February 5, 2024
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) is proud to announce it has received $110,351 from the American Institute of Physics (AIP) Foundation through its TEAM-UP Together Expanding Expertise, Championing Excellence & Leadership (TUT EXCEL) program. Over the next two years, this funding will advance the College’s efforts to increase its African American physics student enrollment, increase African American students' sense of department belonging, and introduce systemic changes to the physics bachelor of arts degree program to ensure positive outcomes for the department’s African American students.
The AIP Foundation grant will allow MCLA to implement four main initiatives: a specialized recruitment campaign, a revised corequisite model ensuring all students have a path to the degree, strategic external partnerships, and on-campus activities.
The TUT EXCEL program’s objectives align with MCLA’s mission to make opportunities provided by higher education accessible to underrepresented populations. MCLA is nationally ranked for its impact on social mobility. The proportion of ALANA students — about 1 in 4, with 8% total identifying as African American — further demonstrates the College’s commitment to diversity. As one of 11 public liberal arts colleges across the country offering a degree in physics, MCLA has a long history of graduating first generation, Pell eligible, and ALANA students, and coaching those students through the job and graduate school application processes.
"The Physics Department is deeply grateful to be recipients of the AIP funded TUT EXCEL grant,” said MCLA Associate Professor and Chair of the Physics Department Dr. Kebra Ward. “This significant funding opportunity enables us to directly support our current and future African American students in ways that we previously could not. We will expand attendance at national conferences for students and provide additional professional development opportunities for faculty. We will fund more events through the MCLA chapter of the Society of Physics Students and provide material support, such as computers and books, for our African American students.
“We've even started a speaker series,” said Ward. “Most significantly, we'll be able to engage future physics majors with new outreach initiatives. We're committed to leveraging this grant to nurture a thriving, inclusive physics community at MCLA and empower future generations of African American physicists."
About MCLA
At MCLA, we’re here for all — and focused on each — of our students. Classes are taught
by educators who care deeply about teaching, and about seeing their students thrive
on every level of their lives. In nearly every way possible, the experience at MCLA
is designed to elevate our students as individuals, leaders, and communicators, fully
empowered to make their impressions on the world. In addition to our 129-year commitment
to public education, we have fortified our commitment to equitable academic excellence. MCLA
has appeared on U.S. News’ list of Top Ten Public Colleges for nine consecutive years
— ranking No. 7 for Public Liberal Arts Schools in the nation for a third year. The
College's continued commitment to affordable education and economic prosperity is
reflected in its list of National Liberal Arts Colleges for Social Mobility since
the organization adopted this ranking in 2019; No. 1 in the state, No. 2 in the country,
and No. 22 for National Liberal Arts Colleges. These rankings measure how well schools
graduate students who receive Federal Pell Grants. Learn more at www.mcla.edu.
