Impacts of Undergraduate Research on Community College Students and Faculty Members
Thomas Higgins, Harold Washington College, Chicago, IL

For the past five years, the STEM-ENGINES Undergraduate Research Collaborative has studied models of research that engage community college students and faculty in authentic undergraduate research, and that promote their successful transfer to four-year colleges. In this paper, we will discuss the model of research and its evolution over the grant period, as well as its sustainability beyond the grant. Three distinct types of research were presented by students participating in research. Our assessment will include the development of an evaluative tool to determine which type of research was conducted by student participants as well as data from the Survey of Undergraduate Research Experiences and student case studies about how a research project can change students’ academic pathways. Data from faculty interviews and the impact being a mentor has on job satisfaction and teaching effectiveness will also be presented.