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This study assesses the impacts of the Science program at Piedmont Virginia Community College and its flagship capstone research experience, Supervised Study, through psychosocial perceptions associated with persistence in science and through a comparative analysis of subsequent science bachelor's degree attainment. Supervised Study involves authentic, independent projects, a research methods course and learning community, and one-on-one faculty mentoring. The Persistence in the Sciences survey was used as a repeated-measures instrument in four semesters of Supervised Study. Positive trends were observed for self-efficacy, science identity, community values, and networking, while responses related to project ownership were mixed (n = 13). To contextualize these observations, transfer and bachelor's degree completion rates were analyzed. Students who earn an associate's degree in Science (n = 113 between 2012 and 2019) complete bachelor's degrees at high rates (66.4%). Moreover, they are two to four times more likely to major in physical and natural sciences than their science-oriented peers, who take many of the same courses, with the exception of Supervised Study. Notably, these comparison rates remain consistent between different demographic groups. These findings further describe a model for research at the community college level that supports persistence in undergraduate science for a broad group of students.

We have developed a laboratory course that demonstrates how evolution can be taught as a participatory, investigative science at the undergraduate college or advanced secondary high school level. The course emphasizes the applied importance of evolution to areas such as medicine and agriculture. Because many instructors face budgetary or other constraints, we have developed labs that can be run with minimal resources and a wide range of possible materials. To provide access to these materials, we have created a website aimed at instructors of evolutionary biology (http://www.evolutionkills.org OR http://www.faculty.virginia.edu/evolutionlabs). Included on the website are detailed descriptions of the course materials, a database of other articles describing laboratory and field exercises in evolution, and links to other sources of information pertinent to the teaching of evolution. We believe that this website provides a much needed resource for instructors of evolution and encourages inquiry-based learning approaches to the study of evolutionary biology at the undergraduate level. (Contains 2 figures.)