Office of Sponsored Initiatives

The purpose of the Carl D. Perkins Basic Grant is to improve graduation, retention, access, quality, and to provide for the expansion of Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs. Funds will be used for instructional equipment, instructional supplements, professional development, CTE personnel, datahub software, and other program activities in the Divisions of Academic Affairs, Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, Information Services, Planning, Performance, and Strategic Initiatives, and in Institutional Advancement and Economic Development. With this reallocation of $529,680, and an original allocation of $2,096,120, STC’s Perkins Basic Grant award for this funding period is a grand total to $2,625,800. The funding period is September 1, 2022 to August 31, 2023.

This grant aligns with Strategic Directions #1, Clear Pathways, and Strategic Direction #2, Access and Success, by increasing community awareness and access to career and technical education programs that align with the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act.

WE CAN TX aims to increase the number of students who earn postsecondary credentials and are working in high-demand industries that pay a livable wage, with a vision of ensuring equitable outcomes for first-generation, low-income students of color across Texas and meeting the talent and workforce demands of businesses.  Funding from Educate Texas will be used to develop a work-based learning credit-bearing pathway for Surveyors under the newly approved Certificate and Associate of Applied Science in Surveying and Geospatial Technology. The proposed Surveyor Pathway will identify age parameters, employer liability issues, and working conditions for students, and serve as the starting point for students as they move towards a Registered Professional Land Surveyor (RPLS) licensure. Costs associated include speaker fees, fees for sponsors and exhibition fees. The funding period is January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023.

This award aligns with Strategic Direction #3, Create Educational Opportunities for Students, and Strategic Direction #4, Foster Student Success, by providing students with opportunities in career and technical education, and providing extensive support structures that promote persistence, educational attainment, academic achievement, personal and professional growth. 

South Texas College’s Department of Continuing, Professional Workforce Education and the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing will provide training for employees of small businesses, less than 100 employees, to upgrade employment skills. Courses such as computers skills, safety, medical front office skills, CPR, strategic planning, and customer service will be offered. In addition, $40,000 of the funds have been set aside to provide training specifically for employees of childcare centers. The funding period is from February 15, 2023 to February 29, 2024.

This grant aligns to Strategic Direction # 3, High Success Rate, by providing training that will help employees increase their economic and social mobility.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) received more than 200 Applications and over $833 Million in funding requests as part of the Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program (CMC). The CMC program is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Internet for All initiative that proposes connecting everyone in America with affordable, reliable high-speed Internet service. A total of 93 grants were awarded, 8 of them in Texas.

South Texas College’s Educational Technologies Department, Information Technology Department, Library Services Department, and the Center for Learning Excellence will utilize grant funds to upgrade fiber optic bandwidth connectivity between the Mid-Valley Campus, the Starr County Campus and the Pecan Campus; upgrade existing infrastructure and equipment to build capacity in the classroom by converting technology from analog to digital at the Starr County Campus and the Technology Campus; provide mobile hotspot devices and student learning support services for at least 350 students; and expand instruction and remote learning opportunities for students by virtualizing specialized desktop software. The funding period is from March 1, 2023 to February 28, 2025.

This grant aligns with Strategic Direction #4, Foster Student Success, by providing students with accessible pathways and effective support structures that promote persistence, educational attainment, and academic achievement.

This start-up award will fund expenses incurred on or after March 1, 2022, to support the expansion of the childcare program at the South Texas College Mid-Valley Campus Child Development Center.  Funds will allow the Mid-Valley Campus to provide additional childcare slots for students, faculty/staff and community members.  Funds will also be used towards staffing costs, indoor and outdoor equipment, office furnishings and equipment, kitchen supplies, and safety supplies. The grant is managed by Civitas Strategies Early Start. The funding period is upon signature through March 2024.

This grant aligns with Strategic Direction #4, Foster Student Success, by providing a support system that promotes persistence and academic achievement.

The Texas Workforce Commission has dedicated funds to support collaborations between Local Workforce Development Boards and local industry partners for the leveraging of matching contributions of cash or qualifying expenditures for occupational job training. The Lower Rio Grande Valley Workforce Development Board is partnering with the South Texas College Foundation (STCF) and South Texas College (STC) to address financial hardships faced by current/enrolled STC students and supporting labor and skills gap shortages in the healthcare industry. Grant funds will be used to serve/aid up to 125 eligible current students obtain required occupational licensure, certifications and/or supplies. The funding period is from February 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023.

This grant aligns to Strategic Direction #4, Foster Student Success, by providing support systems that help students enter and stay on a path leading to employment and/or further education.

The Grow with Google HSI Career Readiness award offers a semester-long in-person and online digital skills program to help dual and traditional students prepare for critical steps in their career journey and increase their economic potential. Students will have an opportunity to join interactive video and in-person lessons, participate in activities that help them master key digital and real-world skills, and meet with peers or career counselors for follow-up discussions. Funds will be utilized for part-time staff to meet with faculty and develop an implementation plan, incentive gift cards for students, and promotional and marketing efforts. The additional funds increase the awarded amount to $55,000. The funding period for this grant is from December 1, 2021 to December 31, 2023.

This grant aligns to Strategic Direction #3, Creating Educational Opportunities for Students, by aligning programs with emerging technologies and changing needs in the job market. The Division of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management will oversee the grant and implementation of the Career Readiness Program.

This grant is awarded to the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing (IAM) to provide customized training in the areas of Advanced Technologies, Manufacturing, IT, Healthcare and Construction. IAM will partner with the Lower Rio Grande Valley Workforce Board to identify skilled workers in need of training. Additional funding may be requested to provide additional training. The funding period is pending contract execution.

The award aligns with Strategic Direction #3, High Success Rate. Participating trainees would develop knowledge and skills that would help them in their current employment, which can also increase the potential for economic and social mobility among residents in our region.

Funding from the Gene Haas Foundation will provide scholarships for students enrolled in South Texas College’s Certificate Program in Manufacturing with plans to pursue an Associate Degree in Precision Manufacturing Technology or students enrolled in the Associate Degree in Precision Manufacturing Program. Scholarship funds can be used for tuition, books, and small personal tools such as calipers, micrometers and safety glasses. The funding period is October 11, 2022 through October 10, 2023.

This award aligns with Strategic Direction # 2, Access and Success by providing students with scholarship opportunities.

Authorization is requested to accept additional funds in the amount of $50,000.  Funds will be used by the Department of Continuing, Professional, and Workforce Education to serve 200 low-income residents of Hidalgo and Starr counties through 150 hours of GED preparation contextualized to various industry clusters.  In addition, residents will receive six hours of Academic Success Skills, four hours of College Connections, five hours of Job Readiness Skills, and four hours of CPR/AED Certification.

Additional Funds will increase the awarded amount to $200,000.  This award aligns with Strategic Direction #2, Access and Success, by providing students with access to High School Equivalency preparation.

This grant will provide training to 160 current and future manufacturing, construction and warehousing employees in Safe Work Practices using Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) curricula, and train 30 unemployed/underemployed individuals in Safety and Phlebotomy Certification. The funding period is pending contract execution.

The award aligns with Strategic Direction #1, Lead Community Engagement, by aligning educational opportunities with community and workforce needs.

Funding from this grant will enhance the College’s re-engagement strategies and expand its network of basic needs supports through cross-agency collaborations by developing and institutionalizing a comprehensive re-engagement support plan for students that have some college hours but no credentials. Funds will also be utilized to address existing financial insecurity issues affecting stop-out students who are close to credential completion. The funding period is pending contract execution.

This award aligns with Strategic Direction #4: Foster Student Success, by providing students with accessible pathways and effective support structures that promote persistence, educational attainment, academic achievement, and personal and professional growth.

Tentative funding from this grant will be used for the creation of a new Child Care Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP). The proposed 12-month Child Care RAP will lead to a Nationally Recognized Credential issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and to the Child Development Associate (CDA) credential issued by the Council for Professional Recognition; it will also lead to an Articulation Agreement with the Child Development and Early Childhood program at South Texas College whereby Child Care apprentices may earn up to eight (8) semester credit hours upon attaining their CDA credential and enrolling and completing their credit-bearing Infant and Toddler Certificate or Preschool Certificate program. The Child Care RAP will operate in the two counties that the college serves: Hidalgo and Starr.  The funding period is upon execution through November 30, 2023.

This award aligns with Strategic Direction #2, Access and Success, by providing students apprenticeship opportunities through related classroom instruction and on-the-job learning.

This grant will help enhance the professional skills of employees of businesses that provide key services in the City of Weslaco. This grant will allow the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing (IAM) to offer both general and advanced trainings for industries such as logistics, distribution, manufacturing, produce, and Industrial supply, as well as, small, independently-owned retail and service businesses. This training will help Weslaco-based employers and their employees become more productive and efficient and ultimately, more competitive. Funds will cover the cost of tuition, materials and supplies for classes. The funding period is from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023.

This award aligns to Strategic Direction #1, Lead Community Engagement, by providing training that develops skills to meet employer needs and contributes toward the economic mobility of the region.

Funding from this grant will help to expand existing re-engagement initiatives by developing and institutionalizing a comprehensive re-engagement support plan for students that have some college hours but no credentials. This grant will help provide enrollment staff with professional growth opportunities to increase knowledge for developing a comprehensive re-engagement plan, and it will expand existing institutional resources through the acquisition of emerging technologies that are intentionally designed to re-engage students.

Funding from this grant will help accelerate the expansion of apprenticeship programs for new and existing employers in key industry clusters and increase the marketability of the Apprenticeship Expansion program. This expansion includes adding 297 new Apprentices, creating 7 new Registered Apprenticeships, expanding upon 6 Registered Apprenticeships, and creating 2 new Pre-Apprenticeships. This program will support the following state-prescribed targeted industries, including Advanced Manufacturing, Information and Computer Technology, Business Management and Operation, Construction, Healthcare and Information, and Computer Technology.

Funding from this grant will help to increase knowledge of safety, maintenance, robotics, and automation for 72 students that are enrolled in the Maintenance Repair program. Completion of this program will result in Manufacturing Skill Standards Council (MSSC) Certifications that include Certified Production Technician (CPT) in Safety, Certified Production Technician (CPT) in Maintenance, Factory Automation Numerical Control (FANUC)/National Occupational Competency Testing Institute (NOCTI) Level I Robot Operator and FESTO, National Coalition of Certification Centers (NC3) Programmable Logic Controller Certification programs.

Funding from this program will help increase Hispanic-Latino representation in careers in health care and will also support enrollment efforts to expand the college’s institution's capacity to meet workforce demands. The South Texas College Foundation will receive $50,000 from this grant to help students enroll in healthcare programs by covering license and test fees. The remaining $200,000 will be used by the Department of Continuing, Professional, and Workforce Education to hire a Healthcare Instructor and two Student Success Specialists to support students in GED/non-credit Healthcare Pathway Programs. Funds will also be used for curriculum development and to develop a non-credit to credit the Healthcare Pathway program.

This award focuses on improving the academic and technical achievement of Career and Technical Education (CTE) students, strengthening the connections between secondary, and postsecondary education, employer engagement, and improving accountability. Funds will be used for instructional equipment, instructional supplements, professional development, CTE personnel, datahub software, and other program activities in the Divisions of Academic Affairs, Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, Information Services, Planning, Performance, and Strategic Initiatives, and in Institutional Advancement and Economic Development. This formula-based allocation supports the Perkins V Act Postsecondary Level Core Indicators: Postsecondary Placement, Earned Recognized Postsecondary Credential, and Non-traditional Program Concentration, based on strategies aligned to the College’s Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment.

The Economic Development Administration’s investment will fund outside work that will be on the property adjacent to a new South Texas College Continuing Education building to be constructed with institutional funds in the City of McAllen. This grant aligns to the 2019-2024 Lower Rio Grande Valley Regional Strategic Plan by supporting workforce development programs to successfully prepare a well-educated, highly-skilled professional and technical workforce to meet the demands of regional industry growth. The federal EDA investment amounts to 80% of the total project costs. South Texas College’s match contribution in the amount of $375,000 meets the federal match requirement of 20% of the project, which totals to $1,875,000. The match funds will be funded by South Texas College’s Department of Continuing Professional and Workforce Education reserve fund. Funds will cover the costs of site work, parking lot and drive, and landscaping for this project. South Texas College’s Department of Facilities Planning and Construction will oversee this project.

The SSARP program supports public and private nonprofit IHEs that the Secretary of Education determines have, after allocating other funds available under HEERF III, the greatest unmet needs related to the coronavirus. South Texas College’s award falls under the grant’s Absolute Priority #4, which is for community colleges and rural institutions of higher education serving a high percentage of low-income students and experiencing enrollment decline. Under Absolute Priority #4, the institution must use at least 50 percent of funds (or $3,401,886) awarded for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students, which may be used for any component of the student’s cost of attendance or for emergency costs that arise due to coronavirus, such as tuition, food, housing, healthcare (including mental health care), or child care. Emergency Financial Aid Grants must be distributed consistent with section 314C of CRRSAA (Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021). The College may also use a portion of funds for institutional costs to defray expenses associated with coronavirus (including lost revenue, reimbursement for expenses already incurred, technology costs associated with a transition to distance education, faculty and staff trainings, and payroll).

This award will provide training for employees of small businesses with less than 100 employees. Funds will be used to cover tuition and fees for course offerings provided by South Texas College’s Department of Continuing, Professional and Workforce Education and the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing in an amount up to $1,800 in a 12-month period for a new employee and up to $900 for an existing employee. Courses in accounting, computers, strategic management, safety, medical front office skills, and customer service will be offered. In addition, $40,000 of the funds have been set aside to provide training for employees of childcare centers.

This project will build upon the success of the Advancing Completion and Employability (ACE) project by developing replicable Competency-Based Education courses for Associate Degrees in Building Technologies (i.e. Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning, Electrician Assistant, and Construction Supervision). Funds will be used to develop a Labor Market Building Technologies Career Pathway model aligned to stakeholder needs. The award aligns with Strategic Direction # 4, Foster Student Success, by providing students with accessible pathways and effective support structures that promote persistence, educational attainment, academic achievement, and professional growth.

This subaward will provide scholarship funding for selected STC Associate in Science (AS) majors. Students will be selected based on their interest in careers in food, agriculture, and natural resources, they will receive financial support and assistance with the transfer process for matriculation into UTRGV’s Agricultural Sciences program. The funding period is from September 1, 2021, to July 31, 2025. This award aligns to Strategic Direction #3, Create Educational Opportunities for Students, by offering opportunities that enable a seamless transfer to advanced degrees and align with emerging workforce needs.

This subaward will fund a stipend for a faculty member at South Texas College (STC) to promote, inform, and recruit at least four students per year for Algae Biotechnology summer courses to be held at UTRGV as part of the BE AWARE 2 program. During the Algae Biotechnology summer course, STC faculty will observe, mentor, and aid in the instruction with students throughout the 5-week course.

This program will help strengthen students’ interest in the biological sciences and prepare them for future careers related to the food, agriculture, natural resources, and human (FANH) sciences. The funding period is from September 1, 2020, to August 2024.

This award aligns with Strategic Goal # 1, Lead Community Engagement, engaging and strengthening communities through diverse efforts and developing partnerships to align educational opportunities with community needs.

The S-STEM grant will provide scholarships to two cohorts of 20 undergraduate students pursuing an associate’s degree in biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering, mathematics, and physics. The project aims to increase student persistence, retention, transfer, and graduation in STEM fields by linking scholarships with structured student professional development activities, including faculty mentoring, tutoring, undergraduate research experiences, internships, and participation in discipline-specific conferences. The funding period is from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2024.

Prior to pursuing this grant, the Department of Resource Development, Management and Compliance and the Division for Math, Science, and Bachelor Programs coordinated efforts and the college invested in providing professional development for faculty and Grant Development Officers focused on developing strong proposals for NSF grants. In 2018, The Grant Training Center conducted training titled Designing Winning National Science Foundation (NSF) Proposals. This NSF S-STEM Grant is the first NSF grant to be awarded to South Texas College over the last five years.

This grant aligns with Strategic Direction #3, to Create Educational Opportunities for Students and Strategic Direction #4, Foster Student Success, by providing educational opportunities that enable a seamless transfer to advanced degrees and by providing effective a support structure that promote persistence, educational attainment, academic achievement, personal and professional growth.

The purpose of this grant is to implement a 5-year project that will assist a total of 500 Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers (MSFW) and eligible family members to obtain the equivalent of a secondary school diploma with opportunities to enroll in a post-secondary Industry Recognized Certification Career Pathway Training Program at South Texas College and to continue to complete a degree program.  Funds will be used for personnel to provide oversight, coordination of the project, individualized case management support, supplies, tuition, fees, fuel allowances for HEP participants, and the external evaluation of the project. The funding period is from July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2024.

This award aligns to Strategic Directions #1, Clear Pathways, by providing students with clear college and career pathways that lead to completion and jobs.

This grant provides funds to increase the number of courses offered in the competency-based (CB) format for the CB Bachelor’s Programs in Organizational Leadership and Technology Management. Upper division and general education courses will be converted to the CB format to ensure the programs offer the same quality and resources as traditional bachelor’s programs. The funding period is from January 2019 to January 1, 2024.

This grant is aligned to Strategic Direction #2, Access and Success by increasing the number of competency-based courses in the Bachelor’s of Applied Technology and Science Programs.

South Texas College and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) will collaborate to develop a 100% online competency-based (CB) Bachelor of Science Degree in Early Care and Early Childhood Studies (ECEC).

The benefits of this project are increased enrollment, expanded inventory of CB courses, and additional pathways for students to earn bachelor’s degree that are affordable, accessible, and accelerated. In addition, STC will contribute $5,855 in-kind support for overseeing the planning, implementation and evaluation of the project. The funding period is from January 2019 to January 1, 2024.

This award aligns to Strategic Direction #2, Access and Success, by creating a competency-based Bachelor of Science Degree in Early Care and Early Childhood Studies as an affordable, accessible, and accelerated path to completion of the bachelor degree program.