Scholars of the Future Increasing Diversity in Information Technology

Task Scenario Andrea Jackson is a senior, Computer Science major at the University of North Carolina. Upon graduation she is interested in pursuing a Master’s degree in Software Engineering. She does a search on Google for grants, fellowships, and scholarships for minorities in Information Technology. After completing her search she comes across the website for the Scholars of the Future scholarship. After browsing through the site and getting general information about the scholarship program, including eligibility requirements, the award amount, and information on students who have received the scholarship, she applies for the scholarship online. After completing the application, Andrea is able to view her application, make any necessary changes, and submit it electronically.

The Scholars of the Future website will basically be broken down into two major sections: the Menu (left) and the Web Frame (right). The menu consists of 11 expandable buttons with unfolding links that control the content displayed on the Web Frame. By selecting a menu topic and one of its expandable links, the information displayed in the Web Frame will change accordingly. Menu Web Frame

The first expandable menu topic is Grant Details. When this button is selected, the menu expands down displaying 4 selectable topic titles: Overview, Who’s Eligible, Option 3 (defined later), and Option 4 (defined later). Selecting Overview will change the frame content to information describing the overview details of the Grant itself. The Who’s Eligible link will display details surrounding eligibility rules pertaining to the Scholars of the Future Grant (e.g. Who can apply for the grant and why.).

The second expandable menu topic is Apply Online. When this button is selected, the menu expands down displaying 5 selectable topic titles: How to Apply, Application, Processing (subject to change), FAQs, and Option 5 (defined later). The How to Apply link provides rules and instructions pertaining to the Application process – as well as the application itself. The Application link changes the Web Frame to the Application Form itself. Processing describes the application process time and selection guidelines. The FAQs link provides questions and answers to some of the more common questions/problems. Option 5 (defined later), is a placeholder for a topic to be defined later.

The third expandable menu topic is titled Recipients. When the Recipients button is selected, the menu expands down revealing 5 links titled: Recipient List, Requirements, CourseWork, Faculty Advisors, and Login Page. The Recipient List is a rundown of current Scholars of the Future. The Requirements button outlines the specifics that students will be responsible for if selected. CourseWork describes the class names, class types and descriptions provided to selected Scholars. The Faculty Advisors button outlines the relationship between the student and the advisor – as well as provide an ongoing list of current Scholar Faculty Advisors. The Login Page button is subject to change.

The Fourth menu topic is titled Assessment. Expanding the button will yield the links: Formulation and Evaluation. These two links describe the development and design reviews, research, and studies that went into the formulation and evaluation processes surrounding the Scholars of the Future program.

When the Objectives button is expanded, 6 links are unfolded: Opportunities, Objectives, Selection, CourseWork, Research, and Conclusion/Project. The Opportunities section outlines the academic and research experiences afforded to all selected scholars. The objectives link details the attitude and goals expected to come as a result of the program. Selection delves into the specifics surrounding the selection process (who is selected? How? By Whom?). The CourseWork link outlines the class names, class types, and projected time frames of which future scholars could expect if selected to the program. The Research link describes the advisors and scholars that will be assigned to the students – as well as outline the various research projects and monthly seminars assigned over the semester. The Conclusion/Projection link highlights some of the key components of the program and projects the role that this program will play in the future.

The Statistics portion of the menu shows statistical data linking the small number of graduate degrees to the large number of underrepresented students. Each expanding link relates it’s specific degree to those attained by underrepresented students and those attained by represented students. Comparisons and conclusions can be drawn from the statistics gathered for each specific field or graduate degree.

The Contact Info button expands two helpful links. The Professors button provides all of the contact descriptions and information needed for each of the professors involved in the program. It will provide their role in the program as well as various methods of which they can be contacted. The second button: Website Info (subject to change), currently displays contact methods to get in touch with the webmasters.

The Links button will expand a number of titled URLs beneficial to those browsers or applicants interested in this grant. Links may comprise shortcuts to other sites offering similar grants or sites dealing with underrepresented students.

These three buttons are different than the others on the menu bar in that they do not expand. These buttons are simply one click links that alter the Web Frame accordingly. The Calendar button will reveal monthly calendar outlining upcoming news and events. The News button will expand upon the “News Bar” on the Overview page and provide browsers with detailed information of specific news and events. The final button, Contact Us (subject to change), provides contact information for all people in our project group responsible for the site’s creation.