Arkansas Tech University

NSF Awards · FY 2026 · 2026-07

This project will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Arkansas Tech University. A total of 40 scholars pursuing Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Mathematics, Physics, Engineering Physics, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering will receive scholarships averaging $7,000 for up to five years. Scholars will receive faculty mentoring and the project will build strong scholar cohorts through a living learning community, social and networking opportunities, and events that promote family and community involvement. Additional activities for scholars include research internships, micro-internships, and career shadowing. The overall goal of this Track 1 Scholarships in STEM project is to increase STEM degree completion of academically talented, low-income undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. There is a significant national need to grow the STEM workforce and nurture key talent that will ensure economic competitiveness and provide domestic leadership across critical sectors. This project directly speaks to this need by supporting STEM student success, which will strengthen the workforce in artificial intelligence, advanced materials and manufacturing, cybersecurity, and other key areas of need. The project will be assessed by an experienced evaluator that will offer insights into the program's strengths and weaknesses to demonstrate its efficiency and impact on participating scholars, and the data generated will contribute to the knowledge base regarding effective strategies to support talented, low-income students in STEM. This project is funded by NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of academically talented, low-income students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in STEM fields. It also aims to improve the education of future STEM workers, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income students. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

NSF Awards · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Bolstering University Infrastructure for Leading Development in Research (BUILD) is a collaboration between Arkansas Tech University (ATU) and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) to improve their institutional position to engage with Arkansas’ state-wide research ecosystem. Both institutions play central roles in the rural economic development of their regional ecosystems in central and southeastern Arkansas. However, severely underfunded research and partnership offices have led to extreme inefficiencies that affect the ability to leverage external partnerships fully and have a societal impact. Through this project, these universities will grow research capacity by aligning faculty research with regional partnership opportunities; expanding existing partnerships that currently depend on individual faculty into more sustainable collaborations; building partnerships that better meet employer needs and fully leverage university capabilities; and addressing the regional brain drain due to underemployed or relocation of STEM talent. BUILD aims to create a robust research development enterprise, leading to a revitalized rural economic ecosystem, inclusive STEM workforce growth, and strengthened regional economic competitiveness. This initiative addresses the cohort’s shared strengths and challenges in building sustainable external partnerships essential for increasing research capacity. The cohort’s strengths include a strong commitment and track record of teaching and learning and being geographically situated in central and southeastern Arkansas as regionally accessible rural economic development partners. This project will address the challenges associated with limited staffing and access to professional development that support pre- and post-award services in research administration that plague emerging research institutions (ERIs) nationwide. The cohort will use gap analysis, program and project evaluation and faculty/staff shared governance to improve and implement policies and procedures to build sustainable partnerships with regional industry. This work will enhance institutional research infrastructure to secure competitive funding and conduct impactful research at both ATU and UAPB. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.