Outreach Projects to Broaden STEM Participation: Designed by Undergraduate Students at an Aerospace Engineering REU Site.

This paper presents information about outreach projects completed by 13 students in a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program offered in an aerospace engineering department at a U.S. midwestern university during summer 2021. The outreach project was a component of the REU program. This paper provides a detailed description of the outreach project goals and procedures and explores the project's impact on the students. Anonymous responses to openended questions show the positive impact the projects had on the students, including the satisfaction they received from designing and completing the projects from start to finish and potentially helping to broaden the participation of underrepresented students in STEM. Using an open-coding data analysis method, four themes based on student responses were identified. These themes include students' positive response towards the outreach project, their increased understanding of others' diverse walks of life, feeling uncomfortable in unfamiliar situations, and gaining more confidence in pursuing their chosen degree. The paper concludes by presenting recommendations for other engineering REU sites considering similar outreach projects for their students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]