2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

The Chesapeake Scholars Program: Improving retention and enabling student success in the physical sciences

Presented at Engineering Physics and Physics Division (EP2D) Technical Session 3

The Chesapeake Scholars program, developed with support from NSF Award #2221369, seeks to enable undergraduate student success within the physical sciences. Specifically, we seek to: (a) increase retention among academically talented bachelor's degree candidates with unmet financial need who enter a physical science major through a range of pathways and (b) increase students' self-reported sense of belonging to their disciplines and their Scholars cohort through scholarships, academic support, mentoring, and community building (Walden and Foor, 2008; Zaniewski and Reinholz, 2016). Based on our evaluation activities, we report on our one-year and two-year retention rates for both first year students with a declared physical science major and for students who declare during or soon after their first year of college. We present evidence of impacts on students' sense of belonging towards the physical science disciplines aligned with their majors and toward their cohort of fellow Chesapeake Scholars (by adapting instruments from Good, Rattan and Dweck, 2012 and Sachmpazidi and Henderson, 2021). We will also describe how our student support programming has evolved and adapted to meet students' needs. We intend for these accounts of impacts and programming to guide others in pursuing similar interventions for engineering students.

References
C. Good, A. Rattan, and C. Dweck (2012). Why do women opt out? Sense of belonging and women's representation in mathematics. J. Pers. Soc. Psychol., 102(4), pg. 700-717.
D. Sachmpazidi and C. Henderson (2021). Departmental support structures for physics graduate students: Development and psychometric evaluation of a self-report instrument. Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 17, 010123.
S. Walden and C. Foor (2008). "What's to keep you from dropping out?" Student Immigration into and within engineering. J. Eng. Educ., 97(2), 191- 205.
A. Zaniewski and D. Reinholz (2016). Increasing STEM success: a near-peer mentoring program in the physical sciences. Int. J. STEM Educ., 3(1), 14.

Authors

Dr. Chandra Turpen http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2659-6936 University of Maryland, College Park [biography]

Chandra Turpen is an Associate Research Professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Maryland in the Physics Education Research (PER) Group and Engineering Education Research (EER) Group. Turpen's work involves designing and researching contexts for learning within higher education (for STEM students and faculty).
Dr. Gili Marbach-Ad University of Maryland College Park [biography]

Dr. Marbach-Ad is a Research Professor in science education and the Director of the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences (CMNS) Teaching and Learning Center (TLC). In her role as Director, she promotes faculty adoption of evidence-based teaching approaches in science courses, advocates for teaching reforms, and develops innovative assessment tools for teaching and learning initiatives. She has served as the lead evaluator for three NSF Research Traineeship grants and evaluates several interdisciplinary STEM education initiatives. Additionally, she is a member of the steering committees for several national STEM initiatives.
Dr. Alexandra L Jones http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5381-6949 University of Maryland, College Park [biography]

Dr. Alexandra Jones is an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science and the Director of the Undergraduate Program.
Dr. Katerina V Thompson University of Maryland, College Park [biography]

Katerina Thompson is Assistant Dean for Science Education Initiatives and Instructor of Biological Sciences in the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences at the University of Maryland.
Donna Hammer University of Maryland College Park [biography]

Donna Hammer is the Director of Education for the Department of Physics at the University of Maryland. She is Co-I on the Chesapeake Scholars in the Physical Sciences S-STEM Program.
Mrs. Ilcia Hernandez University of Maryland College Park [biography]

Ilcia Hernandez is a doctoral candidate within the School Psychology program at the University of Maryland, College Park. She was the graduate assistant with the CMNS Teaching and Learning Center during the 2024-2025 academic year. As an early-career school psychologist, Ilcia is dedicated to supporting students' academic, mental, and emotional needs through evidence-based practices and approaches.
Dr. Jason Dreyfus Kahn University of Maryland College Park [biography]

Dr. Kahn is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. He teaches both undergraduate and graduate classes, both labs and lectures. His research interests are in protein-DNA looping and topology and also in biotechnology applications of modified nucleic acids. He co-mentors the UMaryland iGEM (international genetically engineered machines) synthetic biology team. In addition to advising students through his association with Chesapeake Scholars, he runs the departmental undergraduate honors and awards program.
Krandhasi Kodaiarasu University of Maryland, College Park [biography]

Krandhasi Kodaiarasu is a doctoral student in the School Psychology program, and a graduate assistant with the Teaching and Learning Center at University of Maryland, College Park. Passionate about the human condition and how we navigate learning and the world, she is committed in her work to exploring solutions regarding equity, inclusion, and accessibility in education and mental healthcare in order to promote change within, and beyond, the community – through advocacy and interventions. her research and clinical interests broadly include trauma-informed care for marginalized youth, transformative social-emotional learning practices, and multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS).
Eun-Suk Seo http://orcid.org/https://0000-0001-8682-805X University of Maryland College Park [biography]

Dr. Eun-Suk Seo is Professor of Physics at the University of Maryland. She is PI of the Chesapeake Scholars in the Physical Sciences S-STEM program.

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