Inner-city schools targeted for diversity recruitment
As assistant dean for diversity in the College of Engineering, Derrick Rollins is focused on tripling the number of underserved students in the college by 2013. For 2008–2009, about 4% (184 students) of the engineering student body were minorities. “Our enrollment needs to better reflect the U.S. population, which means steady growth is needed in the numbers of both minorities and women,” Rollins says. “If the United States is going to be competitive in the world in 2050, we need to figure out a way of increasing the number of women and underrepresented students in the STEM fields.”
Rollins’ plan of action includes making connections in inner-city schools so that relationships are established with teachers, counselors, and students. This past school year, he targeted four Kansas City high schools to recruit low-income, academically disadvantaged students. He spoke to science and math classes about the importance of moving to the next level in their education and about the role of engineering in our world. As a result of his efforts, 20 students were invited to campus to learn more about Iowa State and the college as well as about financial aid. Department chairs were among the people who visited personally with the students, sharing their passion for engineering.
Out of 11 students who made the visit, 3 have received exceptional scholarship awards. Two of them—Jonathan DeBarge Morgan, mechanical engineering, and Donathan LeBarge Morgan, electrical engineering—were featured in the May 2 Kansas City Star article “For Ruskin High School twins, it’s two times the success.” The twins have both received Gates Millennium Scholarships from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In addition, Donathan has been selected to receive a college E2020 scholarship. Steve Johnson, industrial manufacturing systems engineering and business, has been selected as a George Washington Carver Scholar.
The Summer Program for Enhancing Engineering Development (SPEED) serves as a transition program for the incoming students. “SPEED is designed to be an intensive boot camp to help students from inner-city schools as well as from smaller schools in Iowa to compete and succeed in engineering,” Rollins says. “Our goal as a college is to help prepare students for the engineering curriculum. Inner-city schools don’t provide the depth and breadth of education that is needed. Often a lot of effort has to be focused on discipline instead of education. We have to nurture these students so that they will be able to succeed here.”
While continuing his recruitment efforts in Kansas City schools next year, Rollins will also be establishing connections with inner-city schools in Dallas, Omaha, Peoria, and St. Louis.
