The STARS leadership model for broadening participation in computing

Although demand for computing-related jobs is rising, enrollments in computing programs have been steadily dropping for the last 5 years. Participation by women and underrepresented minorities has also been declining. We have formed the STARS alliance to address the need to broaden participation in computing. Our innovative STARS leadership corps (SLC) engages college students in a community dedicated to giving back, persevering, and striving for excellence. The SLC model incorporates best practices in recruiting and retention in computing, and allows us to compare a broad array of student activities at diverse institutions. SLC students engage with each other and their communities, through their computing projects in outreach, research, or service, the annual STARS celebration conference, and ongoing professional development. We present the SLC model and preliminary results, which indicate that the SLC shows promise for sustained student retention and recruitment.

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