EMU Today

YPSILANTI – Eastern Michigan University has been awarded a $261,888 grant for a Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program, extending the award an additional five years for EMU students. The project, also known as the McNair Scholars Program, provides grants to universities and colleges for projects designed to provide promising college students with adequate preparation for doctoral studies.

“We are excited the McNair Scholars program has been renewed for five more years,” said Carmen McCallum, associate professor at EMU and director of the McNair Scholars Program. “The renewal means that we will be able to keep providing students with the academic and social support they need to pursue and enroll in graduate degree programs.”

Funded by the United States Department of Education, The McNair Scholars Program aims to assist low-income, first-generation or underrepresented students in earning a doctorate. The federal program was created in 1989 to honor physicist and astronaut Ronald E. McNair, who died in the Challenger Shuttle accident in 1986. The EMU McNair Program serves 36 high-achieving students from various academic disciplines each year. Participants engage in faculty-mentored research and receive individualized advising, funding for conference travel, and the opportunity to publish their research in the McNair Scholars Research Journal.

In addition to recruiting students, the program is currently seeking eligible mentors. “This year, we are hosting a mentor orientation Friday, Oct. 14 for our current mentors as well as faculty or staff doctorate holders across campus who may be interested in being a McNair mentor,” said McCallum. “We are hoping to build a mentor community where members can share successes and challenges of working with undergraduate students and engage in professional development opportunities that may strengthen their mentor skills.”  

For more information about the program or to become a McNair Scholar or mentor, visit the McNair Scholars landing page or contact McCallum at cmccall5@emich.edu or assistant director Brown at kbrown4@emich.edu.

About Eastern Michigan University
Founded in 1849, Eastern is the second oldest public university in Michigan. It currently serves more than 15,000 students pursuing undergraduate, graduate, specialist, doctoral and certificate degrees in the arts, sciences and professions. In all, more than 300 majors, minors and concentrations are delivered through the University's Colleges of Arts and Sciences; Business; Education; Engineering and Technology; Health and Human Services; and its graduate school. National publications regularly recognize EMU for its excellence, diversity, and commitment to applied education. For more information about Eastern Michigan University, visit the University's website. To stay up to date on University news, activities and announcements, visit EMU Today.