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NASA Highlights Minority Serving Institution Capabilities to Increase Diversity in STEM Workforce

NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement (OSTEM) Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) is leading the effort to integrate technology in the OSTEM portfolio. The latest innovation is an enterprise solution to mission directorates in search of diverse capabilities.

MUREP has filled a need for technical awareness about Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) and developed the MSI Exchange, a website that helps users identify MSI capabilities that can lead to opportunities to collaborate and engage in mission work.

“The MSI Exchange is the realization of a vision to be a resource service provider to internal and external stakeholders looking to actively engage with MSIs,” said MUREP Manager Torry Johnson. “It is so exciting to hear such positive comments from researchers looking for collaborators as various web tools and features have come online. I am extremely proud of the work this team has done to meet the needs of our various constituencies.”

The MSI Exchange supports the search for diverse academic partners by curating STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) offerings and capability statements of about 800 MSIs nationwide. The website enables federal, academic and industry researchers, including NASA prime contractors and small businesses, to identify diverse subject matter experts for teaming opportunities and competitive federal awards such as grants, contracts, cooperative agreement, Space Act Agreements, and Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) projects. These opportunities strengthen the technical capacity and competitiveness of MSIs.

“What was piloted in 2017 to serve NASA Mission Directorates now has application across public and private sectors,” said Sharon Fitzgerald, MSI Exchange activity lead at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. “We developed the proof-of-concept then scaled it into a service system featuring individual school profiles, capability statement resources and micro-credentialing courses for MSI faculty and principal investigators, as well as a bi-weekly newsletter and resource links that serve as entry points to MSI engagement.”

Though essentially a database of MSIs, the MUREP team went a step further to create an enterprise resource to answer the persistent question, “Which schools are MSIs?”

“What was piloted in 2017 to serve NASA Mission Directorates now has application across public and private sectors.”

– Sharon Fitzgerald, MSI Exchange activity lead at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia

According to the U.S. Department of Education, MSI categories are Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions (ANNH), Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISI), Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), Native American Serving Non-Tribal Institutions (NASNTI), Predominately Black Institutions (PBI) and Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCU).

Schools in the HBCU and TCU categories historically do not change, however, schools in the remaining categories change annually based on enrollment and other variables. MUREP primarily aligns with the Education Department’s MSI eligibility thresholds to develop and maintain the “NASA MSI List” and makes a downloadable PDF available to the public through the MSI Exchange. The agency uses the list to determine eligibility for solicitations, events and activities aimed at broadening participation from underserved and underrepresented communities.

Awareness of these diverse communities is being leveraged to identify candidates for NASA’s future STEM workforce.

“Our hope is that the tool proves useful for management and enables them to reach and promote their external vacancies to an MSI audience during these recruitment efforts,” said Derek Bramble, human resources business partner at Langley’s Human Resources Office.

Collaboration with MSI faculty immerses students in hands-on mission work, leading them to apply for NASA internships and job vacancies. The ultimate goal is to show students that their diverse backgrounds, unique experiences and innovative problem-solving skills can contribute greatly to the NASA mission.

University administrators who have used the MSI Exchange rave about its ability to feature opportunities. “NASA’s Minority Serving Institutions Exchange is the platform to advertise your institution’s capabilities and people,” said Dr. Paulo Oemig, director of the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium. “At New Mexico State University, putting a capability statement together for NASA’s exchange has prompted us to look introspectively and holistically at how we can better serve and grow collaborations with the wider world.”

The highlight of the MSI Exchange is its collection of capability statements. Having a capability statement in the MSI Exchange is a competitive advantage and one of the most effective ways MSIs can communicate their strengths in the marketplace. The MUREP team provides training for schools to create these resume-like documents highlighting research, laboratories, equipment, instrumentation and other expertise that can contribute to mission projects. Like a Google search, the relevance of each statement allows MSIs to bubble to the top of keyword searches, thus strengthening each profile.

“I have used the MSI Exchange extensively over the past year since the link was shared with me,” said Dr. Melissa Kirven-Brooks, the deputy branch chief of the Exobiology Branch at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. “I have used the database both to identify specific details for MSIs, but more often in searching for specific disciplines. In my role in the Exobiology Branch, when researchers are searching a specific expertise, capability, or facility I can direct them to the Exchange. In particular, at Ames, we are seeking external partners for a proposal and are using the Exchange to create a short list of institutions to contact to gauge interest.”

The MSI Exchange shines a light on the variety of diverse academic institutions across the nation with expertise throughout STEM disciplines. To maximize this awareness and visibility, MSIs can submit their capability statement to the MUREP team, attend small group trainings tailored to the development of their statements and subscribe to the bi-weekly MSI newsletter. 

MUREP continues to look for ways to enhance offerings and add resources to the MSI Exchange. Researchers like Kirven-Brooks present unique use cases and provide valuable feedback about ways to expand. Through these internal relationships with NASA leaders and researchers and external relationships with MSIs and other key stakeholders, MUREP is able to leverage technology to drive participation while facilitating the exchange of ideas, opportunities and solutions.

The MSI Exchange is maintained by NASA MUREP. To learn more about the MSI Exchange, visit https://msiexchange.nasa.gov.

Eric Gillard
NASA Langley Research Center