The DHHVAC: A Virtual Academic Community for Students Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing Lisa Elliot, James McCarthy & Rebecca Murray Rochester Institute of Technology National Technical Institute for the Deaf Presentation for Onondaga Community College, July 12, 2016 Overview Who we are Rationale for the project Description of infrastructure components Participants & Recruiting strategies Academic community activities Q & A Opportunities for collaboration What is the DHHVAC? DHHVAC = Deaf and Hard of Hearing Virtual Academic Community Deaf STEM Community Alliance Only Alliance specifically for D/HH students Supported by the National Science Foundation, HRD #1127955 Multi-year project (Sept 2011-Aug 2017) Now in our 5th year NSF Logo Campus Partners RIT Cornell University Camden County College RIT is the lead institution for this project, with Camden County College and Cornell University as Partners Narrowing the "Participation Gap" Barriers to Success in STEM Prior to Postsecondary Education Lower Enrollment in STEM Majors Lower Retention Lower Graduation Rates at All Degree Levels Fewer STEM Professionals Goal and Objectives Goal:Create a model virtual academic community to increase the graduation rates of postsecondary D/HH STEM majors in the long term Iterative and incremental (Cockburn, 2008) Iterative: testing what works and revising what does not Incremental: building model in stages instead of all at once Objectives: 1) Document and disseminate a description of the process of creating a model VAC for replication 2) Increase the GPAs and retention rates of D/HH students in STEM majors DHHVAC Model: Barriers and Strategies Student preparation: Remote Tutoring, Remote Mentoring, Using Google+ Hangouts Socialization: Remote Mentoring, Peer-to-Peer Interaction, Using Google+ Private Community and Facebook Secret Groups Accessible Media: Accessible STEM information using website, Google+ Private Community, Facebook Secret Group and Google+ Public Page Communication Infrastructure Google+ Private Community (Social Media) Hangouts (Video, Text, Document Sharing) Chat (Instant Messaging) Facebook Secret Page (Social Media) E-mail Dissemination Infrastructure DHHVAC Website Social Media YouTube Participants & Recruiting Strategies Students (44 participants, all deaf and hard of hearing) - Recruiting Strategies used were tutors, disability service offices, advisors, personal contact, exhibits, other caompus projects and offices Tutors (15 participants and 1 staff member, deaf and hard of hearing and hearing) - Recruiting strategies used were department chairs, individual contacts, and campus presentations Mentors (17 participants, all deaf and hard of hearing) - Recruiting strategies used were reccommendations from administration, alumni, personal contacts, exhibits and conferences, social media Staff (13 participants, deaf and hard of hearing and hearing) Remote Tutoring Photo of student receiving tutoring. Student is seen on computer screen, tutoring professor pictured sitting at his desk in front of computer. Remote Tutoring Online tutoring overview Lessons learned from the DHHVAC Role of the coordinator Software chocies and alternatives Picture of online tutoring student and tutor sitting in front of computer with papers on desk What Do Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students Need in Tutoring? Picture of online tutoring student and tutor sitting in front of computer with papers on desk Tutoring Models Model 1: Same vicinity professional tutors and students Model 2: Different vicinities graduate student tutors and students Model 3: Different vicinities adjunct tutors and students Model 4: Same vicinity undergrad student tutors and students What Are the Characteristics of a Good Tutor? Willing to learn technology Communication skills Interest Teaching Skills Content Knowledge What Happens During Tutoring? Video sample of online tutoring through the DHHVAC What are the benefits and challenges? Benefits: work from any location, extended tutoring hours and availability, professional development, scholarship, and access to qualified tutors Challenges: institutional policies, incentives and budget, recruitment, and participation What Would My Role Be? Image of stick figures. One stick figure is in the middle with arrows pointing out to a circle of other stick figures. How Can I Recruit Participants? Image of two female DHHVAC staff members giving a presentation with a poster on a board behind them. Tutor recruitment- reach out on campus, approval of department chair, hire students, hire adjuncts Student recruitment- tutor/instructor recruitment, direct student contact, at exhibits, through other projects, on campus advertisement What about software? Google Hangouts Logo Facebook Logo Adobe Logo Skype Logo ConceptBoard Logo ooVoo Logo Gmail Logo How Else Could I Use This Technology? Remote intake appointments Chat message reminders directly to phone Meet with students when you attend conferences Make a library of virtual presenters Image of a tutor and student in a virtual tutoring session at desks with computers in front of them Image of phone with Google Hangouts on it Image of Google Hangouts on Air logo Remote Mentoring in the DHHVAC Image of male DHHVAC staff member and female mentor sitting at a table for an interview DHHVAC e-Mentoring Model Mentors are few, far between, and busy Solution: remote mentoring (de Janasz & Godshalk, 2013) Go where the mentees are: online (Evans & Forbes, 2012) Scalable, affordable, and adaptable Modular, open-source, and applicable to a wide variety of population groups and organizational structures Mentorship Functions Support (Ensher, Heun, & Blanchard, 2003) Career development (academic/vocational) Personal development Role modeling Image of male mentor with male student mentee standing side-by-side Role Modeling in the DHHVAC Effect on mentoring relationship Student may be overwhelmed or hesitant Student may be proud to correspond Effect of computer-mediated communication (Ensher, Heun, and Blanchard, 2003) Traditional mentors as role models have a positive effect on eventual job satisfaction for mentees (Ensher, Thomas, and Murphy, 2001) As opposed to peer or step-ahead mentors The DHHVAC Mentors Selected from a broad range of disciplines Accounting, animal science, architecture, biology, biochemistry, biophysics, bioengineering, biotechnology, civil engineering, ecology, industrial engineering, information technology, materials science, structural engineering, user-experience design, Web development Recruited through a variety of channels Professional Facebook group for deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) STEM professionals Alumni Association Word of mouth Previous participants in other roles (e.g., participating student) About half are RIT/NTID alumni; all are volunteers Role of the Mentorship Coordinator Recruits mentors and mentees Matches mentor/mentee dyads Develops and documents program structure and processes Roles Expectations Facilitation (Single and Single, 2005) Adapts to new technological solutions and implements as needed Responds to mentor/mentee concerns and seeks solutions Mentor Intake Process Application then Background Check then Account Set-Up then Student and Mentor Matching Student-Mentor Matching Considerations Student major & mentor occupation Student request based on interests or projects Demographic similarity Communication preferences (e.g., knowledge of sign language, preference for using voice) Technology preferences (e.g., email, Hangouts, FaceTime) Collaborations and Accomplishments Architecture Architect and student corresponded on redesign of NTID lobby and associated spaces Engineering Student corresponded with two mentors (industrial design and biotechnology) to develop a project for an annual innovation competition Biology Mentor named one of NPRs 50 Greatest Teachers Image of male mentor sitting across the table from male mentee Benefits Individual Intergenerational continuity Future collaborative relationship development Number of colleagues in the field increases Institutional Alumni maintain relationship with alma mater Increased academic performance within a cohort Increased retention rates within underrepresented populations Increased graduation rates Conclusions Underrepresented populations need effective role models Individual students may need individual support Mentorship is one solution The DHHVAC is a model that attempts to implement this solution Matching is key to the programs success Far more complicated than it appears Intergenerational cooperation and support can further personal and institutional progress Social Media in the DHHVAC Image of social media Social Media Platforms Google+ Logo (Public and private) Twitter Logo (public only) Facebook Logo (private only) Social Media This photo is an example of a post within the Google+ private community. It has the post, the +1, and additional comments. Social Media Functions Mitigate social isolation Peer-to-peer (community) interaction: STEM articles of interest, Share student schedules, Announcements (events, internships, scholarships) Remote Mentoring: Open forum for mentors to provide 1-to many mentoring in forms of Information sharing (e.g., pictures of work), Job opportunities, Offers for assistance Social Media: Lessons Learned To Date: Someone to facilitate engagement Encourage through personal contact Frequent posting (3-10 posts per week) Critical mass of participants Started Google+ Private Community with about 25 participants (January, 2013) Activity increased with approximately 55 participants (September, 2013) Current membership: 74 participants Platform reputation is important! Facebook added in October 2015 Current membership: 28 participants Accessible Media Image of the DHHVAC website Accessible Media Curated STEM Resource library on our public website: www.dhhvac.org Project publications and presentations Relevant work by others STEM ASL dictionaries (e.g., ASL-STEM Forum) Links to accessible STEM resources (e.g. Khan Academy, Math for College) STEM-relevant articles and videos in FaceBook and Google + Private communities Accessible Media: Lessons Learned To Date Web site Grand plan design comes first Accessibility challenges Regular promotion Importance of being assertive! Not all videos are captioned Sometimes, captioned versions are available, but have not been posted Contact information Lisa Elliot, PI lisa.elliot@rit.edu James McCarthy, DHHVAC Manager jkmnod@rit.edu Rebecca Murray, DHHVAC Manager rlmasc@rit.edu http://www.dhhvac.org Select References Cockburn, A. (2008). Using both incremental and iterative development. 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