The program will assist a cohort of 25 nontraditional students each year in STEM (Science, Technology Engineering, and Mathematics) majors. They will receive faculty mentoring, intensive advising, tutoring, assistance with financial aid and graduate school applications, as well as networking and community service experiences. A four-week paid research internship with faculty mentorship will be a key feature the summer before their senior year.
Student applicants must be first-generation and low-income or from an under-represented group, who are sophomores, said Anthropology Associate Professor Ellen Bell, who was notified this week of the award. Bell is co-director of the University Honors Program. The Federal TRIO grant will award Stan State $232,264 per year for a total of $1,161,320.
The grant is a tribute to Ronald E. McNair, a physicist who died in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in 1986. “He was a first-generation African American who literally aimed for the stars,” Bell said. “We want our students to have those choices, too.”