Farmingdale Is the only College in NYS to Receive the Grant
(Long Island, NY) Farmingdale State College is the only college or university in New York State to win a 2015 First in the World (FITW) US Department of Education grant. One of only 17 awarded from a national pool of 300 competitors, the grant* provides $2.9 million in funding that will be used by the college through September 2019, providing innovative educational programs for FSC students.
“This is great news for Dr. Beverly Kahn, Project Director for the First in the World grant, and especially for our students,” said Farmingdale President W. Hubert Keen. “Providing innovative mentored research experiences which will assist our students to graduate within four years and gain experiences that will serve them well in the development of their careers is a win-win for everyone.”
The grant’s theme – Creating Research Opportunities for Students- has the goal of improving four-year graduation rates by 20% over Farmingdale’s baseline for first-year and transfer students. The program will support on-campus research and place faculty and students in mentored research experiences off campus in national laboratories, research universities, business accelerators, and other research venues.
“This is a major achievement for Farmingdale State College, one that aligns with SUNY’s completion agenda and our system-wide commitment to applied learning,” said SUNY Chancellor Nancy Zimpher. “Congratulations to Farmingdale State College on earning this highly-selective and much-deserved national grant.”
As part of this effort, Farmingdale has created partnerships with four other institutions: Bowie State University (MD), Central Connecticut State University, KeanUniversity (NJ), and SUNY College at Old Westbury. With grant funding, Farmingdale will extend assistance to its partners in its “Mid-Atlantic Consortium,” enabling them to replicate the best practices in applied learning that will be developed at Farmingdale. Over the course of four years, a total of 3,600 students at the five institutions will benefit from engaged teaching and research experiences.
FITW grants are designed to support the development, replication, and dissemination of innovative solutions, and provide evidence for what works in addressing persistent and widespread challenges in post-secondary education. Grants target students who are at risk for not persisting in and completing post-secondary programs, including adult learners, working students, part-time students, students from low-income backgrounds, students of color, students with disabilities, and first-generation students.
*Grant # – P116F150028
Farmingdale State College continues to prepare students with the education, skills, and critical thinking needed to meet the challenges of tomorrow. As the largest of SUNY’s colleges of technology (with over 8,700 students), Farmingdale equips students with the resources and knowledge sought by today’s emerging industries. Offering bachelor and associate programs, Farmingdale will soon offer its first graduate degree. At Farmingdale, students also have abundant opportunities in experiential learning—internships, clinical training, and guided research—that provide practical instruction and personal growth. Small, personalized classes, a residence hall with suite-style living, a lush 380-acre campus undergoing major renovation, and a highly successful NCAA Division III athletics program with modern facilities make Farmingdale State College one of the fastest-growing colleges in the region. In addition, in the 2015 U.S. News & World Report’s section titled Best Regional Colleges in the North, Farmingdale is ranked #11. Also in that category, FSC is #3 in the LEAST Student Debt Load at Graduation. For more information, contact Kathryn Coley at 631-420-2400 or kathryn.coley@farmingdale.edu. Look on our website www.farmingdale.edu. Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/farmingdale.
