CSM has secured a $74,500 MESA grant (Math, Engineering, Science, Achievement) to expand services and academic support to educationally and economically disadvantaged students. The goal of the MESA program is to support student success and transfer to four-year universities for STEM majors.

In Fall 2016, of the 9,616 students enrolled, 6,337 (65.9%) were classified as economically or educationally disadvantaged. CSM was designated a Hispanic Serving Institution in 2014. Last year, the College was awarded a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to increase the number of Hispanic and low-income students articulating to university in STEM majors (HSI-STEM grant). Much of this funding is going to facilities and curriculum enhancement, and professional development, with some directed to increasing tutoring and counseling support for students.

The decision to pursue the MESA grant opportunity represents a logical progression in CSM’s continued growth as a Hispanic-serving Institution. The timing is critical for CSM to implement solid interventions that are anticipated to make a meaningful difference in the lives of current and future Hispanic/Latino, low-income, and other disadvantaged students. We see MESA as the perfect next step to enhancing and maximizing student success for an even larger group of students. The MESA components provide a proven mechanism for identifying the MESA population and a network of services to allow students to excel.

CSM has strong partnerships and well-established relationships with local industry, local high schools, and science programs at area universities and throughout the state. The science and math faculty have a history of success with innovative partnerships, having successfully participated in several externally funded projects designed to promote student success among underrepresented groups in STEM disciplines. The College has committed significant human and financial resources to transfer and articulation and, when combined with MESA program funding, will help to ensure successful achievement of the project’s realistic goals, outcomes, and activities.