Better STEM Outcomes: Developing an Accountability System for Broadening Participation

Posted by University of Pennsylvania on March 27, 2017

Given your leadership in the field, we think you might find “Better STEM Outcomes: Developing an Accountability System for Broadening Participation” of interest. This new report, which we co-authored with Daryl Chubin, summarizes proceedings from a two-day workshop held in October 2016 that involved 50 educators, administrators, and evaluators from across the U.S. science and engineering enterprise.

The goal of the “Workshop on Assessing Performance and Developing an Accountability System for Broadening Participation” was to create a framework for developing and implementing an accountability system for broadening participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). A grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to the University of Pennsylvania supported the workshop and report.

“Better STEM Outcomes” discusses guiding principles and characteristics of an accountability system for broadening participation in STEM. It details the roles different sectors play in developing and maintaining that system. In particular, the report highlights the leadership role of higher education and the catalytic role of NSF to promote accountability. It concludes with action steps that organizations could take to put in place an accountability system that would help to realize the ambitious bold initiative to broaden participation called for and outlined by the Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering (CEOSE) in its 2011-2012 and 2013-2014 Biennial Reports to Congress.

We hope the workshop report stimulates additional conversations that involve multiple stakeholders in developing and implementing an accountability system that helps to broaden participation and democratize STEM, and, in so doing, contributes to better science and engineering.

A pdf of the report can also be found here. Please feel free to distribute this link to your colleagues and networks. We welcome any comments or questions you may have.

https://upenn.app.box.com/v/BetterSTEMOutcomes