It’s in Our DNA: Leadership Perspectives on Institutionalizing STEM Success in an Alliance

This study investigated how institutional leaders within an alliance navigate and use their agency to cultivate organizational change to support the success of underrepresented racial minority (URM) science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) students. As part of this study, we partnered with...

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Main Authors: Jonathan Okstad, Victoria Callais, Norma López, Funmilayo Ojikutu, Demetri Morgan, Alaa Abdelghaffar
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Florida State Open Publishing 2023-01-01
Series:Journal of Postsecondary Student Success
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.flvc.org/jpss/article/view/131390
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author Jonathan Okstad
Victoria Callais
Norma López
Funmilayo Ojikutu
Demetri Morgan
Alaa Abdelghaffar
author_facet Jonathan Okstad
Victoria Callais
Norma López
Funmilayo Ojikutu
Demetri Morgan
Alaa Abdelghaffar
author_sort Jonathan Okstad
collection DOAJ
description This study investigated how institutional leaders within an alliance navigate and use their agency to cultivate organizational change to support the success of underrepresented racial minority (URM) science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) students. As part of this study, we partnered with the Illinois Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (ILSAMP), a signature program of the National Science Foundation (NSF), to explore our research question. The phenomenon of interest is the institutional leaders’ perceptions of their agency and their organization’s efforts to engage in the Alliance and support URM STEM student success through the various initiatives. The research team conducted 20 semi-structured interviews with institutional leaders and faculty at 11 public and private institutions as part of the STEM alliance. We utilized Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-phased thematic analysis to identify patterns of meaning within the data that respond to the research question. Findings revealed a leadership perspective that frames approaches to STEM initiatives becoming a part of an institution’s fabric. The contribution of this study relates to the illumination of the tension between institutional leaders' agency to make change sustainable versus structural and leadership networks inhibiting STEM success efforts.
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spelling doaj.art-48944ea9d6ab4971936f9ccf7dd66e312023-01-30T20:24:58ZengFlorida State Open PublishingJournal of Postsecondary Student Success2769-48792769-48872023-01-012210.33009/fsop_jpss13139067621It’s in Our DNA: Leadership Perspectives on Institutionalizing STEM Success in an AllianceJonathan Okstad0Victoria Callais1Norma López2Funmilayo Ojikutu3Demetri Morgan4Alaa Abdelghaffar5Loyola University ChicagoLoyola University ChicagoLoyola University ChicagoLoyola University ChicagoLoyola University ChicagoLoyola University Chicago This study investigated how institutional leaders within an alliance navigate and use their agency to cultivate organizational change to support the success of underrepresented racial minority (URM) science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) students. As part of this study, we partnered with the Illinois Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (ILSAMP), a signature program of the National Science Foundation (NSF), to explore our research question. The phenomenon of interest is the institutional leaders’ perceptions of their agency and their organization’s efforts to engage in the Alliance and support URM STEM student success through the various initiatives. The research team conducted 20 semi-structured interviews with institutional leaders and faculty at 11 public and private institutions as part of the STEM alliance. We utilized Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-phased thematic analysis to identify patterns of meaning within the data that respond to the research question. Findings revealed a leadership perspective that frames approaches to STEM initiatives becoming a part of an institution’s fabric. The contribution of this study relates to the illumination of the tension between institutional leaders' agency to make change sustainable versus structural and leadership networks inhibiting STEM success efforts. https://journals.flvc.org/jpss/article/view/131390organizational changeleadershipSTEMunderrepresented racial minorities
spellingShingle Jonathan Okstad
Victoria Callais
Norma López
Funmilayo Ojikutu
Demetri Morgan
Alaa Abdelghaffar
It’s in Our DNA: Leadership Perspectives on Institutionalizing STEM Success in an Alliance
Journal of Postsecondary Student Success
organizational change
leadership
STEM
underrepresented racial minorities
title It’s in Our DNA: Leadership Perspectives on Institutionalizing STEM Success in an Alliance
title_full It’s in Our DNA: Leadership Perspectives on Institutionalizing STEM Success in an Alliance
title_fullStr It’s in Our DNA: Leadership Perspectives on Institutionalizing STEM Success in an Alliance
title_full_unstemmed It’s in Our DNA: Leadership Perspectives on Institutionalizing STEM Success in an Alliance
title_short It’s in Our DNA: Leadership Perspectives on Institutionalizing STEM Success in an Alliance
title_sort it s in our dna leadership perspectives on institutionalizing stem success in an alliance
topic organizational change
leadership
STEM
underrepresented racial minorities
url https://journals.flvc.org/jpss/article/view/131390
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