Miami, August 9, 2021 – Miami Dade College (MDC) is a member of the ALRISE Alliance, which is set to receive nearly $10 million from the National Science Foundation as part of a five-year grant to enhance preparation, increase participation and ensure the inclusion of Hispanics in science, technology, engineering and mathematics education at select Hispanic Serving Institution (HSIs).
MDC is one of 30 HSIs that comprise the ALRISE (Accelerate Latinx Representation in STEM Education with Institutional Intentionality and Capacity Building for Experiential Learning) Alliance, and were awarded the NSF grant.
“I am pleased that Miami Dade College was selected to become a member of the Alliance,” said Dr. Diego Tibaquira, professor at MDC’s School of Engineering and Technology. “It provides us with the opportunity to significantly impact the number of Hispanics participating in STEM education and the workforce in South Florida.”
Through the establishment of NSF INCLUDES Alliances, the NSF seeks to enhance U.S. leadership in STEM discoveries and innovations by employing collaborative approaches to address broadening participation challenges in STEM.
“Creating pathways to success for a STEM workforce reflective of the U.S. population is of national importance to ensuring America’s competitiveness in a global research landscape,” said Sylvia Butterfield, acting assistant director for NSF’s Education and Human Resources Directorate. “NSF INCLUDES Alliances provide a structure to address this issue and for the STEM enterprise to work collaboratively to achieve inclusive change.”
The ALRISE Alliance is developing a network of faculty, staff, administrators, and students at two-year and four-year Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) and emerging HSIs (eHSIs). It provides professional development for faculty, staff and industry to serve Latinx students with intentionality through culturally-responsive undergraduate research and work-based experiential learning. For more information, visit www.nsf.org.
Uniquely focused on the intersectionality of Latinx STEM students and experiential learning, ALRISE fills an important gap in ongoing broadening participation efforts, with its focus on culturally-responsive experiential learning in an action-oriented and data-driven environment of continuous improvement and collaboration.