Managing Global Resources for a Secure Future

The Gateway Scholars Initiative, launched in 2010 by the Diversity in Agronomy, Crops, Soils and Environmental Sciences Committee, aims to improve participation by students and professionals from under-represented groups in the agricultural and environmental sciences. The Gateway Scholars Initiative is designed to introduce high school students to the multitude of scientific disciplines that Society members are engaged by inviting students and teachers from local high school(s) to attend the annual conference. Invitees have the opportunity to participate in major symposia and interact directly with scientists who are changing the world through research to meet challenges in global agriculture, food production, alternative energy and the environment. Leading researchers and educationists will deliver motivational lectures to the students. Surveys will be conducted to aquire feedback on students’ needs and interest and for further improvement of the Gateway Scholars program. In 2010, fifty students from Eagle Rock High School within the Los Angeles Unified School District were the first to benefit from this program at Long Beach, CA. During the 2011 Annual Meeting in San Antonio, TX, 43 students and 6 teachers (comprised of 66 percent Hispanic, 16 percent African-American, 8 percent Asian, 3 percent Caucasian and 8 percent Middle-Eastern) attended. Since the 2012 Annual Meeting in Cincinnati, OH, the Diversity Committee has successfully welcomed diverse groups of students and teachers from selected high schools with large populations of minority students in annual conference hosting cities (2013 Tampa, FL, 2014 Long Beach, CA, 2015 Minneapolis, MN, and 2016 Phoenix, AZ). For the 2017 Annual Meeting in Tampa, FL, the Diversity Committee would like to continue this trend by inviting 10 students from each of 5 select high schools with a large population of under-represented to provide a unique experience to potential and future scientists and leaders of this nation.