Flourishing within s-stem: facilitating graduation and transfer success among talented community college engineering and computer science students

Community College of Aurora received a $1.87M project grant from the National Science Foundation's STEM Education program (CFDA 47.076) on October 15, 2025, extending through September 30, 2031. The award supports the "Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics" (S-STEM) initiative, which provides direct financial assistance and comprehensive student support services to 58 low-income, academically talented scholars pursuing Associate's degrees in engineering, physics, computer science, and computer technologies. Each scholar receives scholarships up to $15,000 annually for up to five years, combined with faculty and peer mentoring, supplemental instruction, professional development activities, internships, and hands-on workshops designed to enhance retention and degree completion rates.

The project directly addresses the national need for a robust STEM workforce by implementing evidence-based support strategies for economically disadvantaged students in high-demand fields including computing, cybersecurity, and quantum research. An experienced external evaluator will assess scholar engagement, capacity development, and program continuity, generating data to advance the knowledge base on effective retention strategies for talented, low-income STEM undergraduates at community colleges. This funding reflects the NSF's commitment to broadening participation in STEM while strengthening the domestic workforce in critical technology sectors.

Abstract

This project will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at community college of aurora. A total of 58 scholars pursuing associate's degrees in engineering, physics, computer science, and computer technologies will receive scholarships up to $15,000 for up to five years. Scholars will receive faculty and peer mentoring, and the project will build strong scholar cohorts through supplemental instruction and professional development activities. Additional activities for scholars include internships and hands-on workshops. The overall goal of this track 2 scholarships in stem project is to increase stem degree completion of academically talented, low-income undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. There is a significant national need to grow the stem workforce and nurture key talent that will ensure economic competitiveness and provide domestic leadership across critical sectors. This project directly speaks to this need by supporting stem student success, which will strengthen the workforce in computing, cybersecurity, quantum research, and other key areas of need. The project will be assessed by an experienced evaluator that will inform the engagement, capacity, and continuity of scholars who participate in the project, and the data generated will contribute to the knowledge base regarding effective strategies to support talented, low-income students in stem. This project is funded by NSF's scholarships in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of academically talented, low-income students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in stem fields. IT also aims to improve the education of future stem workers, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income students. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.- subawards are not planned for this award.