The National Science Foundation Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) at St. Olaf College
The $500,000 four-year grant, called “Encouraging Careers in the
Mathematical Sciences,” will begin in the 2007–08 academic year. The
grant, co-written by Professors of Mathematics Matt Richey and Paul
Zorn and Director of St. Olaf Student Support Services Kathy Glampe ’92,
is designed to encourage students from traditionally underrepresented areas
of the student population to study mathematics. Richey and Glampe will be
co-directors of the grant. SSS, one of the federally funded TRiO programs,
is a service that helps first-generation students, financially needy students
and students with disabilities succeed in college.
The new grant is a continuation of the successful interaction between the Department of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science (MSCS) and Student Support Services (SSS) programs at St. Olaf. Together, the two programs have developed a successful Supplemental Instruction (SI) program that involves student-led group tutoring for SSS students.
This project builds on other college and MSCS initiatives aimed at increasing the number of opportunities for students from traditionally disadvantaged groups. St. Olaf College was one of approximately 100 colleges and universities nationwide to receive S-STEM funding, out of nearly 400 submitted proposals. The grant follows previous national recognition of St. Olaf programs in the mathematical sciences. In 2004 the NSF awarded the St. Olaf statistics program, a concentration within mathematics, a $1.3 million grant to support the creation of a Center for Interdisciplinary Research (CIR) that facilitates projects among various academic departments across campus. The grant also has helped fund a mentoring program that attracts undergraduates to careers in STEM disciplines.
