Progress 02/01/09 to 01/31/14

Outputs
Target Audience: The Wildland Multicultural Scholars Program (MSP) at Humboldt State University (HSU) is a scholarship program with the objective of supporting students earning baccalaureate degrees in Forestry (Forest Soils, Production, Conservation, Hydrology or Fire Ecology Options) or Rangeland Resources Science (Rangeland Resources or Wildland Soils Options). We were awarded an amount that allowed us to support the equivalent of six students. These degrees correspond to the Natural Resources Sciences Training with relevant disciplines “Conservation and Renewable Natural Resources” (Code C), “Soil Sciences” (Code D), “Water Sciences” (Code W) and Agricultural/Biological Engineering (includes Rangeland) (Code E). Our target audience consisted of 14 underrepresented students in the above disciplines. Through the Wildland Multicultural Scholars Program, we were able to support five transfer students for a two year term as follows: 1) Hai Vuong (Vietnamese-American male) - completed B.S. in Forestry and minor in Biometry, Spring 2011 (continued on at Humboldt State to complete a M.S. thesis in Natural Resources) 2) Jonathan Szescei (Latino/Hispanic-American male) - completed B.S. in Forestry, Spring 2012 (currently private consultant, Kreye, JK, JM Varner, CJ Dugaw, J Cao, J Szescei and EA Engber. 2013. Pine cones facilitate ignition of forest floor duff. Canadian Journal of Forest Research. 43(5):512-516.) 3) Frank Bojorquez (Latino/Hispanic-American male) - completed B.S. in Forestry, Spring 2013 (Forestry Technician (Fire) USDA Forest Service, Six Rivers National Forest, Mad River Ranger District) 4) Guillermo Sereno (Latino/Hispanic-American male) - completed B.S. in Forestry, Spring 2013 (USDA Forest Service - Forestry Technician (Fire)Fremont-Winema National Forest) 5) Lauren Lee (American-Indian/African-American female) - six classes short of a B.S. in Forestry, had to withdraw from Humboldt State University in Fall 2013 due to family reasons. Previously worked as a Biological Technician (Fire) on the Umpqua National Forest. Through the Wildland Multicultural Scholars Program, we were able to support one freshman student for a four year term as follows: 1) Katie Tenneson (Euro-American female) - completed B.S. in Rangeland Resource Science, Spring 2013 (Worked as a SCEP Intern with USDA-NRCS, currently obtaining a Vocational Agricultural Education Credential from Cal State Chico) Through the Wildland Multicultural Scholars Program, we were able to support five students for one or two semesters as follows: 1) Zachary Anaya - (Latino/Hispanic-American male) - completed B.S. in Forestry, Fall 2012 (Currently a Ranger for the Wildlands Conservancy) 2) Sydney Mathis - (African-American female)- switched from Forestry, seeking a degree in Environmental Management and Protection 3) Suzanne Romo - (Latina/Hispanic female) - completed B.S. in Forestry, Fall 2013 4) Anna Gresham - (Latina/Hispanic female) - Anticipated graduation with B.S. in Forestry (Hydrology) Fall 2014 5) Vance Peyron - (American Indian male) - Anticipated graduation with B.S, in Forestry (Soils) Spring 2014 Note: Three of our original freshmen scholars changed to a non-eligible degree program. Aalok Patel received a B.S. in Liberal Studies - Recreation Administration with a minor in Business administration in Fall 2013. Omar Becerra anticipates graduating spring 2015 with a degree in Spanish (Education) Stephanie Talamantes left HSU for one academic year, but has returned to pursue a B.S. degree in Botany. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Our close affiliation with the USDA Forest Service Northern California Consortium, HSU Career Center and other contacts have enhanced student professional development. One student performed summer research at Oregon State University and in the HSU Fire Research Lab as a result of collaboration with WIldland Multicultural Scholars Program faculty. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Our MSP-supportedstudents are featured at: http://humboldt.edu/fwr/students/meet_our_students encouraging other underrepresentedstudents to consider careers and education in forestry and allied disciplines. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? While it is difficult to ascribe causal relationships, the following goals have been accomplished since Humboldt State Received the USDA NIFA Multicultural Scholars Grant: (a)Seven students receiving support under this grant have graduated with B.S. degrees in Forestry or Rangeland Resource Science. Two more will graduate by Fall 2014. (b) Peer and faculty mentoring was provided to scholars. Tutors were provided for select courses, in some cases serving scholars, in some cases with scholars acting as tutors to other students. (c) Four professional seminars were accomplilshed between Fall 2009 and Spring 2013, covering topics such as career development, communication skills, analytical/computational skillls, and research skills. (d) An external consultant performed surveys of MSP scholars versus similar students enrolled in other programs. Major differences in student experiences were restricted to greater satisfaction with career placement assistance in the MSP program. "Exit interviews" were performed by the consultant, resulting in student vignettes on our departmental webpage to assist with recruitment of students of color to natural resource degree programs. (e) One of our scholars is near completion of his M.S. thesis. Three are working in seasonal positions with the USDA Forest Service. One of our scholars worked as a rangeland management specialist for the NRCS, but has since transitioned to a Vocational Agriculture Education Credntial program. Humboldt State University recently achieved Hispanic Serving Institution status and is pursuing a USDA HSI grant in addition to a Higher Education Challenge grant. We recently hired a Latino/Hispanic male lecturer to teach in the rangeland resource science area and hope that he will apply should a tenure-track position be opened up for this area of natural resources.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2010 Citation: Edinger-Marshall, S. and L. Perry. 2010. Recruiting diverse range students for the 21st Century. Oral Presentation, 64th Annual Meeting of the Society for Range Management, Billings, MT.

Progress 02/01/10 to 01/31/11

Outputs
The Wildland Multicultural Scholarship Program (WMSP) was funded by the USDA-CSREES to provide scholarships, academic and social support, and exposure to professional opportunities for up to 6 freshmen and 12 transfer multicultural students in the Forestry and Wildland Resources (FWR) majors at Humboldt State University. In order to determine the impact of the $4,500 scholarship and other program support activities (e.g., mentoring, colloquia), outcome evaluation examined differences between the Wildland Multicultural Scholars and a similar comparison group of 10-15 multicultural students in Forestry and Wildland Resources majors, relative to academic and professional outcomes (senior capstone performance evaluation and job placement, respectively), and self-efficacy, motivation, knowledge and use of campus resources, help-seeking behavior, and extra-curricular activities related to academic and career aspirations. Process evaluation entailed soliciting Scholars feedback on program activities. A full, 46-page report is available from the Project Director and a copy has been sent to NIFA. On the Spring 2010 post-survey, Scholars gave high ratings for the Wildland Multicultural Scholarship Program as a whole: Two-thirds (6 of 9) of the Scholars rated the Wildland Scholarship Program and its activities as being extremely helpful for them. Two students (22%) indicated the program as being helpful and one student indicated it as being somewhat helpful. The majority of the scholars indicated that the interaction with the staff and the faculty was a very beneficial aspect of the program, as well as having the ability to network with potential employers and learning how to apply for jobs and internships. Primary program features of the Wildland Multicultural Scholarship Program are: (1) the award, (2) peer mentoring, and (3) colloquia taught by faculty intended to provide experiences, exposure and in some cases, instruction, related to research methods, technical writing, critical thinking, and careers in FWR. A higher percentage of Scholars (67% or 6 of 9) worked in a position (part- or full-time) in the summer of 2010 in a job that was related to their major. This contrasts with 37% (or 3 of 8 students) in the Comparison group who were employed in a summer job indicated that was related to their major. Mean GPAs (out of 4.00) for Wildland Scholars in Fall 2010 were 3.03, ranging from 2.52 to 3.83. In summary, scholars clearly appreciated and benefited from the Scholarship Program's activities, and appeared to land internship jobs more closely related to their fields of study, compared to a Comparison Group of students. However, despite the support activities provided for the Scholars and students feeling fairly satisfied about their academic progress, these were not enough to keep three of the Scholars at an acceptable level of academic performance, having a minimum of a B average. PRODUCTS: A 46 page report was prepared by Terry Uyeki and Alissa Johnson of the California Center for Rural Policy as a result of this project. OUTCOMES: One Wildland Scholar has applied for a M.S. program in Forestry at Humboldt State University. One Wildland Scholar received an NSF Undergraduate Research Mentor scholarship to perform research on microbial source tracking in a California watershed. One Wildland Scholar has received several financial scholarships and is performing voluntary research in the Wildland Fire Laboratory at Humboldt State University. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: Wildland Scholars met with the Civil Rights Team of the USDA Forest Service in Spring 2010. FUTURE INITIATIVES: One student will graduate with a Forestry degree this spring. Remaining scholars will continue to pursue their degrees. HSU will attempt to strengthen its existing relationships with Hispanic Serving Institutions in California (community colleges) to continue to recruit students in the field of Rangeland Resource Science and Wildland Soils.

Impacts
This project has supplied diverse employees to the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (1) and to the USDA Forest Service (3). At least three Wildland Scholars are performing undergraduate research in Forestry and Wildland Soil Science.

Publications

• No publications reported this period

Progress 02/01/09 to 01/31/10

Outputs
An orientation session for Humboldt State University's Wildland Scholars Program was held on August 18, 2010 at the Humboldt Bay Aquatic Center. Scholars were given vital information for their first semester and completed a preliminary survey administered by our consultant Terry Uyeki, from the California Center for Rural Policy. (A comparison group was recruited and given the same survey.) Our nine scholars include: 3 women, 6 men; 7 forestry majors, 1 range resource option, 1 wildland soils option; 4 freshmen, 5 transfer students; 5 Latino/Hispanic, 2 Asian-American, 1 European-American, 1 African/Native American. During the first semester, Wildland Scholars enrolled in their first colloquium (Research Methods) taught by Dr. Morgan Varner. Their second colloquium (Careers in Natural Resources) is being taught by Ms. Lisa Perry. Three peer mentors met with the Wildland Scholars and helped them negotiate a variety of issues during their first months at Humboldt State including how to get access to computer labs and Humboldt's Learning Management System. A Special Experiential Learning grant (USDA-MSP) was submitted on the scholars' behalf in the summer of 2009, but was not funded. We are currently in the process of face-to-face interviews with Wildland Scholars and a closely matched comparison group. PRODUCTS: Peer mentors have provided about 45 hours of interaction with HSU's Wildland Scholars. OUTCOMES: Nine students have made satisfactory progress in their Natural Resoruces career paths and have met with recruiters from the Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Manageament and local consulting companies. Preliminary surveys of HSU's Wildland Scholars and a comparison group have been completed. Scholars have provided feedback on the value of peer mentors and special colloquia. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: Dr. Susan Edinger Marshall attended the 2009 NNF/MSP Project Directors and Beneficiaries Meeting, October 20-21 and presented a poster highlighting the demographics of our nine Humboldt State University Wildland Scholars. FUTURE INITIATIVES: The currentspecial colloquium for Wildland Scholars is focused on career development in natural resources. We are actively assisting Wildland Scholars in obtaining career-related summer employment. Next year's colloquia will address computational/analytical tools (Fall 2010, Dr. Andrew Stubblefield) and effective written and oral communication skills (Spring 2011, Dr. Susan Edinger Marshall). Wildland Scholars have been requested to assist in recruitment of future natural resource managers (especially from underrepresented groups) in their home communities.

Impacts
The experience gained by the faculty involved in this project has informed other educational initiatives. For example, HSU is a sub-contractor on a major USDA Higher Education Challenge grant submitted in February 2010 that proposes to develop educational assessment strategies and updated recruitment tools for use in undergraduate rangeland management education and allied natural resource areas.

Publications

• No publications reported this period