CT State Naugatuck Valley Awarded $1.99 M U.S. NSF Grant to Support STEM Students
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CT State Community College (CT State) announced that its Naugatuck Valley campus has been awarded a six-year, $1.99 million grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) to increase the number of diverse, academically talented, financially disadvantaged students who complete associate degrees and transfer to continue their education or enter the workforce in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) fields.
The “STEM Inclusive Opportunity Network for Academically Talented Low-Income Students” project will provide scholarships ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 per year to approximately 60 students.
In addition to the financial support, the program also provides access to a variety of seminars, career advising sessions, professional experiences, STEM field trips, university tours, tutoring, and STEM faculty and student workshops aimed at enhancing student success.
"CT State is grateful for multiple NSF awards this year. This funding enhances our ability to support academically talented students as they pursue their educational and professional goals, while contributing to the national need for a highly qualified STEM workforce with diverse perspectives,” said CT State President John Maduko, M.D. “It also reflects our faculty's and partners' dedication to providing exceptional opportunities for our students."
“We are honored to receive this nearly $2 million award from the NSF, and thrilled to build on our STEM initiative successes,” said CT State Naugatuck Valley campus CEO Lisa Dresdner, Ph.D. “This grant is an investment in our STEM programs and a testament to the dedication of our faculty and students. We are excited for the opportunities it will create to shape the next generation of innovators and leaders.”
The grant runs from March 1, 2025, to February 28, 2031, and builds on the success of a five-year NSF grant award of $649,323. That project, known as Naugatuck Valley’s STEM Inclusive Opportunity Network (NViSION), has provided scholarships to 82 students, totaling over $450,000 and offered a range of supplemental academic, social, and professional development opportunities with the remaining funds. The new project aims to build on these successes by enhancing advising, academic support, and professional experiences for STEM students.
Many past student scholars who have completed the program have progressed to bachelor’s degree programs, started careers in STEM fields, or begun graduate studies, reflecting the findings of multiple studies that show undergraduate professional experiences are associated with higher rates of degree completion and a higher likelihood of working in the STEM workforce after graduation.
Naugatuck Valley and NViSION ’20 alumnus Pedro Arias Matos, now a full-stack developer in client analytics at Cigna, emphasized how the NViSION program helped him overcome barriers as a first-generation student pursuing a career in technology. “Financial hardships and the lack of guidance and mentorship can make pursuing a career in tech much more difficult,” said Matos, who struggled with self-confidence when he started college. “The NViSION program helped me feel that I was part of a community. The guidance and support that I received from the program are the reasons why I did not give up on college,” he added. Matos continued on to finish a bachelor’s degree in computer science before quickly finding employment as a software engineer. He recently completed his first rotation in Cigna’s Technology Early Career Development Program (TECDP) and is also the DEI event coordinator for the Bloomfield office’s program.
Students and prospective students who attend CT State Naugatuck Valley and are majoring in STEM fields are welcome to apply for the program for fall 2025 semester. Those interested may contact Rebecca S. Binney, Ph.D., principal investigator for the project, or co-principal investigators Peter S. Angelastro, Ph.D., Carlos Plaza, and Kevin J. Ramer, Ph.D., email:
Approximately 5,600 students are currently enrolled in STEM programs across CT State, with 45% identifying as Black or Latine. CT State Naugatuck Valley accounts for 17% of the total STEM student population.
CT State is home to the CT College of Technology, a consortium of all campuses of CT State and eight public and private universities that was formed through Connecticut legislation in 1995 to establish seamless pathways in engineering and technology. Among its goals are to bring together educators and industry, and to be responsive to workforce needs in Connecticut. It also provides seamless career pathways for students to earn certificates, associate of science and bachelor of science degrees in engineering and technology disciplines, with no loss of credit upon transfer.
Beyond engineering and technology, many STEM students also take advantage of transfer pathway programs in sciences, math, and computer science. These programs allow students to transfer to any Connecticut state university or Charter Oak State College as a junior with no loss of credit.
