The Community College Transfer Scholarship (CCTS) Program is aiming to financially and academically support the transfer and retention of community college students within the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Northern Colorado. Fifty-one scholarships are being awarded over five years. The CCTS program is improving the recruitment of low-income, underrrepresented community college transfer students. Recruitment efforts include increased faculty participation, new informative literature, and a website dedicated to community college transfers. A learning community of chemistry major transfer students is also being established and features improved academic advising, career advising, and financial aid services. In addition, a chemistry curriculum dedicated to scholarship recipients is being developed along with Brown-Bag Lunch discussions, science cafes, and activities integrating academic and social learning.
The intellectual merit of this project is based on and is building a greater understanding of factors contributing to retention of community college transfer students. Our understanding of the impact of learning communities on retention of transfer students, particularly in the physical sciences, is being improved.
The CCTS program is creating broader opportunities for regional low-income students to succeed in chemistry. This project is also improving partnerships among the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, university student support services, community colleges, and northern Colorado chemical industries. By increasing the numbers of well-prepared chemists, this project is enhancing and sustaining Colorado's growing science/technology research and industrial base.
