Island University Awarded $2.8M DOE Grant to Expand STEM Opportunities to Hispanic Students

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi has been selected to receive funding from the U.S. Department of Education, under its Title V-Developing Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) Program. The grant, funded at $561,711 for the first annual budget period, will start Oct. 1 and is anticipated to be renewed four more years for a total award of $2.8 million.

The HSI Program provides grants to assist HSIs in expanding educational opportunities and improving the attainment of Hispanic students. HSI Program grants also enable HSIs to expand and enhance their academic offerings, program quality, and institutional stability. The Island University program will be run within Programs for Academic Student Support (PASS), under the administrative umbrella of Dr. Clarenda Phillips, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.

“State and national literature reveal that increased University resources lead to strong outcomes for actively enrolling, serving, and graduating diverse populations,” said Dr. Patricia Spaniol-Mathews, PASS Executive Director, who submitted the grant proposal.

The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi HSI project is titled STEM Operation Success (SOS) and will identify, recruit, and prepare eligible science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) high-need undergraduate students through several components.

“Various high-impact practices will be provided including sense of belonging activities and career development,” Spaniol-Mathews said. “These services will increase not only retention but will help students reach their future goals.”

To learn more about participating in the SOS program, prospective participants can email patricia.spaniol-mathews@tamucc.edu or call 361.825.3163.

Additional Information

The total amount of this grant is $2,894,071 with 100% federal and 0% non-governmental sources. The Federal Award Number is P031S200028.