Two WMU programs awarded $1 million federal grants to help students

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Two Western Michigan University programs that support first-generation, low-income students or students with a disability have been awarded five-year federal grants that each total more than $1 million.

 

The U.S. Department of Education awarded a $1.1 million Student Support Services Teacher Preparation grant to WMU's TRiO Future Educator Success Program and another $1.4 million grant to the TRiO Student Success Program.

 

The TRiO Future Educator Success Program competed with more than 1,000 applicants for its grant, with only 10 being awarded nationwide. Program Manager Marcy L. Peake said the proposal received a perfect score on reviews for its application, which was renewed for a second five-year cycle.

The first TRiO Student Support Services grant was awarded back in 1984, and it has been refunded at least seven times, according to Program Director Charlotte Giscombe.

Both programs, while separate and unique, serve students who qualify by meeting at least one of the following eligibility factors and having an academic need: first-generation college student, student from a low-income background as determined by the federal government, and students who may have a disability and are registered with WMU's Disability Services for Students. The future educator program, housed in the College of Education and Human Development, accepts and serves students who have declared a pre-K-12 teaching major; while SSP, housed in Ellsworth Hall and part of the Center for Academic Success Programs, serves all other majors.

U.S. Department of Education SSS grants are funded for five-year cycles, and both WMU programs were refunded for a cycle starting fall 2015 and ending August 2020.

For more information on the TRiO Future Educator Success Program, visit wmich.edu/trio-future-educators, or the TRiO Student Success Program at wmich.edu/triostudentsuccess.

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