Grant to UC Santa Barbara Opens Avenues for Science-Minded Transfer Students

Study and training in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are increasingly seen as critical to the growth of the U.S. economy and to its competitiveness in global industry. Long devoted to advancing these areas, UC Santa Barbara is launching a new program intended to bolster the academic success of low-income community college students interested in pursuing STEM majors at UCSB. Starting this summer with a weeklong residential program on campus, the new UCSB Cooke Bridges Program will partner with Allan Hancock, Oxnard, Santa Barbara, and Ventura community colleges to recruit students interested in transferring into STEM disciplines at UCSB. The initiative is named for its funding source, the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, whose recently awarded three-year grant of $450,000 will support this new initiative of UCSB's Center for Science and Engineering Partnerships, in collaboration with the Mathematics, Engineering and Science Achievement (MESA) program. "The UCSB Cooke Bridges Program will add an exciting new element to the many programs that we are pursuing on campus to achieve our twin goals of increasing the diversity and quality of our students," said Gene Lucas, executive vice chancellor of UCSB. "We greatly appreciate the assistance of the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation in helping us achieve these goals."