2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

LSAMP/B2B: C6-LSAMP – Reflections on C6’s Fall Undergraduate Research Symposium

Presented at NSF Grantees Poster Session II

The California Central Coast Community College Collaborative (C6-LSAMP, C6) is a National Science Foundation Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation Bridge to the Baccalaureate grant project (NSF/LSAMP/B2B). C6-LSAMP is a cross-disciplinary collaboration across eight California community colleges. The C6 alliance leverages existing support structures and best practices to address inequities in STEM outcomes for a population of students comprised of the underserved: Hispanic/Latinx and other traditionally underrepresented populations. The primary LSAMP population within the five counties served by the C6 colleges is Hispanic/Latinx. Within these counties, only 16% of Hispanic/Latinx residents 25 years or older hold a bachelor’s degree, compared to 51% of White, non-Hispanic residents. At C6 colleges, the Hispanic/Latinx vs White transfer gap is 16% (34% vs. 50%, respectively). Supporting and encouraging LSAMP student populations as they prepare to transfer is vital.

The C6-LSAMP project supports LSAMP students via three pillars: (1) Research Opportunities: Fall Research Symposium and university partnerships, (2) Academic Support: Embedded Tutors in gateway STEM courses, and (3) Professional Development/Career Exploration for students and for faculty: workshops, mentoring, and networking. Reinforcing each pillar is a commitment to create culturally sensitive, relevant and responsive learning environments.

This work-in-progress poster will report results from C6’s third Fall Research Symposium – poster presentations, networking and campus tours – held at, and in collaboration with, California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo in Fall 2025. This experience has not only exposed community college students to the university itself, but to the idea of doing research and design projects, and presenting their results. As non-poster presenters noted: “I didn’t know cc [community college] students were able to present a research poster.” and, “I felt encouraged to do my own research and present.” Such extra-curricular research and presentation activities are critical in motivating students to continue on their academic path.

Authors

Prof. Dominic J Dal Bello http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8002-3226 Allan Hancock College [biography]

Dom Dal Bello is Professor of Engineering at Allan Hancock College (AHC), a California community college between UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. At AHC, he is Department Chair of Mathematical Sciences, Faculty Advisor of MESA (the Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement Program), has served as Principal/Co-Principal Investigator of several National Science Foundation projects (S-STEM, LSAMP, IUSE). In ASEE, he is chair of the Two-Year College Division, and Vice-Chair/Community Colleges of the Pacific Southwest Section. He received the Outstanding Teaching Award for the ASEE/PSW Section in 2022.
Eva Schiorring STEMEVAL [biography]

Eva Schiorring has almost two decades of experience in research and evaluation and special knowledge about STEM education in community colleges and four-year institutions. She presently serves as the external evaluator for four NSF-funded projects. The
Dr. Jens-Uwe Kuhn Santa Barbara City College [biography]

Dr. Jens-Uwe Kuhn serves as PI for this NSF ATE funded project at Santa Barbara City College. He has extensive experience in collaborating with the Center for Science and Engineering Partnerships at the University of California Santa Barbara, which provides the cleanroom facility for this project, and works directly with many local industry partners and regional stakeholders on this project, including on efforts around its sustainability.
Jason Curtis Cuesta College
Christine L Reed Allan Hancock College
Francisco E Jimenez Cabrillo College
Gabriel Cuarenta-Gallegos Cuesta College
Leila Jewell Monterey Peninsula College [biography]

Leila Jewell is a professor of Physics at Monterey Peninsula College. She is passionate about active learning and engaging diverse students in STEM.
Mr. Thomas Rebold http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4346-6938 Monterey Peninsula College [biography]

Tom Rebold is the chair of Engineering at Monterey Peninsula College.
Vincent Mark Briones Crisostomo Moorpark College
Marcella Klein Williams Oxnard College [biography]

Dr. Marcella Klein Williams is the STEM Director at Oxnard College. Her strengths include organizational development, systems design, and strategic partnerships. Her career spans teaching and administration within the P-20 California education system over the last 30 years.
Justin William Miller Oxnard College
Franco Javier Mancini Santa Barbara City College
Joe Selzler Ventura College [biography]

Joe Selzler is a Professor of Chemistry at Ventura College in Ventura, CA where is has taught for the last 20 years. He earned his MS in Chemistry from the University of California- Irvine where he specialized in environmental chemistry

Note

The full paper will be available to logged in and registered conference attendees once the conference starts on June 22, 2025, and to all visitors after the conference ends on June 25, 2025

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