1. GEMS Learning Communities (LC) A unique and innovative learning environment that is personal, supportive, and focused on making the educational experience productive and fun. LC integrates First Year English Composition, Frontiers in Science, Pre-calculus and Calculus I, Chemistry or Biology or Geology, Economics and/or Political Science. Research Fellowships 17 first and second year students participated in the Summer of 2005 and five students participated during the academic year. Research projects provided students an opportunity to explore current scientific topics, gain hands-on experience, and become proficient in advanced laboratory techniques. Six students have presented their research at Regional or National Conferences and two students co- authored research papers. First-year Seminar Courses Themes - CSI:UWG and Space Science Interdisciplinary courses with a topic too broad for any one discipline to answer reinforcing the interrelationship of the STEM disciplines. Introduce students to the scientific method using a problem- and inquiry-based learning approaches to foster motivation and independence. Stimulate the students to learn more about the relevance and applications of STEM in a real life problems and current affairs. Students learn skills useful for studying science, careers as scientist, and success in life. Eighty-three first-year students enrolled in the courses over the past two year. Academic performance of GEMS students after their first semester (average GPA 2.6) was better compared to other incoming students. First year retention of the 2004 class was also better (75%) that the first-year class as a whole. Acknowledgments: NSF STEP grant # DUE-0336571 Generating Enthusiasm for Math and Science at the University of West Georgia Julie K. Bartley, Sharmistha Basu-Dutt, Rebecca Dodge, James Espinosa, Victoria J. Geisler, Javier E. Hasbun, G. Richard Larkin, Deborah Lea-Fox, Dusty Otwell, Muhammad Rahman, Karen H. Smith, Scott Sykes, S. Swamy-Mruthinti College of Arts and Sciences, University of West Georgia, Carrollton, GA 30118 CSI Learning Community pose for a photo after the Mock Trial at the end of the semester LC was productive, successful and fun! Course Reform 15 Course Reform Projects Supplemental Instruction and peer-led workshops in Pre-calculus and Calculus I Peer-led workshops in Biology I Interactive lecture demonstration in Physics I Case-based projects in Environmental Studies Inquiry based laboratory activities in Principles of Chemistry I and II Technology-based activities in Physical Geology Case-based projects in Computer Science Peer-Led Workshops and Supplemental Instruction Peer-led Workshop in Math. Peer-led Workshop in Biology GEMS Program Objective Increase retention, progression and graduation (RPG) of STEM majors. Keith Rice and Bryan Victor won 1 st prize for their poster at the ASPRS Mid-South Region Conference Ajay Pillai co-authored a paper published in the Proceedings of the NCUR Heather Dahlin and Jalpa Patel presented a poster at the National Meeting of the ACS Anna Hix presented her paper at the Midwest AI & Cognitive Science Conference. She also won 1 st prize at UWG – Sigma XI student presentation Biology workshops were not as effective. Workshop materials are being evaluated and will be improved this Summer. Quality of workshop leaders will be monitored. Dissemination of GEMS Program Gordon Conference on Chemical Education Research and Practice Georgia Science Teacher Association Conference National Meeting of the American Chemical Society Biennial Conference on Chemical Education Southeastern Mathematical Association of America Meetings National Conference on Undergraduate Research Midwest Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Science Conference Mid-South Region Meeting of the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing Pre-calculus workshops were very effective. Math workshops next Fall will be led by GEMS learning community students from 2004 and 2005 cohorts. Physics: Students in both classes gained substantially in all areas on pre- and post- FMCE after Interactive Learning Demonstrations (ILD) exposure. ILD exposure improved performance on Force(3) pre/post FMCE test (32% compared to 6% in Principles of Physics). Chemistry: Student satisfaction survey (Spring 2005) showed that inquiry-based laboratories in GEMS reformed course helped students understand chemistry concepts better and increased their interest in chemistry and SMET. N = 36 students