Past Projects

STEM: Student Enrollment and Engagement through Connections (SEEC) Evaluation

RISE facilitates evaluation of the SEEC program through collecting, examining, and reporting existing institutional data on SEEC students' pre-college characteristics and college achievements. RISE also develops survey instruments and focus group and interview protocols that provide greater context for understanding the experiences of students, researchers, faculty, and administrators affiliated with SEEC. Read More

SPIRE-EIT Research Experiences for Undergraduates

Brandi Geisinger is the lead evaluator of the NSF Summer Program for Interdisciplinary Research and Education - Emerging Interface Technologies (SPIRE-EIT) Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. Annual evaluation of the REU program includes pre- and post-program surveys and focus groups. Read More

Spaceflight Operations Workshop

Brandi Geisinger serves as the lead evaluator of the Iowa State University Spaceflight Operations Workshop. The evaluation of the Spaceflight Operations Workshop utilizes pre-program and post-program surveys, and was informed by best practices for evaluation, literature on students’ summer research experiences, and literature on servant leadership. Read More

Small Talk Story County

Small Talk Story County (STSC) focuses on helping parents improve the quantity and quality of the language environment of the home. Read More

RAPID: Graduate student experiences of support and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic

RISE served as the evaluator for the NSF RAPID grant which looked at graduate student experiences during the COVID-19 Pandemic. The goal of the project was to understand what helps graduate students feel supported during a crisis - both completing their current degree and in their career aspirations. Investigators from Montana State University, Iowa State University, and Texas A&M-Commerce supported the research. Read More

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support Statewide

RISE has contracted with the Iowa Department of Education to evaluate the process and outcomes of the Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support (PBIS) program implementation in Iowa public schools. Read More

Personal and Social Responsibility Inventory (PSRI)

RISE oversees the national administration of the Personal and Social Responsibility Inventory (PSRI) and provides participating colleges and universities with reports that include institution specific and national benchmarking data. Read More

Pathways to Engineering Technology Careers (PETC)<br>
Eastern Iowa Community College

RISE serves as the external evaluator on the PETC project. The evaluation of the PETC project assesses program benefits, strengths, and challenges in implementing the project at Eastern Iowa Community College. In addition, will examine the extent to which participation in the program impacts labor force outcomes for participants (e.g., wages, jobs) as well as the affect on completion of awards (i.e., certificates, degrees, diplomas). Read More

NSF Engineering Research Center for Biorenewable Chemicals (CBiRC)

RISE conducts the evaluation of CBiRC activities, focusing on pre-college and university educational programs, as well as goal areas for Center operation and institutional diversity. Read More

Molecular Biology, Biotechnology, and Genomics (MBBG) Research Experiences for Teachers (RET)

Brandi Geisinger and Mari Kemis are leading the evaluation of the Molecular Biology, Biotechnology, and Genomics (MBBG) Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) program at Iowa State University. Read More