N.C. State’s College of Sciences is attempting to attract high-achieving students with a new scholarship program.
The Scope Scholarship is designed to attract and retain successful students hoping to receive STEM degrees, according Katherine Titus-Becker, scholarship coordinator for the College of Sciences.
Currently, five students are enrolled in the program, including Jacob Lineberry, a freshman in physics. Though it is new, participants said they have high hopes for the Scope Scholars program.
“I think as the Scope program continues to grow, it’ll be similar in its impact on N.C. State as programs like the Park Scholars and Caldwell Fellows,” Lineberry said.
Faculty advisors also see the potential for success in the program.
“It’s going to continue to expand in numbers and opportunities. Right now it’s still in the initial stages so we are learning and developing it as the year continues,” Titus-Becker said.
Graduates of the Scope Scholars Program will be ready to face real-world adversities as the program intends to prepare participants with leadership and communication abilities, according to an article in Scope Magazine, which was previously run by the College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences.
Scholars will have the opportunity to take advantage of dinners and private meetings with professors. Some scholars have also been able to meet with the author of the University’s Common Reading book, Thomas Hager. Some scholars also met with Dean Solomon of the College of Sciences and later enjoyed a performance of Arcadia, Titus-Becker said.
The Scope Scholars Program offers financial support for scholars through a partial scholarship that can be renewed every academic year. Participants are assigned a professor as well as a student mentor in their individual fields of study in hopes of creating both work-orientated and personal relationships. An enrichment grant is also available for students wishing to participate in research or other experiential learning opportunities, according to Titus-Becker.
The program hopes to increase the prominence of the College of Sciences as a top-notch school for students hoping to major in the STEM fields not only from North Carolina, but across the nation, according to Scope Magazine.
“The Scope Scholars Program will ensure that such students are able to nurture and develop these talents here at N.C. State University,” said Anita Stallings, associate dean of Advancement in the Scope article. Of the five current Scope Scholars, only one is an out-of-state student.
This year’s Scope Scholars were chosen by the College of Sciences Scholarship Committee after faculty members in each department recommended high-achieving students that had been admitted to the University.
N.C. State alumni Cathy Sigal and Robert Hill donated money to establish the first two scholarships.The program is continuously looking for funding opportunities in order to continue and expand the opportunities offered to Scope Scholars.
Because the program is new, there is much leeway as to future opportunities, and participants are encouraged to come up with new forms of experiential learning.
“The opportunities really are kind of endless,” Lineberry said.
