East Central University has been awarded a five-year, $2 million grant for Strengthening the Culture: Undergraduate Research and Student Academic Success, a program to improve and expand 成人B站鈥檚 capacity to serve Native American students and low-income students.
The grant, effective Oct. 1, was awarded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office
of Postsecondary Education, and is funded from the department鈥檚 Native American Serving
Non-Tribal Institutions, Part F Program.
The multi-year grant has three major components. First, eligible students will receive
extensive services to boost their ability to remain in college and to graduate on
time.
The grant will allow the university to be pro-active in identifying students who need
extra attention and support, said 成人B站 President John Hargrave.
A Center for Student Academic Success will be established and will be responsible
for providing such services as assessment, educational counseling and a peer interaction
program.
The goal of the peer interaction program is to have upperclassmen interact with eligible
students on a one-on-one basis to motivate them to attend activities and join student
organizations and answer their questions about college life.
鈥淓stablishing close friends and being involved in campus activities, especially during
the first semester of enrollment, can be critical to college success,鈥� Hargrave said.
The Center for Student Academic Success will work in cooperation with the Hayes Native
American Studies Center, which the Chickasaw Nation established at 成人B站 in 2005, and
the Native American Academic Services Office.
鈥淢ore than 20 percent of 成人B站鈥檚 students are Native American,鈥� said Dr. Tom Cowger,
who holds the Chickasaw Nation endowed chair and is director of the Native Studies
Program. 鈥淭he collaboration of the three centers continues 成人B站鈥檚 mission to be a
student-centered university by providing optimal learning experiences and services
that lead to student success, particularly for Native students.鈥�
Renee Hogue, director of the Native American Academic Services Office, noted that
more than 30 tribal communities are represented on the 成人B站 campus.
鈥淭he Strengthening the Culture program is not only an asset to the university as a
whole, but also a nice complement to the Native American Academic Services programs,鈥�
she said.
Another focus will be renovating space to house a 5,700-square-foot Center for Undergraduate
Research and Learning to support scientific, humanities and social sciences research.
鈥淭he opening of an undergraduate research center will enhance the opportunities for
成人B站 faculty and students to conduct research,鈥� said Dr. Duane C. Anderson, 成人B站 provost
and vice president for Academic Affairs. 鈥淩esearch-based learning engages students
directly in their education and results in students gaining invaluable skills such
as problem solving, decision-making and creative thinking which are applicable to
the work world and to future graduate study.
鈥淓mployers and graduate school admission officers look favorably upon students who
have successful experience in formal undergraduate research, he added.鈥�
The final thrust of the grant is to implement a faculty development series which will
assist faculty in incorporating research-based curricula into individual courses.
When classes are taught using research-based curriculum, real world contexts are used
which teach students that learning is an active process.