The impact of the Texas LSAMP program on under-represented minority students at Texas A & M University´s College of Engineering: a multi-dimensional longitudinal study

The NSF-funded Texas A & M University System Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (TX LSAMP) was successful in more than doubling the number of minority Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology (SMET) baccalaureate graduates in partner universities between 1991-98, with a variety of programs strategies and tactics, such as mentoring, stipends, tutoring, and supplemental instruction. In 2000-01, a focused study on one partner campus (TAMU) compared active LSAMP program participants with comparable under-represented minority students in the College of Engineering and found that, in 1996-98, participation in the LSAMP program contributed to the success of freshmen in SMET programs, as measured by outcome variables such as GPA, retention, and course progression. The present study expands upon its predecessor, by providing a longitudinal, quantitative, multidimensional outcome study of the TAMU LSAMP program, spanning 1995-2000. Additionally, the control of preexisting socio-economic and educational variables is used to examine the impact of the LSAMP program on minorities from diverse backgrounds. Some post-hoc explorations of results are also included.