GeoForce Texas
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SEG Special Commendation 2022
We believe that the contributions of GeoFORCE Texas over the past decade to fostering diversity and supporting underrepresented minorities and women in the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) disciplines during the transition from high school to college, all within the context of the geosciences, is worthy of recognition by SEG in the form of the Special Commendation award. Contributions to diversity from the 2021 programs include participation of 389 high school students of which 82% indicated racial identities underrepresented in the geosciences and 64% identified as female — statistics which are significantly above national averages for STEM education. Perhaps more impressive are programming results where more than half of first-time college freshmen enrolled in 2021 are majoring in a STEM field, with about 17% of those students majoring in geosciences. Out of all alumni of GeoFORCE Texas undergraduates currently enrolled at a four-year university, 8% are geosciences majors. These percentages are far greater than the 0.14% of undergraduate students nationally who graduate with geosciences degrees, according to data collected in 2019 by the American Geosciences Institute. In recognition of its mentoring in the personal and academic development of students actively studying math and science, the GeoFORCE Texas program was awarded a 2015 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring.
Biography Citation for the Special Commendation Award
by Leah Turner
GeoFORCE Texas, founded in 2005, is the flagship diversity outreach program of the University of Texas at Austin Jackson School of Geosciences. This four-year high school program earned the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring in 2015 for its innovative approach to broadening participation for diverse students in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) — the highest such honor from the U.S. government.
GeoFORCE introduces underserved and underrepresented students in STEM to field learning experiences each summer, visiting geologically significant sites across the country. Elements of mentorship, education, and exploration are weaved throughout summer academies to help cultivate interest and support student development. Beginning in 9th grade, students travel to the Texas Gulf Coast to study fluvial processes and coastal changes. Rising sophomores venture to the American Southwest, visiting the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park, where they study sedimentary processes and geologic time. The third summer of GeoFORCE Texas introduces students to tectonics and volcanology in the Pacific Northwest with memorable visits to the iconic Mount St. Helens and Crater Lake. Entering senior year of high school, students learn the important skills of science communication and collaboration through group research projects on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin. As a result, student participants from underserved areas throughout Texas find a path to college and rewarding careers as geoscientists, engineers, and other STEM-related professions.
Each academy is led by a full-time GeoFORCE coordinator who recruits students into the program and plans all logistical aspects of the experience. The academic content and rigor increase each year while building upon previous ones. An educational team facilitates field learning for students in the GeoFORCE Texas program. This effort is led by academy instructors, a group consisting of faculty and research scientists who employ an intense scientific curriculum using inclusive pedagogical approaches. School teachers serve in the role of educational coaches and support active, hands-on learning activities. Professional geoscientists and industry partners serve as mentors for program participants, providing examples of tangible career outcomes and societally relevant applications.
New capacity programming added in 2020 provides holistic academic growth and engagement for current and former participants of the GeoFORCE Texas program. Initiatives such as GeoFORCE Challenges, Symposium, Math and Science Institute, Senior Recognition and Awards Event, Transition to College, Transition to Career, and others support a student participant from their freshman year in high school through early career. Virtual cohorts were also added in 2020 and will remain an integral component of the program, providing access and inclusion for students of all abilities and academic levels.
GeoFORCE Texas is recognized as one of the most successful programs of its kind in the country. After 17 years, the program has more than 1,500 alumni. Of the GeoFORCE Texas alumni who graduated high school in spring of 2021, 51% chose to major in STEM as college freshmen and 17% are majoring in geoscience — roughly 120 times the national rate of undergraduate students who choose geosciences as a major, according to 2019 data from the American Geosciences Institute.
With the financial support from organizations like SEG, industry sponsors, donors, and the Jackson School of Geosciences, GeoFORCE Texas contributes to society by identifying and developing the next generation of diverse leadership in areas of discovery, research, and management of energy, minerals, water, the environment, and natural hazards. GeoFORCE and Jackson School of Geosciences alumnus Izaak Ruiz, now an exploration geologist with Repsol, testifies, “I would not be where I am today without GeoFORCE.”