1. 100% of students who par cipate in the GeoFORCE program graduate from high school and 98%
have gone on to college. In 2015 we made the program available to Bahamian students, it is now
called STEMFORCE.
J A C K S O N S C H O O L O F G E O S C I E N C E S
Goals of the Program
 Engage high‐achieving students from chal‐
lenged high schools, and keep them in the
program through college.
 Provide spectacular learning experiences, that
broaden students understanding of the Earth
and emphasize geology and engineering.
 Build a large cohort of high achievers.
 Achieve high school gradua on.
 Give students the tools, confidence, and mo ‐
va on to pursue college.
 Help students to achieve college gradua on,
especially in STEM fields
What We Do
The long‐term goal of GeoFORCE is to increase
the number and diversity of high school gradu‐
ates entering STEM fields through exposure to
the geosciences. GeoFORCE currently operates in
both inner city Houston and rural SW Texas. The
program is at full capacity with 500 students an‐
nually. Each summer for four years, we take the
students on spectacular geologic field trips across
Texas and throughout the US. The academic con‐
tent and rigor builds each year. These trips are
free to students.
In 2015, GeoFORCE partnered with The Bahamian
Ministry of Educa on to from the Bahamas
STEMFORCE Academy. Students were chosen
from public schools on New Providence, Grand
Bahama and Long Island with the goal to expand
to other Family Islands in future years.
During the 2015 Bahamas program 9th graders
studied sedimentary processes in the Aus n,
Texas area and on New Providence. In their soph‐
omore year we are planning for students to go to
Arizona and Utah, visi ng the Grand Canyon and
Zion Na onal Parks to study layered rocks and
geologic me. Next in their junior year the stu‐
dents would visit the Pacific Northwest and study
tectonics and volcanic rocks. They will visit Mt. St.
Helens, Mt. Hood, Newberry Crater, and Crater
Lake. The senior year trip would likely return to
the Caribbean. Each year a new cohort would
begin and a er 4 years we expect over 120 Baha‐
mian students to be in the program.
Program Successes
As of the fall of 2014, GeoFORCE has six cohorts (487
students) in college and a 100% high school gradua on
rate and a 98% college matricula on rate, and 90% are
on track to receive a degree in six years. For compari‐
son, in the communi es from which we draw, high
school gradua on rates average 58% and college ma‐
tricula on is about 50%.
Our graduates are studying in STEM fields in much
higher numbers than the na onal average. As of Fall
2014, 62% of GeoFORCE grads are declared STEM ma‐
jors, including 95 geoscience majors and 67 engineers.
13 GeoFORCE students have completed bachelor of
science degrees in geosciences and engineering.
More info:
Paul Gucwa: pgucwa@jsg.utexas.edu
Ma Hofer: mhofer@jsg.utexas.edu
Please visit the following link to see our closing
ceremony movie from the 2015 trip: https://
utexas.box.com/s/g9wqoi09z7xob5olpbuhlx7s6v9hok22