STEM program at HSI gets a funding boost with NSF award

 

POSTED ON Feb 07, 2020

 

Felician University has announced a $638,000 award from the National Science Foundation’s  Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) grant to help increase the numbers of minorities in
biology, computer science and/or cybersecurity.

According to a statement,  the academic grant will be used to fund a Felician University program called the Science and Information Technology Scholars: Recruiting, Retaining, and Graduating Biology, Computer Science, and Cybersecurity Students to Meet Workforce Needs Project or SAINTS for short.

The SAINTS program will aim to recruit and retain 16 students, graduate at least 81% of the scholars, and prepare at least 81% to enter the STEM workforce or graduate programs within six months of their graduation.

The university said the project will also investigate retention and the academic advising model pioneered at Felician by Dr. Dolores Maria Henchy, a former college administrator, and professor in the Department Higher Education of New Jersey.

Dr. Patrick Weir, the principal investigator for the grant, called it “an exciting opportunity for Felician University and biology, computer science, and cybersecurity majors. We look forward to working with these students in helping them earn their degrees and become members of the next generation in the STEM fields,” he said.

Dr. Charity Dacey, assistant professor and associate dean of Education at Felician, who also is working on the grant said the funding will increase the number of women and students from all under-represented groups in STEM fields.

The SAINTS Program will target low-income, academically talented high school students, who are traditionally underrepresented,  particularly Hispanic, female, and first-generation in STEM fields.

Dr. George Abaunza, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences,  said that the grant team is confident that “this relief of financial burden, along with access to specialized programs designed to boost the academic and social aspects of the learning experience, will ensure the success of the SAINTS program.”

According to the statement, information and results from the project will be disseminated to expand the research based on best practices in building student-faculty relationships to increase retention, persistence, student success, and placement into STEM careers or STEM graduate programs.

In 2014, Felician University was designated a minority-serving institution (underrepresented students) by the Department of the Interior and as a Hispanic Serving Institution (HIS) by the US Department of Education. A recent survey shows that more than 50 percent of the student population is 29 percent Latinx, 24 percent African American, and 6 percent Asian.