Two grants from the National Science Foundation will provide $1.3 million to the Community College of Baltimore County to support the STEM Core Network initiative in Maryland, CCBC said Tuesday.
The STEM Core Network is a nationwide partnership of scientific and technical employers, community colleges, and work for agencies with the goal of expanding the pipeline of students for careers in engineering and computer science.
The funding breaks down to $599,000 to implement STEM Core in central Maryland as part of a collaboration with Anne Arundel Community College, and $738,684 to participate in a 30-college network as part of the NSF-funded STEM Core Expansion Alliance. As one of four regional hubs, CCBC will coordinate technical support and professional development for faculty, counselors, and student support specialists.
“We understand the tremendous growth potential of many STEM careers, especially cybersecurity, from talking to industry leaders and, of course, from reading the daily headlines,” said Michael Venn, Assistant Dean for Mathematics at CCBC, and one of the original collaborators who brought the STEM Core model to Maryland. “This support from the National Science Foundation allows us to further develop our program to help students find meaningful employment while also satisfying the demand from local industry for cyber and computer science professionals.”
