N. (2012). Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) mentoring for youth and young adults with disabilities: A review of the research [Monograph]. Portland, OR: Regional Research Institute on Human Services, Portland State University. 2 Cutucache, C. E., Luhr, J. L., Nelson, K. L., Grandgennett, N. F., & Parreich, W. E. (2016). NE STEM 4U: An out-of-school time academic program to improve achievement of socioeconomically disadvantaged youth in STEM areas. International Journal of STEM Education, 3(6), 1–7. doi:10.1186/s40594-016-0037-0 3 Banks, K. H. (2010). A Qualitative investigation of mentor experiences in a service-learning course. Educational Horizons, 89(1), 68–79. 4 Stoeger, H., Hopp, M., & Ziegler, A. (2017). Online mentoring as an extracurricular measure to encourage talented girls in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics): An empirical study of one-on-one versus group mentoring. Gifted Child Quarterly, 61, 239–249. doi:10.1177/0016986217702215 5 Dawson, A. E., Bernstein, B. L. & Bekki, J. M. (2015). Providing the psychosocial benefits of mentoring to women in STEM: CareerWISE as an online solution. New Directions for Higher Education, 171, 53–62. doi:10.1002/he.20142 6 Sowers, et al., 2012. 7 Stoeger, et al., 2017. 8 Caleon, I., & Subramaniam, R. (2008). Attitudes toward science of intellectually gifted and mainstream upper primary students in Singapore. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 45, 940–954. 9 Subrahmanyan, L., and & Bozonie, H. (1996). Gender equity in middle school science teach- ing: Being “equitable” should be the goal. Middle School Journal, 27(5), 3–10. 10 Tyler-Wood, T., Ellison, A., Lim, O., & Periathiruvadi, S. (2012). Bringing Up Girls in Science (BUGS): The effectiveness of an afterschool environmental science program for increasing female students’ interest in science careers. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 21(1), 46–55. doi:10.1007/s10956-011-9279-2. 11 Bystydzienski, J. M., Eisenhart, M., & Bruning, M. (2015). High school is not too late: Developing girls’ interest and engagement in engineering careers. The Career Development Quarterly, 63, 88–95. doi:10.1002/j.2161-0045.2015.00097.x 12 Bystydzienski, et al., 2015. 13 Manson, S. M., Martinez, D. F., Buchwald, D. S., Rubio, D. M., & Moss, M. (2015). Vision, identity, and career in the clinical and translational sciences: Building upon the formative years. Clinical and Translational Science, 8: 568–572. doi:10.1111/cts.12316 14 Sowers, et al., 2012. 15 Sadler, P. M., Sonnert, G., Hazari, Z., & Tai, R. (2012), Stability and volatility of STEM career interest in high school: A gender study. Science Education, 96, 411–427. doi:10.1002/ sce.21007 16 Salto, L. M., Riggs, M. L., Delgado De Leon, D., Casiano, C. A., & De Leon, M. (2014). Underrepresented minority high school and college students report STEM-pipeline sustaining gains after participating in the Loma Linda University summer health disparities research program. PLoS ONE, 9(9). doi:10.1371/ journal.pone.0108497 17 Bystydzienski, et al., 2015. 18 Stevens, S., Andrade, R., & Page, M. (2016). Motivating young Native American students to pursue STEM learning through a culturally relevant science program. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 25(6): 947–960. 19 Cutucache, et al., 2016 20 Dawson, et al.,2015. 21 Stoeger, et al., 2017 22 Phelan, S. A., Harding, S. M., & Harper-Leatherman, A. S. (2017). BASE (Broadening Access to Science Education): A research and mentoring focused summer STEM camp serving underrepresented high school girls. Journal of STEM Education, 18(1), 65–72. 23 Danner, O. K., Lokko, C., Mobley, F., Dansby, M., Maze, M., Bradley, B., Williams, E., Mat- thews, L. R., Harrington, E., Mack, L., Clark, C., Wilson, K., Beech, D., Heron, S., & Childs, E. (2017). Hospital-based, multidisciplinary, youth mentoring and medical exposure program positively influences and reinforces health care career choice: "The Reach One Each One Program early experience". American Journal of Surgery, 213(4), 611–616. doi:10.1016/j. amjsurg.2016.12.002 24 Callahan, C. N., Libarkin, J. C., McCallum, C. M., & Atchison, C. L. (2015). Using the lens of social capital to understand diversity in the earth system sciences workforce. Journal of Geoscience Education, 63(2), 98–104. http://dx.doi.org/10.5408/15-083.1 25 Manson, et al., 2015. 26 Phelan, et al., 2017. 27 Gamse, et al., 2014. 28 Salto, et al., 2014. 29 Packard, B. W-L. (2012). Effective outreach, recruitment, and mentoring into STEM pathways: Strengthening partnerships with community colleges. In National Academy of Engineering and National Research Council (Ed.), Community colleges in the evolving STEM education land- scape: Summary of a summit, 57. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. Retrieved from https://www.nap.edu/read/13399/chapter/11 30 Kabacoff, C., Srivastava, V., & Robinson, D. N. (2013). A summer academic research experience for disadvantaged youth. CBE Life Sciences Education, 12(3), 410–418. http://doi. org/10.1187/cbe.12-12-0206 31 Kabacoff, et al., 2013. 32 Phelan, et al., 2017. 33 Parsley, D., & Ristvey, J. (2014). Cosmic Chemistry: A proactive approach to summer science for high school students. Afterschool Matters, 19, 20–27. 34 Powers L. , Schmidt J. , Sowers J. , & McCracken K. (2015). Qualitative investigation of the influence of STEM mentors on youth with disabilities. Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals, 38(1), 25–38. 35 Zaniewski, A. M., & Reinholz, D. (2016). Increasing STEM success: a near-peer mentoring program in the physical sciences. International Journal of STEM Education, 3(1). https://doi. org/10.1186/s40594-016-0043-2 36 Powers, et al., 2015. 37 Phelan, et al., 2017. 38 Stevens, et al. 2016. GENERAL PROGRAM DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 20 SEA RESEARCH FOUNDATION’S STEM MENTORING PROGRAM has found that family engagement is a key component to program success. For example, when families have opportunities to access and understand the program, they’re able to discover its value and are less likely to pick up their children early or skip a day of programming. STEM Mentoring has developed several opportunities to engage families throughout the program’s duration. Each site is asked to hold an information session for participating youth, families, and mentors to kick off the program, during which sites share program goals and expectations for mentees and mentors. Additionally, each STEM Mentoring module includes a multitude of resources for youth to share with family members at home, including websites, games, online videos, and printed books on STEM topics. The resources are age-appropriate, relevant, and fun, so mentees are more likely to be excited and share them with siblings and parents/guardians. Families are also invited to participate in select STEM enrichment activities during the program year as well as the graduation event at the end of the year, where mentees share what they learned during the program. Mentees are encouraged to present their work in their native language if English is the second language at home. These events are sometimes the first time that families are able to see first-hand what mentees and mentors have been working on together, and families are often amazed at the new skills mentees have acquired. STEM MENTORING IN ACTION: Sea Research Foundation Photo courtesy of Sea Research Foundation STANDARDS OF PRACTICE FOR STEM MENTORING PROGRAMS2 ► RECRUITMENT M E N T O R R E C R U I T M E N T Program recruits mentors whose skills, motivations, and backgrounds best match the goals and structure of the program. (B.1.3) ► STEM RECOMMENDATION Recruit volunteers with scientific backgrounds or current employment in a STEM field to serve as mentors, particularly if mentors will be teaching STEM content, leading complicated STEM activities, or serving as role models to mentees who are members of a group (e.g., African-Americans, women) that is underrepresented among students majoring in a STEM field or among employees in a STEM job. ► STEM RECOMMENDATION Recruit mentors who express interest in developing a supportive, caring relationship and friendship with their mentee(s), and not just promoting their mentees’ interest in, or commitment to, a STEM career. M E N T E E A N D P A R E N T O R G U A R D I A N R E C R U I T M E N T Program recruits mentees whose needs best match the services offered by the program. (B.1.7) ► STEM RECOMMENDATION Program engages in recruitment strategies directed at potential mentees that show people who are working in STEM careers as part of a collaborative community of talented, interesting people. ► STEM RECOMMENDATION Program engages in recruitment strategies showing people working in STEM who are concerned with helping people or applying their work to improving the world. STANDARDS OF PRACTICE ► Recruitment S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 22 Justification The recruitment process provides the first contact that a volunteer mentor, mentee, or parent or guardian of a mentee may have with a STEM mentoring program. This means that, as in any mentoring program, recruitment can contribute to setting the stage for a sustainable and high quality mentoring relationship through communicating clear expectations; reinforcing motivations; and generating excitement, enthusiasm, and commitment for entering into a mentoring relationship. Aligning Recruitment with the Stage of Mentees’ STEM Engagement and Interest As noted in the Introduction, when our literature search did find empirical studies on STEM mentoring, they were often designed for undergraduate students (and occasionally graduate students who were being encouraged to enter or remain in a STEM major). In fact, many colleges are so aware of the national STEM workforce problems that they have developed well-articulated, comprehensive plans for recruiting and retaining students into STEM majors 1,2 . Although this literature focuses, for the most part, on under- graduate students, it remains relevant for our recommendations to those serving K–12 students with STEM mentoring for several reasons. The plans are carefully thought out and include a range of different models of mentoring programs that can be applied to K–12 or college summer bridge programs. In addition, they typically have goals and strategies that are designed to further students’ STEM involvement or engagement, which has implications for our recruitment recommendations here. For example, recruitment strategies for a K–12 STEM mentoring program might consider the following broad target audiences, based upon the program’s goals. ► Recruitment into STEM When a program is focused on initially engaging mentees in a STEM field, then a diverse set of mentors—who may or may not be teaching or working in a STEM field—may be recruited. In other words, mentor expertise or knowledge around STEM subjects is less important to program success than a general interest in STEM. Furthermore, mentee recruitment may also be more broadly defined. By “casting the net widely,” mentoring programs focusing on STEM recruitment might capture the interest of students who might not have had previous experiences in STEM that were exciting, fun, engaging, creative, or stimulating. ► Retention in STEM In contrast, mentoring programs aimed at retention of mentees in a STEM major or career path tend to have program recruitment goals, target populations, and program activities that are more intense and focused than more entry-level programs. Mentors recruited into STEM retention programs tend to be people who are currently working in or retired from a STEM field, who have the education and expertise to direct activities that may be complicated and require having technical skills. In addition, STEM professionals can contribute to supporting STEM retention efforts through being a role model or providing information and connections. Mentees recruited into a STEM retention program may be enrolled in a STEM major or STEM courses, or engaged in extracurricular STEM activities. These broad goals clearly will influence the target populations of mentors and mentees for a STEM mentoring program. In addition, the mentees’ stage of involvement in STEM will also influence when, where, and how to recruit mentors and mentees, and what messages to include in recruitment activities and materials. These issues are discussed below. M E N T O R R E C R U I T M E N T Some STEM mentoring programs operate at somewhat of an advantage with regard to recruitment of mentors because they are located within a workplace or educational setting where they have a readily accessible audience of prospective mentors. In addition, mentors in these setting may receive some form of compensation or incentive (e.g., course credit, release time) for participating in the mentoring program. Despite these advantages, STEM mentoring programs, including members of our Working Group, still report challenges with mentor recruitment and match retention. Unfortunately, the empirical literature on STEM mentoring provides little direct guidance regarding effective recruitment practices. In fact, participant recruitment locations are frequently mentioned in studies or reports of STEM programs (e.g., flyers in the lunchroom, announcements at faculty meetings), whereas the content of recruitment messages or strategies is usually missing from program descriptions. The messaging used during the recruitment process is equally, if not more, important than the locations for conducting recruitment. This topic is an important direction for future research. STANDARDS OF PRACTICE ► Recruitment S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 23 STEM MENTORING IN ACTION: 3M With its commitment to apply science to improve lives around the world, 3M has fostered a strong culture of service and community engagement. STEP recruits 3M volunteer mentors by promoting the opportunity at internal events—including networking events, technical forums, and outreach events—as well as through communication channels such as 3M’s LinkedIn community, newsletters, the employee intranet, and digital monitors on display throughout corporate headquarters in St. Paul. Some of STEP’s most enthusiastic mentors are those who partici- pated in the program back in high school and work at 3M today. You can find information about 3M’s mentoring programs in the Introduction. STEM MENTORING IN ACTION: 3M Photo courtesy of 3M STANDARDS OF PRACTICE ► Recruitment S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 24 Characteristics of Mentors Recruited for STEM Mentoring Programs Benchmark.1.3 states that mentoring programs should recruit mentors whose skills, motivations, and backgrounds best match the goals and structure of the program. There are two major recommendations related to this benchmark. RECRUITMENT OF MENTORS WITH STEM EDUCATION OR WHO ARE EMPLOYED IN A STEM FIELD Our first recommendation is to recruit volunteers for the program who have scientific backgrounds or current employment in a STEM field to serve as mentors. This recommendation is considered to be particularly relevant if mentors will be teaching STEM content in the program or leading complicated STEM activities. See the sidebar for one example of how a leading company encourages their employees to get involved in their STEM mentoring work with youth through a variety of channels. The recruitment of mentors of this type has several factors for programs to consider: Technical Skills Needed to Mentor in the Program The types of technical skills that may be needed to be a mentor in a STEM mentoring program will depend on the goals of the program. ► Initial engagement goals STEM mentoring programs that have the goal of interesting K–12 students in STEM may be less focused on the need for advising and connecting, and may hope to instill a spark of interest or curiosity about STEM in mentees. At this stage of development, activities may be designed to be fun and engaging, and less related to professional STEM work activities. To serve as a mentor in this type of program, at a minimum, mentors need to be interested in STEM. ► Retention goals Sustaining an interest in STEM requires mentoring that may initially focus on helping mentees to acquire knowledge of a STEM field to, ultimately, supporting mentees attempts to create new knowledge in the field. To support these more advanced efforts, programs should recruit mentors who have substantive knowledge and expertise of the discipline. In the case of STEM mentoring, recruiting mentors with scientific backgrounds or current employment in a STEM field is also grounded in social learning theory principles. When students have repeated exposure to STEM professionals who are not just a group instructor or facilitator, and develop a more personal helping relationship with a mentor, they can observe and learn how to enter and navigate STEM careers. Although theoretically, mentors in a STEM profession should add to the magnitude of the impact of a STEM mentoring program on youth, we were unable to locate any studies that actually tested this hypothesis. Influence of Activity Features on Mentor Qualifications The types of technical skills that may be needed to be a mentor in a STEM mentoring program will also depend upon the activities included in the program. ► Program complexity If matches complete STEM activities together, it may be helpful if mentors have some level of education or employment in a STEM field. The depth of knowledge and experience will depend on the complexity of the STEM projects being done and the presence of other instructors or advisers who can assist with instructions and monitoring progress. ► Level of technical knowledge Often there are sophisticated technical skills that need to be learned and mastered to conduct STEM projects or research in mentoring programs aimed at deepening an interest in STEM3 . ► Safety considerations Having a background in the STEM field can be useful for practical and safety reasons in that mentors who are familiar with the procedures for conducting a STEM activity can focus their energies on their mentoring relationship and mentee(s) rather than the logistics and instructions for completing the activities. 1 THE GIRLS INC. EUREKA! PROGRAM provides STEM education to underserved girls and young women by facilitating hands-on STEM experiences and professional and personal development activities in a college campus environment. Girls Inc. is intentional about recruiting women as mentors so that mentees have positive and successful female role models in a field disproportionally represented by men. Girls Inc. has found that when girls gain exposure to successful women in STEM, they’re able to envision themselves in a field where they may have previously felt they didn’t belong. As Calista, a third-year participant in the Eureka! program at Girls Inc. of Worcester, Massachusetts, said: "DuringmytimeatUMASS,Imetamazingwomeninthefieldofmedicine.(Mymentor)helpedmeto see that even in a male-dominated industry, women can succeed . . . Before this program, I didn’t reallyknowwhatIwantedtostudyincollegeorbecomewhenIfinishedmydegrees.Now,Isee that there are many opportunities for women in STEM." Girls Inc. recruits women from STEM professions by tapping into groups, communities, and companies that align with Girls Inc.’s mission and model, including local STEM companies and women’s interest groups. Girls Inc.’s local chapters have developed partnerships with the Society of Women Engineers and The Links, Incorporated—a nonprofit comprised of 15,000 professional women of color—to recruit mentors and develop the next generation of STEM professionals. These partners, along with women’s interest groups embedded in local STEM companies, have been great sources to recruit diverse mentors, many of whom are from underrepresented populations in their professions and can relate to navigating through adversity in the workplace. Mentors can shine as examples of women who have survived and thrived in STEM, and they can also communicate with mentees about the challenges they experienced—from being left out of study groups to not feeling heard in meetings—and support girls as they encounter the same obstacles. STEM MENTORING IN ACTION: Girls Inc. STANDARDS OF PRACTICE ► Recruitment S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 25 STANDARDS OF PRACTICE ► Recruitment S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 26 Workplace Incentives for Being a STEM Mentor ► Incentives for professionals who work in STEM jobs Sometimes mentors have been incentivized to volunteer to participate in a mentoring program through release time at work or even direct funding to hire students to work in their labs 4 . ► Incentives for college faculty mentors These incentives can be instrumental, particularly at the college level, because the workload of STEM faculty members is heavy and has been growing over time 5 . Furthermore, promotion and tenure decisions are primarily based upon reviews by peers from other institutions concerning research quality and productivity, and they are often unfamiliar and uninvolved in the faculty member’s mentoring of undergraduate students or volunteering to mentor K–12 students. Recruitment of STEM Professionals Who Are Also Members of an Underrepresented Group Some mentoring programs—particularly those who focus their mentee recruitment efforts on students from groups that are underrepresented in STEM—carefully target mentors who are similar demographically to their mentees. In other words, they recruit mentors who both work in a STEM profession and who themselves are members of a group underrepresented in STEM, such as women, members of specific racial or ethnic groups, or those with disabilities. For a real-life example of a program that specifically targets female STEM professionals in this way, see the previous page on the recruitment strategies of Girls Inc. The roots of this decision come from an understanding of the definition of mentoring and forms of support that mentoring programs hope that their mentors will provide to mentees. In STEM mentoring, three common roles of effective mentors include being a trusted adult friend, a nurturer of possibilities, and a positive role model 6 —and each role can be operationalized in terms of meeting program goals. Being a trusted adult friend might mean providing emotional support, acceptance, and coaching regarding coping with educational or career-related challenges. Being a nurturer of possibilities in this context might mean increasing mentee’s knowledge of and exposure to STEM-related professionals, experiences, institutions, and educational or career opportunities. Being a positive role model might be passively observed in a STEM-related educational pathway or job position that mentees can emulate, or behaving intentionally in prosocial, healthy ways related to STEM education or work that mentees can imitate. It has been hypothesized that when mentees and their mentors share being a member of a group underrepresented in STEM, these roles may be enhanced in several ways. For example, ► Observing how senior professionals handle complex situations at work 7 . For example, female STEM mentors can help female mentees cope with different work situations that may be prejudicial or discriminatory. ► Psychological identification with a same-race senior mentor can provide an example of academic success 8 . ► Identification is also important for retention and successful performance. By identifying with someone who is successful in a field and similar in important ways to oneself, it can help reduce negative stereotypes about one’s group’s abilities. An example of a negative stereotype is that women are less capable than men in STEM. When someone is both a member of the stereotyped group and aware of the stereotype, it can result in anxiety and underperformance in testing situations (which is referred to as stereotype threat)9,10,11 . In turn, awareness of negative stereotypes and low performance can result in a feeling of not belonging. With few women in male-dominated fields to serve as role models, fields such as physics are vulnerable to women being impacted by negative stereotypes. In fact, one study found that awareness of stereotypes about women having inferior ability in physics was related to a lower sense of belonging and worse academic performance in a college physics class for women, but not men 12 . This study demonstrates how negative stereotypes effect a sense of belonging and these attitudes can be a significant barrier to women entering STEM. In another study of high school students enrolled in a STEM summer camp program, analyses were conducted that divided students into one of five groups13 . Group member- ship was based on students’ ratings at the beginning and end of the program of how important they thought it was to have a mentor that shared their ethnicity, gender, and social class background, and how much contact they had previously had with mentors who shared their background. Group STANDARDS OF PRACTICE ► Recruitment S T E M M E N TO R I N G S U P P L E M E N T 27 membership was related to outcomes of science self-efficacy, identity as a science student, and commitment to pursue a science career. Notably, students in the stably high group (i.e., those who consistently reported receiving high levels of mentoring from mentors who shared their backgrounds and thought that sharing a background was important) reported increases in efficacy, identity, and commitment as a science student. Other groups in this study also reported increases in one or more aspects of their scientific identity. For example, students who had stable contact with mentors over time, but decreased in their reports of the importance of background similarity to mentors increased in their science self-efficacy. The findings from this study were interpreted in terms of the positive future self and identity theories 14,15 . Consistent with these theories, by observing and having a close relationship with successful STEM professionals from similar back- grounds, students were able to envision themselves working successfully and competently in a similar career in the future. Thus, by being able to identify with someone like yourself in a STEM career, it can build a sense of belonging and commitment to a STEM field. Recruitment of Guest Visitors or Presenters In addition to having mentors (who may not be in a STEM field), some STEM mentoring programs also recruit additional STEM experts to visit as guests or presenters 16 . Having these guests can expand mentees’ professional networks and give mentees the opportunity to meet people who are working in a STEM profession, even if they aren’t able to develop close, mentoring relationships with them. Because the free time of STEM professionals is often so limited, this approach can be a quick and easy way to initially get them involved in the program and perhaps ease them into an eventual full mentor role. Recruitment of Near-Peer Mentors in STEM Mentoring Programs Because there may not be a sufficient number of adult expert STEM mentors in geographic proximity to a mentoring program, some have explored models utilizing other types of mentors 17 . The engagement of peer leaders (sometimes called ambassadors) or near-peer mentors has been frequently reported as a potential structural solution to solving mentor scarcity and mentee retention 18,19 problems. Notably, recent research suggests that student engagement is enhanced by peer mentoring 20,21 . Near-peer mentoring still utilizes a hierarchical approach 22 , but mentors and mentees are matched together based upon similarities in age, experience, rank, and/ or power 23 . Relationships with successful near-peer mentors help to create a welcoming environment where younger students can begin to envision themselves working in a STEM major or career. In addition, near-peer mentoring can be very efficient in that mentors can be trained to provide mentees with more regular and ongoing instrumental and psychosocial support than many employees, graduate students, or faculty members can provide. Recruitment of near-peer mentors has been found to be effective in some studies of STEM mentoring programs delivered to students from groups that are underrepresented in STEM careers and near-peer mentoring programs have been implemented at many universities 24 . In several small studies, upper-level undergraduate students were recruited to serve as STEM mentors to high school students 25 or first- or second-year undergraduate students 26,27 with positive