FIRST DEGREE
The McNair Scholars Program at Tech gives first-generation students the opportunity to conduct research.
Written by Tiffany Tubbs-Berry
Change can be illustrated by a person going new directions, going against the flow, taking a chance, breaking the cycle, and finally, creating new outlooks upon life. So what constitutes change in a person's life? What makes them break the cycle of uniformity? For a McNair Scholar, opportunities that one thought never to be possible become the impetus for change. Through change, generations of new students are finding education at Texas Tech University.
For many college students from low-income backgrounds, the word "struggle" is no stranger. The McNair Scholars Program at Texas Tech is a federally funded program that gives first-generation college students from low-income backgrounds the opportunities to conduct and present undergraduate research, interact with faculty and participate in seminars to inform and prepare them for the graduate school experience, says Elizabeth Teagan, Ed.D., director of the McNair Scholars Program.
"One saying that reminds me of the attitude of our scholars is 'step back nonbelievers or the rain will never come,'" remarks Kelly Sharp, associate director of the Texas Tech McNair Scholars Program. "Our scholars are truly unique. Their passion and ambition to better themselves are rare finds."
The McNair Scholars program was established to prepare students for doctoral study. The program supports 20 students per year and provides preparation for doctoral study by supplying information, learning assessments, academic and cultural experiences, graduate student mentoring, faculty mentoring relationships, research experiences and financial assistance.
"Coming up as a first-generation college student, being able to reach back down and help someone else come through their college education is my fulfillment. If a program like this was around when I first entered college, I would have headed for it. Having a position that allows me to impact the program and its ability to reach out is priceless," notes Teagan.
The McNair program received a commitment from Texas Tech this year for students to be able to apply at the sophomore level. In the past, the program started students at the junior level because of federal regulations. "We are able to begin a series of research workshops to target new scholars at an earlier stage in their academic careers so that they have more time to select a faculty mentor but also have more knowledge of the basics of research," says Sharp.
Tigist Belete, a McNair Scholar, believes that the program and its opportunities helped her change her life path. "I am originally from Ethiopia, but I have some family in Dallas, and I went to high school there. I always have wanted to get my Ph.D., but I thought research and writing a thesis were hard and impossible things to do."
After becoming a McNair Scholar and starting to conduct research and write papers, Belete found that those academic activities were not as impossible as she had once thought. Belete focuses her research on the scaling of concrete surfaces. She graduated from Texas Tech in August, 2003, with a bachelor's of science in civil engineering and is now pursuing career opportunities in Dallas.
From art, to nursing, to engineering, the program accepts students from all disciplines. Faculty mentors also are available in all disciplines. Scholars are required to interview three prospective faculty mentors in their discipline of choice and are paired with a graduate student in their discipline. Students meet two to five hours a week with their graduate student mentors for two months.
"It makes it interesting trying to supervise the different disciplines, and that is where the faculty mentors come in. We depend on the faculty mentors a great deal. Giving time to the McNair Scholars
"I am a first-generation college student as well. This is my moral obligation for students who do not have that same support because their families often cannot afford to pay for their children’s college degrees. My goal has become to help people like me," says Sharp.
Loretto Jones, a former McNair Scholar, had a different experience with the program. She learned that making sacrifices for what she wants is an opportunity that she cannot pass up.
"I was the executive director of a non-profit organization in town about four years ago. During that time, I had a lot of interaction with college students. While traveling for the non-profit organization, I met a man in San Antonio who told me to go back to school and get that degree. I followed his advice, and when I came back to Lubbock, several of the Texas Tech students, who were working for me, dragged me to financial aid, and the rest is history."
ones is of Cherokee Indian descent, and neither of her parents completed college. As Jones' desire to teach college increased, soon the idea of getting a master's or doctoral degree looked realistic, she explains.
"I gained so much from the program, including mentoring, lifelong friendships, financial aid, travel experience and most importantly, encouragement. I saved a humpback whale, had a beautiful daughter, who at age 20 still likes me, wrote a novel, made the President's List at Texas Tech, and I look back at my life and smile. The McNair Scholars Program is a big part of that," says Jones.
McNair Scholars submit a formal research proposal in mid-November. This is signed by both the faculty mentors and the McNair Scholars, and the proposal outlines research activity. The faculty-student combination also submits a formal research paper at the conclusion of the research component. This paper is published in the annual McNair Scholars Journal. Scholars are provided funding to present their research at national and regional conferences.
"One of the things we are interested in starting is a support fund, in which we would give a graduating McNair Scholar a small stipend when they leave Texas Tech. Financial concerns can be a problem when taking that leap from undergraduate to graduate school with relocating expenses, says Teagan.
Teagan explained that each individual's story is amazing. The best part is the students start sharing their stories to motivate other people. The program is crafted for each individual, says Sharp. Successful programs are those that have a low staff-to-student ratio. To make that absolute turnaround in life, students must make an intensive commitment, she says.
"Phenomenal people, these McNair Scholars aren't your average students. Having such a diverse group with such diverse backgrounds, the scholars are making a difference, not only in their lives, but in the lives of their families and friends. They already are reaching back and helping," says Teagan.
The U.S. Department of Education has recognized the Texas Tech McNair Scholars Program as one of the top 10 percent grant applications in the nation. In receiving this recognition, the program was awarded an extended funding period from a four-year to a five-year fiscal cycle. The program will receive an estimated $1.2 million during the next five years.
“Being recognized as one of the top 10 percent grant applications in the nation is a great achievement for our program,” says Sharp. “While this year’s competition was fierce, with 18 programs in the nation losing their funding, the Texas Tech application scored the maximum number of points allowed by three independent reviewers. The ranking reflects the quality of our plan to develop the researchers and professors that will be needed in our nation in the future. Our Texas Tech McNair Scholars are exemplary students and people,” remarks Teagan.
The dream of an education is open to everyone in our society, but reality is that many groups are outside of that experience. With the McNair Scholars Program at Teas Tech, undergraduate students who come from low-income backgrounds are making their marks in life by being the first among their families to graduate from college. At the same time, they are making a difference for others like them, and they are contributing to the generations of educations.
Story produced by the Office of Communications and Marketing, 806-742-2136
Photo by Artie Limmer
Web layout by Kristen DeLisle