Schools
Purchase College Awarded Major Grant by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF)
The almost 2 million-dollar grant will provide scholarships and support to 34 STEM students
Purchase College, SUNY, is pleased to announce that Joseph Skrivanek, Ph.D., Distinguished Service Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mark Jonas, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Biology, and Athar Abdul-Quader, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Mathematics/Computer Science, have been awarded a major grant in the amount of $1,998,661 by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) to train and support 34 undergraduates in the disciplines of biochemistry, biology, chemistry, and mathematics/computer science.
Funded through the NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Program (S-STEM), which enables academically talented, low-income students to pursue successful careers in promising STEM fields, the project, entitled S-STEM: Finding common ground: support and preparation of students for interdisciplinary STEM careers, will provide 9 four-year students and 25 two-year transfer students from underrepresented minority groups with significant scholarships, faculty and peer mentoring, academic support, and social support including the opportunity to build a strong community among the cohort.
Dr. Skrivanek said, “Purchase College is in a unique position to accomplish one of the major goals of the grant; to increase the transfer and graduation rates of community college students who transfer to Purchase and finish their four-year degree in STEM disciplines. Over the last 25 years, Purchase has formed a unique partnership with seven community colleges. This grant will help expand that partnership to include the Appalachian SUNY community colleges.”
Find out what's happening in Harrisonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Congressman George Latimer said, “Congratulations to Purchase College Principal Investigator Joseph Skrivanek, Ph.D, and co-Principal Investigators Mark Jonas, Ph.D and Athar Abdul-Quader, Ph.D, on this almost $2 million award from the National Science Foundation. The work they are doing to make sure students are prepared for STEM careers is vitally important as our economy and jobs change with technology. This award shows the importance of investing in research at our public universities, and the impact those investments are making for young people right here in our community.”
Dr. Abdul-Quader said, “In addition to scholarship money, this grant will support our students at every level of their college experience. Pre-semester mathematics tutoring will give our students a head start on getting ready for college-level mathematics. There will be ample opportunities for community building and mentorship / tutoring throughout the academic year. Career-focused programming, like field trips and visits from local industry leaders, will provide opportunities for students to learn how the skills they are learning at Purchase will prepare them for opportunities after college. The opportunities Purchase students will be receiving through this grant are really exciting!”
Find out what's happening in Harrisonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Dr. Jonas said, “Support from this grant will help our students persist and succeed in STEM. Through scholarships, mentoring, community-building, and career-focused programming, we aim to increase graduation rates and ensure that our students are ready to thrive in a competitive job market. Purchase College is situated in one of the nation’s leading biotechnology hubs, giving our students direct access to real-world experiences and potential pathways into STEM careers.”
Dr. Meagan Curtis, Director of the School of Natural and Social Sciences at Purchase, said, “Science students at Purchase enjoy small class sizes and receive close mentorship from extraordinary faculty. These new scholarships for STEM students will enable more students to thrive and flourish at Purchase and beyond.”
About the project
The program will include faculty and peer mentoring of Scholars and a two-week pre-semester math skills workshop for incoming Scholars in need of additional math training. A biweekly non-credit S-STEM Community Seminar will serve as the hub for academic and social support, to build commonalities among incoming and continuing Scholars, four-year and transfer-student Scholars, faculty mentors, and peer mentors.
The project will host field trips to local industries, visits from working professionals, career-preparation workshops, and informal community-building activities. Seminar meetings will serve as a vehicle for mutual peer support for Scholars developing and completing the senior research project required of all Purchase students for graduation.
About NSF
The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that promotes the
progress of science by investing in research to expand knowledge in science, engineering and
education across all 50 states and territories. NSF supports nearly 2,000 colleges, universities
and other institutions through competitive grants aimed at advancing science with broad
impacts across the nation and its people. Learn more at nsf.gov.”
About Purchase College, SUNY
Purchase College, part of the State University of New York (SUNY) network of 64 universities and colleges, was founded in 1967 by Governor Nelson Rockefeller. His aspiration for Purchase was to create a dynamic campus that combined conservatory training in the visual and performing arts with programs in the liberal arts and sciences, in order to inspire an appreciation for both intellectual and artistic talents in all students. Today, Purchase College, SUNY is a community of students, faculty, and friends where open-minded engagement with the creative process leads to a lifetime of intellectual growth and professional opportunity. For more information about the college, visit www.purchase.edu.
