The STEMFUERTE program is a partnership with El Paso Community College (EPCC) that focuses on achieving the next generation of student engagement and professional preparation. It is designed to ensure that students who enroll at UTEP and EPCC have appropriate STEM guidance, advising and learning supports, and effective STEM instruction through their senior year so they can graduate with STEM degre
es and pursue STEM careers or graduate programs. In the program, students begin with common introductory courses at EPCC and UTEP that will introduce them to postsecondary studies with an emphasis on STEM skills. They will have access to articulated courses in all STEM degree programs between EPCC and UTEP to enable a smooth transition between the institutions. Alongside introductory courses that will enable students to see the applications of STEM, the STEMFUERTE Program will build, pilot, expand and institute a STEM guidance and mentoring program through a partnership with the award-winning nonprofit organization EduGuide. EduGuide will serve as a platform to surround students with a supportive social network of faculty, staff, alumni, and employers, while increasing Hispanic student persistence in STEM fields by embedding non-cognitive activities, which will enable them to develop a core purpose for how they can contribute to their families and communities by growing their knowledge. The STEMFUERTE Program also aims to increase the retention of STEM students with disabilities through strategies to support special needs student persistence. The EPCC Center for Students with Disabilities team is partnering with UTEP’s Center for Accommodations and Support Services to institute evidence-based interventions to overcome barriers affecting the engagement of students with disabilities in STEM fields.
