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Find similar grantsSTEM Starter Academy is sponsored by Massachusetts Department of Higher Education. Provides programs to enhance STEM education and career pathways for underperforming students in STEM assessments.
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STEM Starter Academy / Strategic Initiatives / Massachusetts Department of Higher Education Stay informed about COVID-19 and the latest health and safety guidance for higher education. Stay informed about COVID-19 and the latest health and safety guidance for higher education.
STEM Starter Academy (SSA) The goal of SSA is to recruit, ready, retain and graduate a diverse body of community college students earning STEM certificates and degrees and transferring to 4-year STEM programs or entering the workforce. The UMass Donahue Institute (UMDI) serves as the external evaluator to determine SSA impacts and student outcomes.
Workforce & Economic Development & STEM P-16 Alignment & Outreach Year 6 Annual Evaluation Report (2020) Year 6 Report Appendices (2020) Equity & Diversity Report (2020) Impact & Value Report (2020) Post-community college success --> Public Community Colleges University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute 2-to-4 Year Summer STEM Transfer Academy The STEM Starter Academy (SSA) program is an initiative of the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education (DHE) that began in 2013 through the leadership of Speaker Robert A.
DeLeo and support from the Massachusetts Legislature. In partnership with the Commonwealth’s community college system, the purpose of STEM Starter Academy is to recruit, ready, retain and graduate a diverse body of students earning STEM certificates and degrees who go on to transfer to a 4-year STEM programs and/or enter the workforce.
The University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute (UMDI), under contract to the DHE, is engaged as an independent evaluator of the SSA initiative to provide formative and summative assessments of program practices and student outcomes.
Broadening the STEM Pipeline for All Supporting Post-Community College Success The Importance of STEM in Massachusetts Jobs that require a strong foundation in STEM education are increasing in number, expanding into new fields and transforming traditional careers. Massachusetts needs a robust, diverse and growing STEM workforce to sustain our economy and advance the Commonwealth’s reputation for innovation, globally.
Community colleges are a critical source for Massachusetts STEM ready talent pipeline. The SSA program engages students from communities and groups that are underrepresented in the current STEM workforce - people of color, women, adult learners and other students who may not previously have considered STEM fields to be of interest or accessible to them. SSA is changing the landscape of pathways to STEM careers.
Many community college students are uncertain of their skills, potential and career interests and need to attain positive educational outcomes that reinforce a commitment to higher education. Too often, students are unaware of available support resources or how to access these resources to promote their success.
SSA provides a suite of intentional support services to promote equitable success outcomes for underrepresented student groups. Massachusetts needs STEM education programming that attains relevant scale and serves students across the Commonwealth, sustainably.
SSA has developed a collaborative learning community of program administrators, faculty, student leaders and employer partners who are on-course to define, implement and share best-practices - affecting segment-wide, system-level and labor-market aligned outcomes.
Bristol Community College Bunker Hill Community College Cape Cod Community College Holyoke Community College Massasoit Community College MassBay Community College Middlesex Community College Mount Wachusett Community College Northern Essex Community College Quinsigamond Community College Roxbury Community College Springfield Technical Community College The goal of SSA is to expand the pipeline of students who are aware of, interested in and prepared to pursue rigorous certificate and degree programs at Massachusetts community colleges, leading to careers in STEM fields.
Three key strategies are employed to achieve this goal, (1) engage a more diverse population of students from groups underrepresented in the STEM workforce and from underserved communities across the commonwealth, (2) promote positive, equitable outcomes through the design and deployment of intentional supports, (3) replicate and sustain the impact of SSA through best-practices, at scale, statewide.
Year 8 Annual Evaluation Report (2022) Year 6 Annual Evaluation Report (2020) Year 6 Report Appendices (2020) Equity and Diversity Report (2020) Impact and Value Report (2020) The DHE has partnered with the UMass Donahue Institute to evaluate impacts and outcomes associated with the STEM Starter Academy grant.
The Donahue Institute provides formative and summative feedback on program development and outcomes, as well as targeted technical assistance. The Donahue Institute collects feedback from participants and administrators through surveys, interviews, select site visits, and concise structured reports.
The evaluation supports DHE’s efforts to develop evidence-based best practices, to promote the use of best practices at participating institutions, and to disseminate information about these practices to the broader STEM community. Past reports are available by request to Allison Little ( alittle@dhe. mass.
edu ) Use the contact information and website links below for questions about STEM Starter Academy, or to find a program near you. Department of Higher Education jeremiah@donahue. umass.
edu Berkshire Community College Bunker Hill Community College Bristol Community College Kristin. Almeida@bristolcc. edu Cape Cod Community College Greenfield Community College Holyoke Community College Massasoit Community College mbankson@massasoit.
mass. edu MassBay Community College Middlesex Community College felchj@middlesex. mass.
edu Mount Wachusett Community College Northern Essex Community College North Shore Community College Quinsigamond Community College Roxbury Community College Springfield Technical Community College One Ashburton Place, Room 1401, Department of Higher Education Board of Higher Education Public Colleges & Universities System Commission on Higher Education Quality and Affordability (CHEQA) Advisory Council to Advance Representation in Education (ACARE) Report Eastern Nazarene College (ENC) Closure Institutional Transitions & Closures Public Notices of Financial Assessment
According to the current listing, eligibility includes: Massachusetts community colleges. Confirm the full requirements in the official notice before applying.
STEM Starter Academy is funded by Massachusetts Department of Higher Education. Verify program details on the funder's official page before applying.
This opportunity targets applicants in Massachusetts. If your organization operates elsewhere, check the official notice for location requirements.
Start from the official opportunity page linked in this listing — it carries the sponsor's submission instructions.
Educational Technology, Media, and Materials for Individuals with Disabilities Program (Stepping-up Technology Implementation competition) is sponsored by U.S. Department of Education. This program aims to improve results for students with disabilities by promoting the development, demonstration, and use of technology; supporting educational activities of value in the classroom for students with disabilities; providing captioning and video description; and ens…
The Robotics Grant Program is a grant from the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE) that funds school-based robotics programs for elementary, middle, and high school students. Awarded through a competitive application process, the program provides up to $3,500 to eligible local education agencies (LEAs) in Alabama. Applicants must be public school systems submitting on behalf of schools with K–12 students. The grant supports the purchase of robotics equipment and program development aligned with AMSTI guidelines. Applications are submitted online through the AMSTI Robotics Grant portal. The Fiscal Year 2026 application deadline was September 30, 2025. Questions should be directed to robotics@amsti.org. The program is managed by the Alabama State Department of Education under State Superintendent Eric G. Mackey.
Federal appropriators added $15 billion in new Pell Grant funding to the FY 2026 appropriations package on top of the standard appropriation level — a response to a structural shortfall that CBO scored at $5.4 billion in FY 2026 and $11.5 billion in FY 2027. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget projects a cumulative gap of $61 billion to $97 billion through 2035 even after the one-time fix. Meanwhile, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act expanded eligibility to short-term Workforce Pell programs, adding $2 to $6 billion in new costs. The Pell program is the foundation of need-based federal student aid, but the structural mismatch between rising costs and appropriations is a permanent feature now. Here is what that means for institutions, foundations, and state higher-ed agencies.
Read articleThe Pell Grant program faces a $104-132 billion shortfall over the next decade. With 7.5 million students at risk, education funders and grant-seeking organizations need strategies now.
Read articleNSF's CAREER program — a minimum $400,000 over five years for pre-tenure faculty — has a single annual deadline on July 22, 2026. It rewards the integration of research and education, not research alone, and that is exactly where most proposals fail. Here is the eligibility math, the integration trap, and how to position in a tightening federal funding climate.
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