Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Currently, colleges of agriculture across the country are challenged to graduate a diverse workforce to meet the increase in employment needs within areas of FANH. Therefore, there is a demand to attract students from areas with most growth and diversity within urban communities that lack access to FANH. LaGuardia Community College (LAGCC) is a federally designated Hispanic-serving institution in the heart of Queens, NY, recognized by Excelencia for its exemplary leadership in serving Latinx students and others representing 145 countries. "The Animal Science Discovery (ANSCId) program: A experiential learning, career development, and scholarship pipeline between LAGCC and Rutgers" aims to open the gateway to a tiered pathway that is structured, scaffolded, rich in experiential learning, peer mentoring and fortified with scholarships to forge a pipeline between NYC high schools to LAGCC (2-year) and Rutgers (4-year) for careers in Animal Science. ANSCId is student-centered and supports student learning and success via: (1) advertising, outreach, engagement, articulated transfer agreements; (2) paid, summer experiential learning program; (3) transfer scholarships for bachelor's degrees in Animal Science, and (4) peer mentorship, career development, and USDA career pipeline. Evidence of Impact: ANSCId with a focus on Animal Science would convene 35 faculty and staff to accomplish these goals over five years. Overall project outcomes include, conducting outreach to 375,000 high school and 13,500 two-year students, retention of ~ 200 students at LAGCC, and transfer of ~ 100 four-year students for a bachelor's degree, increase in enrollment and advisement by 30%, retention by 30% and graduation and transfer to a bachelor's degree by 45% along with tracking pipeline student employment within the federal sector.
Animal Health Component
95%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
80%
Applied
20%
Developmental
0%
Goals / Objectives
This NEXTGEN project titled "The Animal Science Discovery (ANSCId) program" will allow LaGuardia Community College to foster, strengthen and diversify a pre-existing pipeline for urban agriculture with a new focus on Animal Sciences both at the pre-college level, with 30 dual enrollment partners, and at the bachelor's level with an established and well-recognized Animal Sciences program at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS) of Rutgers University-New Brunswick (RU-NB). The four major goals of this grant are outlined below andaligned with the overall strategic goals of USDA.The tasks or objectives accompany each of the goals.Major Goal 1:Curricula alignment, advertising, recruiting, and academic advising (OEP):This goalfocuses on curricula alignment, advertising, recruiting, and advising that falls under the OEP project type of this application. This goal is aligned with the LAGCC-Rutgers strategic priorities of building new avenues and streams to support student access and success in continuing to train the next generation of leaders in FANH.Task 1.1: Curricula alignment. Our first task is to publish the completed articulation agreement with SEBS and offer the 2-year LAGCC Animal Science track for open enrollment. The track has been finalized and two new courses have been approved by Curriculum Committees for registration.Task 1.2: Advertising. LAGCC has an excellent pre-College recruiting team which consists of College Now and the CUNY Explorers program. LAGCC's full-time Project Coordinator (to be hired) will connect with the Marketing department at both LAGCC and Rutgers, the pre-College team and the Student Brand Ambassadors to create high-tech media outreach.Task 1.3: Recruiting and creating the LAGCC-Rutgers Career Exposure Program. The high-tech media outreach described in Task 1.2, would be communicated to all LAGCC College Now high schools, via email and showcased at open house and career events. These open houses will feature Rutgers faculty, career panelists from the USDA, and descriptions of FANH careers that students may be unaware of.Major Goal 2:Create a LAGCC-Rutgers summer residency (ELP):This goal aims tocreate an intensive LAGCC-Rutgers summer residency and a 2-credit experiential learning course. This goal falls under the ELP project type and aligns with the LAGCC-Rutgers strategic priorities of enriching student experience through experiential learning and investing in research and living laboratories.Task 2.1: Preparation of farm and research lab facilities. This task will involve breeding and aging of animals to the appropriate developmental stage to facilitate observation of various life stages and participation in animal husbandry and agricultural practices.Task 2.2: Approval of summer residency course. This intensive summer residency will be formalized as a 2-credit course that will be applied to the overall 7 EL credits, required for the Rutgers Animal Science major. The approved course will be advertised to the incoming cohorts of summer residents at LAGCC through their advertising team.Task 2.3: Training of Rutgers Animal Science peer mentors. These mentors will be hired and trained by the Co-PDs and faculty mentors to help facilitate the LAGCC-Rutgers summer residency. The Rutgers peer mentors will be current SEBS upperclassmen who will assist the incoming 2-year college residents prepare for and familiarize themselves with the Cook-Douglass/SEBS campus, coordinate engaging residency activities, and be paired with LAGCC-Rutgers Transfer Scholarship recipients at LAGCC.Task 2.4: Admission of students to the LAGCC-Rutgers summer residency program. Twenty LAGCC students per year will be recruited into the residency through outreach and advertising described in Major Goal 1.Major Goal 3:Create a LAGCC-Rutgers transfer scholarship (SSP):This goal establishes aLAGCC-Rutgers transfer scholarship, that falls under the SSP type. This goal satisfies the LAGCC-Rutgers commitment to build global inclusivity and best support underrepresented students in career success and provide a clear path for students interested in Animal Science related careers.Task 3.1: Assessing student eligibility. LAGCC and Rutgers will track Animal Science students and Vet. Tech. students who fall under scholarship criteria and work to ensure that all paperwork is filled before graduation dates. Students with special needs and disabilities will work with the Office of Accessibility Services and the Transfer Office at LAGCC for additional services.Task 3.2: Pre-enrollment support - peer-to-peer mentorship. LAGCC will ensure participation of scholarship students in the peer-to-peer mentorship program at Rutgers while in their first and second years.Task 3.3: Pre-enrollment support- application assistance.LAGCC and Rutgers will conduct interventions to help students with applications. Interventions will be based on data driven strategies to enhance application services: (1) students will receive periodic text message "nudges" regarding upcoming deadlines for the application process, (2) applicants participate in Peer-to-Peer Mentorship program at Rutgers over the summer with Rutgers Peer Mentors and LAGCC API tutors.Task 3.4: Awarding Scholarships. LAGCC will award student scholarships starting in Fall 2024.Task 3.5: Post-enrollment support. Animal Sciences SEBS-RU will track student success and provide support at Rutgers. Some of these supports would include academic engagement; counseling; 4-year college coaching; peer-peer mentorship; monitoring of students' performance; financial guidance; emergency funding; and completion scholarships.Task 3.6: Metrics and intervention. The LAGCC-Rutgers Transfer Scholarship Program is intended to provide scholarship, peer mentoring and experiential learning activities to community college students to increase transition to and completion of bachelor's degree in Animal Sciences. The PD and Program Coordinator of Animal Sciences at SEBS-RU will develop metrics for student progress and completion of degree and develop intervention plans in case of difficulties.Major Goal 4:Create a LAGCC-Rutgers peer mentoring and career development program:This goal would help fortifyaLAGCC-Rutgers peer mentoring and career development program which would be unique to the NY-NJ state area. This goal helps strengthen career readiness programming, helping students understand, prepare for, and find success in meaningful and rewarding careers at both campuses. In addition, Rutger's partnership with the NJ office of USDA APHIS is an excellent entryway for students who graduate from the programTask 4.1: LAGCC peer mentoring and academic peer instruction. Currently enrolled LAGCC students (multi-lingual preferred) will be hired by the LAGCC Peer Programs and the Academic Peer Instruction office (API) based on their criteria and trained. The LAGCC peer mentors' responsibilities will include, assisting with Goal 1 and with Goal 3 of recruiting and advising students within the Animal Science track at LAGCC.Task 4.2: Rutgers Peer Mentoring. Students from LAGCC who are successful with the LAGCC-Rutgers Transfer Scholarship will be paired with third-year Rutgers Peer Mentors to help ease the transition from a two-year to a four-year institution.The third-year students at Rutgers will be paid through Rutgers Learning Centers Peer Tutoring Program.Task 4.3: Rutgers career development program. Transfer scholarship recipients will be provided with opportunities to participate in internships/externships via the via the Student to Professional Internship Network (SPIN) program and to explore federal, public, and private employment via Rutgers-USDA partners and other employers. Students will be provided access to professionals in Animal Science- and USDA-related careers via the Rutgers-Student-Alumni Connect + program
Project Methods
Major Goal 1: Curriculum aligning, advertising, recruiting and advising (Outreach and Engagement Projects - OEP)Question (1). Was the design of the new Animal Sciences track in the ES program at LAGCC and its articulation agreement withRutgers successful? If so, what are the key courses offered and how many credits transfer seamlessly?Question (2). What are the impacts of advertising, recruiting, and advising as part of outreach and engagement for the Animal ScienceDiscovery (ANSId) program.Rationale and Purpose: Addresses a key area of concern or strategic priority to create new transfer pipelines for underrepresentedminorities into Animal Sciences. Advances recruitment, advertising, and outreach for FANH.Methods Mixed methods. Number of articulations created, number of new courses offered, number of credits transferring, number of CPL and CTE credits offered to JBHS high school. Number of pre- and post-surveys filled in at open house events both in person and virtual. OIRA, Project coordinators, PD and CO-PDs will track number of students forming part of the student ambassador team, academic peer instruction team and numbers of high-tech media outreach produced and published along with the total numbers of in-person and online events conductedin the form of outreach. Information needed: All information will be collected via surveys for enrollment events they will all be automated via Google forms.All other programmatic information will be collected by the PD, Dr. Radhakrishnan in collaboration with Program Coordinator.Dissemination: All data will be included in the mid-semester and final reports via the Reeport system to USDA. All key information will be posted on the Animal Sciences website. Final data will also be presented at SACNAS conference. Final data will be published in a manuscript submitted to 1. CBE--Life Sciences Education (LSE) and 2. North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA).Major Goal 2: Create an 2-credit, LAGCC-Rutgers summer residency (Experiential Learning Program - ELP).Question: How successful is the LAGCC-Rutgers summer residency?Rationale and Purpose: Addresses a key area of concern or strategic priority to create new transfer pipelines for underrepresentedminorities into Animal Sciences. Advances recruitment, advertising, and outreach for FANH.Methods: Program success will be measured using the following measures (1) Number of students enrolled in the residency (2) Number of LAGCC and Rutgers Peer Mentors committed to student success and number of hours logged (3) Successful completion of summer residents (4) Successful completion and submission final projects for the summer residency by students and (5) Number of students from the summer residency who ultimately pursue 4-year degrees in Animal Sciences both at Rutgers and other 4-year schools.Information needed: Program Coordinators from Rutgers and LAGCC will work with PIs to collect all data in the form of google forms from students. Dissemination:All data will be included in the mid-semester and final reports via the Reeport system to USDA. All key information will be posted on the Animal Sciences website. Final data will also be presented at SACNAS conference. Final data will be published in a manuscript submitted to 1. CBE--Life Sciences Education (LSE) and 2. North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA).Major Goal 3: Create a ANSC LAGCC-Rutgers Transfer Scholarship (Student Scholarship Project - SSP)Question: How successful are students who participate in the LAGCC-Rutgers Transfer Scholarship program?Rationale / Purpose Addresses a void in the 4-year transfer pipelines for underrepresented minorities with regards to scholarships and financial help available for students interested in FANH (Animal Sciences).Methods: Program success will be measured using the following measures (1) Number of students who apply to the transfer scholarship (2) Number of students who will now be eligible at LAGCC for this scholarship since the implementation of this grant (3) Successful completion of applications (4) Number of appointments made by students with Rutgers and LAGCC Peer mentors to avail of pre-enrollment and post-enrollment services for the transfer scholarship (5) Number of students from the transfer office who successfully complete the 4 year program at Rutgers (6) Overall GPA, credits earned and job placement in USDA and other federal agencies of students who applied for the transfer scholarship. Information needed: Program Coordinators from Rutgers and LAGCC will work with PIs to collect all data in the form of google forms from students. Dissemination: All data will be included in the mid-semester and final reports via the Reeport system to USDA. All keyinformation will be posted on the Animal Sciences website. Final data will also be presented at SACNAS conference. Final data will be published in a manuscript submitted to 1. CBE--Life Sciences Education (LSE) and 2. North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA).Major Goal 4: Create a LAGCC-Rutgers Peer Mentoring Program.Question: How effective is the LAGCC-Rutgers Mentoring Program in increasing student success?Rationale / Purpose The link between peer mentoring and academic success is an evidence-based phenomenon, however there isthe lack of progress regarding conceptualizing, defining, and evaluating peer mentoring models. This model of Peer Mentoring at different levels (2-year) and (4-year) will enable studies on how students transition and the influence of Peers mentors in that transitioning process.Methods:Mentees from all cohorts will be assessed two times a semester by the Peers via surveys. The Peer will beassessed three times a year by faculty and mentees. All survey responses will be collected and used forimpairments in the following year and to help build and sustain the model. Information needed: Program Coordinators from Rutgers and LAGCC will work with PIs to collect all data/surveys in the form of google forms from students. Dissemination: Final data will also be presented at SACNAS conference with 2 Peer Mentors attending the conference.Final data will be published in a manuscript submitted to 1. CBE--Life Sciences Education (LSE) and 2. North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA).