Inside this issue:
Wanted: A Better Way to Boost Numbers of Minority Ph.D.s

An Interview with Dr. Isiah M. Warner

The Non-SEM Field Choices of Black and Latino Undergraduates With the Aptitude for Science, Engineering and Mathematics Careers

Shirley Vining Brown "Citizen Scientist" 

A Message from Yolanda George

About Our Icon

Managing Editor:Yolanda S. George
Editor: 
Virginia Van Horne
Art Director: 
Ann Williams
 

Making Strides is a quarterly (April, July, October, and January) research newsletter published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Directorate for Education and Human Resources Program. Its purpose is to share information about minority graduate education (MGE) in the fields of science, mathematics, and engineering. It is available in print and electronic format. Inquiries, information related to MGE, and all correspondence should be sent to the editor. 

In late October of 1998, the NSF Minority Graduate Education (MGE) program awarded eight universities nearly $2.5 million each to significantly increase the number of African American, Hispanic, and Native American students receiving SME doctoral degrees. Also, as part of this initiative, AAAS and the Commission of Professionals in Science and Technology (CPST) received a three-year research award of $450,000. We will identify and disseminate factors that affect these students' underrepresentation in SME as well as the successful strategies that lead to their increased representation in science, mathematics, and engineering doctoral programs and careers, in particular the professoriate. 

The eight universitites that received awards are Georgia Institute of Technology, Howard University, University of Alabama at Birmingham, University of Florida, University of Michigan, Univerisity of Missouri-Columbia, University of Puerto Rico, and Rice University. 

As part of our study, we are pleased to present the inaugural issue of our research newsletter, Making Strides. Each issue will feature an MGE research article; a profile of a minority SME professor; a hot topic question; a featured project; data charts from CPST; and information on grants and research opportunities.