DURANGO, Colo. – Fort Lewis College has been awarded the U.S. Department of Education’s Title III, Part A grant. The funding is part of the DOE’s Strengthening Institutions Program and will equal more than $1.9 million over the next five years.

“This is a significant achievement for Fort Lewis College,” said FLC President Brad Bartel. “The awarding of a Title III grant only comes after a highly competitive national process. It is symbolic of the current and future quality of our institution, and the outcomes from this grant will advance learning at Fort Lewis College.”

The funding is for a College initiative, called Mathematical Foundations and STEM Success. STEM refers to the College’s science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields of study.

“The new grant will be used to take our mathematics curriculum, teaching strategies and learning support apart at Fort Lewis College,” said Dr. Carol Smith, dean of Enrollment Services and General Education. “The idea is to keep what is working and change what isn’t.”

While all of the almost 4,000 students at Fort Lewis College will see the benefits of this new grant, the special focus will be on the STEM disciplines, such as biology, chemistry, computer science and engineering. This is particularly good news for the nearly 600 FLC students majoring in a STEM discipline this year.

Because many of the College’s Native American students pursue careers in STEM disciplines, the grant also supports the College’s historic mission and Sacred Trust with the Native American people of this country. 

According to the National Science Foundation, Fort Lewis College leads the nation among bachelor’s degree-granting institutions in the awarding of science degrees to Native Americans. This new grant will allow the College to build on that success.

“Fort Lewis has always been about opening doors for the citizens of Colorado and, related to our historic mission, students from American Indian tribes and Alaska villages. Graduates with advanced quantitative literacy skills have a lot of opportunities in STEM graduate school and in career fields,” stated Smith.

The College is also looking to build bridges for students making the jump from general math to more advanced math courses.

Some years ago, a freshman math program was created to address college outcomes for quantitative literacy for all students. Now the College wants to make sure that those beginning level courses effectively prepare and motivate students to move to intermediate and advanced study in mathematics.

The ability of students to think and solve problems in quantitative terms is becoming increasingly important with the growing complexity of today’s information-centered world.

“In the 21^st century, linguistic-based critical thinking remains powerfully important and has long been a strength of FLC graduates,” said Smith, “but quantitative-based critical thinking is something we need to improve on to fulfill our liberal arts mission.”

The College is working quickly to take advantage of the Title III grant after receiving word of the award in July from Senator Allard’s office. The grant officially begins October 2008.

The Title III grant has done much for Fort Lewis College in the past. Title III funding helped the College create the Native American Center and funded the Learning Assistance Center. The grant is competitive, with approximately 1,100 institutions meeting the grant’s eligibility requirements.

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