Institution Iowa State University State Iowa Academic Level Baccalaureate Issue Area Support Services Website http://www.sciencebound.iastate.edu/ Key Personnel Alexis Campbell Program Focus STEM Overview For more than 30 years Science Bound has been Iowa State University’s premier program for meeting the growing needs of our state and nation to diversify tomorrow’s workforce. We work with underrepresented youth & families (8th grade through college) toward their preparation and pursuit of Education, Agriculture, and STEM degrees. We aim to increase the number of students enrolling in & completing degrees in higher education. This includes maintaining good academic standing (GPA, attendance, etc.) both at the high school and college levels. Program Description Science Bound identifies middle school students with a propensity for math/science and supports them through their earning of a bachelor’s degree in STEM. SB engages high school seniors/parents in college enrollment workshops. After high school, SB offers four-year tuition scholarships for students and has dedicated bilingual and bicultural staff trained in STEM student development.They host a college onboarding retreat focused on academic support and peer mentoring, a weekly seminar connecting first-year students to university resources, develop college study skills, and acclimate them to predominantly white institutions. Students have a dedicated study space, free printing, and tutoring.Sophomore/senior seminars develop students’ knowledge and career planning strategies to secure research experiences, internships, and employment. Science Bound is intentionally inclusive in making sure Latino students’ cultural assets are incorporated and resources are provided regarding immigration status. Additionally, inclusive language is used when interacting with Latino students/families (i.e. parent letters in Spanish and English, and interpreters for Spanish-speaking families). Outcome More than 2,000 students have benefitted from Science Bound and nearly 700 students have earned four-year STEM tuition scholarships. From 2019-2020, 65 high school graduates (98%) are pursuing higher education degrees (80% at Iowa State University).Durin 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 there has been an increase in High School student retention of 91%.The six-year graduation rate for Latino students was 70%, higher than the university's overall graduation rate of 60%. Learn more about Latino College Completion in Iowa Return to Growing What Works Database
