Page 14 - 2013 AISES Annual Report Flipbook
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12AISES Annual Leadership SummitThe Annual Leadership Summit provides professional development workshops, anda formal mentor matching and training program, as well as networking opportunitieswith early to mid-career level Native students in STEM. A study conducted by theBayer Foundation in 2010 has shown that building peer support networks and providing positive role models, mentors, and career development programs have profound effectson minority college students in STEM. This is why the Leadership Summit focuses on providing positive role models, training and matching STEM professionals as mentors with mentees, professional development workshops, and networking opportunities not only with peers, but with other Native students and professionals.The major focus of the Leadership Summit is to build the skill and aptitude levels of AISES members in the realm of professional and career development--to better prepare them to attain jobs and careers in STEM fields.Goals of the Summit include: Increasing the skill and aptitude level of AISES members in professional and career development. Developing AISES professional members as role models for the AISES college and graduate students. Providing Native college and graduate students with support and building their confidence to transition to the STEM workforce.American Indian Research and Education InitiativeIn partnership with the Department of Energy, the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) and AISES support projects to foster tribal community-based energy research, technology transfer, economic development, and public education projects. These projects connect science education and research among American Indian college students and faculty at Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) with mainstream higher education institutions while helping to address Tribal community energy priorities.The overarching objective of AIREI is to foster the development of future American Indian scientists, engineers, and leaders with the scientific and technological skills to assist Tribal communities (and the nation) in developing and managing energy resources. Program goals are: 1) to engage American Indian college students in relevant and exciting applied research engineering, and technology transfer projects conducted on Tribal lands; 2) to strengthen and enhance access to energy-relevant STEM education programming by American Indian college students, and 3) to establish a community of energy practice involving faculty and students from TCUs and mainstream institutions, and DOE/National Laboratory research, engineering, and education personnel.AIREI project grantees are: Arizona State University* and Navajo Technical University Montana State University* and Little Bighorn College Northern Arizona University* and Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute South Dakota School of Mines and Technology* and SInte Gleska University*portion of project managed by AISES
