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LaGuardia Community College received a $100,000 grant to continue its efforts in educating first-generation students.
LaGuardia became one of only 15 institutions to receive the Wal-Mart Minority Student Success Award after the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) selected the school from a large number of applicants.
“LaGuardia Community College is honored to be selected as one of just several outstanding higher education institutions nationwide to receive the Wal-Mart Minority Student Success Award,” said LaGuardia Community College President Dr. Gail O. Mellow. “Thanks in large part to this award, we will be able to enhance and expand our work with first-generation students.”
One of the areas that LaGuardia focuses on to help first-generation students is through programs in the Division of Adult and Continuing Education. Students involved in these programs often are placed in a first-year academy that provides students with academic support in different disciplines and connects them with supportive learning communities.
By coordinating their schedules and the support services they receive, students become a “family,” which helps them succeed in their college coursework.
“We are excited to be working with such a diverse group of minority-serving institutions focused on improving the success of this critical student group,” said IHEP President Michelle Asha Cooper. “Their planned initiatives demonstrate a long-term commitment to first-generation student success that builds on their well-established mission to retain and graduate underserved student populations.”
IHEP administers the Wal-Mart College Success Award, which comes from a $4.2 million grant from the Wal-Mart Foundation.
“The Wal-Mart Foundation is committed to helping our nation’s young adults live better – supporting programs that provide access to higher education is a key part of our commitment,” said Margaret McKenna, President of the Wal-Mart Foundation.
