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CSUDH Receives Renewed
McNair Funding
The U.S. Department of Education has awarded California State
University, Dominguez Hills a $1.1 million grant to continue the Ronald
E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program at the university for
another four years beginning this academic year. The program’s goal is
to encourage and prepare students who are traditionally
under-represented in college to pursue graduate studies – specifically,
the Ph.D. A number of CBAPP students have been involved with the
program, including senior Ernesto Marinez, Jr., business administration,
who was just invited into the program’s fifth cohort this fall. Established by Congress in 1986, the program was named in honor of astronaut Ronald McNair, who, like most of the students in the program, faced a number of disadvantages growing up in a low-income family. He overcame such adversity to earn his Ph.D. and become the second African American in space. He died in the 1986 space shuttle Challenger disaster. The U.S. Department of Education administers funding to universities for the program through a competitive grant process. This is the second four-year grant awarded to CSUDH. “We were thrilled to be among the 181 universities to receive a McNair grant,” said Michelle Waiters, director of the CSUDH McNair Scholars Program. “CSUDH’s McNair Scholars are a source of pride for the university and represent the excellent guidance students receive from our faculty. We have a dynamic group of students and are looking forward to continued great success!” Since the 2003-04 academic year, approximately 50 students have participated in the McNair Program at Dominguez Hills. These students span the spectrum of academic disciplines and represent some of the most dedicated and hardest-working students on campus. Many CSUDH McNair Scholars balance work and/or family responsibilities with the academic rigors of the program, and they do so with great success. The program at Dominguez Hills boasts a 100 percent graduation rate and a 93 percent graduate school acceptance rate. CSUDH McNair alumni are in master’s or doctoral programs across the country, including at several University of California campuses; Howard University, Cornell University, University of Massachusetts, University of Wisconsin, Arizona State University, University of Iowa, and CSUDH. The McNair program is open to undergraduates with sophomore or higher status who are either first-generation college students from low-income families or from racial groups underrepresented in graduate degree programs. As McNair Scholars, the students must maintain a 3.0 GPA or higher, participate in scholarly activities outside of the classroom, complete a research project in their field of study, and present that project at a research symposium. McNair students participate in workshops that inform and assist them on scholarship applications, entrance exam preparation, and applying to graduate school. - Amy Bentley-Smith |
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