Grant aimed at helping low-income, Hispanic students
Texas A&M University Kingsville (TAMUK) was awarded a $5 million Title III Hispanic Serving Institution (HIS) Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and Articulation Grant, titled Hispanic Education Advising Remediation Teaching (HEART), from the U.S, Department of Education, which will help support Hispanic and low-income students in STEM majors at the university.
Approval for the grant application was received in June by the Office of Research & Graduate Studies, Vice President for Research and Graduate Studies Dr. Allen Rasmussen, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Lou Reinisch and President Dr. Mark A. Hussey.
“The grant aims to provide wrap-around student services, augmented by pedagogical training for faculty in High Impact Practices aimed at supporting Hispanic and low-income students, including transfers, in 12 STEM majors where retention rates fell below the pre-COVID Fall 2019 average of 79.1 percent,” Project Investigator and Associate Vice President for Student Success Dr. Shannon Baker said. “The grant will expand embedded tutoring in STEM classes where the DFQ [drop, fail, quit] rate exceeded 20 percent even before the pandemic. All services will focus on helping students identify their strengths and building their growth mindset. Taken together, the activities supported by this grant encompass improving student success both with student support services and faculty supports.”
The program is set to be funded from Oct. 1, 2021, to Sept. 30, 2026, and is targeted to help 1,000 students each year.
“The Project will do this in three ways,” Co-project Investigator and Director of Distance Learning and Instructional Technology Dr. Rolando Garza said. “A. it will address by utilizing an intrusive advising model through the Academic Collegiate Enhancement Plan (ACE), which will include success coaching, course-specific tutoring, generalized study skill sessions with peer mentors and potential referrals to counseling; b. it will create peer support learning communities, in consultation with Student Health and Wellness, designed to encourage peer interactions and to allow for a confidential avenue to mental health services for students recovering from the pandemic; and c. it will offer a career exploration center that empowers students to work toward their goals by providing career counseling and academic advising together, and by matching students to internships and work-based experiential learning opportunities.”
This is Baker and Garza’s first time applying for a grant such as this. Baker described the process of applying as extremely detailed work that requires not only a vison of what you hope, but meticulous research.
“We are excited about the opportunities that this grant will bring for students and faculty alike. Also, I would hope that students could look to our success in getting this grant as an example of the importance of life-long learning. Dr. Garza and I both approached this process as students eager to learn a new skill, so that we could acquire a grant to help the university move forward,” she said
Baker and Garza would also like to credit Dr. Agnes Flores, Title V Project Director, who Garza described as instrumental to their grant application process.
For more information on the HEART grant visit https://www.tamuk.edu/heart/index.html.
