Cooperating Hampton Roads Organizations for Minorities in Engineering (CHROME) network of community organizations, founded in 1983, impacts students in elementary, middle and high school. This proposal does a fine job of outlining how CHROME meets each criteria while specifically highlighting CHROME activities and successes. As a result of it clubs throughout the K-12 school system, this program is able to "follow through" with youngsters and offer a variety of support and activities. As a result, CHROME claims "virtually all students who remain" in the program graduate high school. CHROME claims 95 percent of its club members go to college and 80 percent major in SMET or related fields proven by conducting a follow-up survey with alumni and maintaining a database. CHROME's ability to track students demonstrates how the program has made a difference in students graduating, going to college and choosing majors in SMET fields. While this program mostly benefits African American students, there are a number of other minorities who participate in the program including Hispanic, Asian/Filipino, and Native American students. The strengths of the nominee include: . Sixty community organizations working together providing outstanding programs for youth and students. . Constant communication to keep individuals informed by providing information online. . Provides training for teachers and counselors to be effective leaders of local clubs through a variety of summer training programs. . Excellent outreach structure. . Provides internships through its business members, holds educational forums, funds scholarships, and tracks participants. In summary, CHROME is a comprehensive community networking effort that goes beyond establishing mentoring relationships between senior and junior individuals. The program's activities sustain encouragement for SMET disciplines from elementary schoo l through high school. It trains teachers and counselors to encourage students to pursue careers in technical fields, establishes and sustains partnerships among business corporations, higher education institutions, and government agencies plus supports community educational improvements in science, mathematics, and engineering areas. It even brings parents into the picture by offering them workshops with themes such as "How to Rear an Engineer" or "Preparing for College."
