Cohen Joins LeMoyne-Owen College Officials to Announce Details of a $700,000 Grant

MEMPHIS, TN -- Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) and LeMoyne-Owen College President Johnnie B. Watson today revealed details of a 3-year federal Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP) grant worth more than $700,000.

“As the only college in the state of Tennessee to be awarded this highly competitive grant, we are thrilled and truly grateful for these crucial resources,” LeMoyne-Owen College President Watson said. “Science and technology are the driving forces behind jobs that emerge nearly every day in our country and these funds will be used to prepare our students to successfully compete in the ever evolving job market.”

Congressman Steve Cohen agrees. “Careers in the science and engineering industries are growing, exciting and rewarding,” he said. “LeMoyne-Owen College students pursuing jobs in those fields will benefit tremendously from this grant.”

LeMoyne-Owen will use the funds to lay a foundation for 12 sophomore students to improve their performance in the college’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) program. The carefully selected students may receive a stipend of up to $6,000 a year to defray normal living expenses in an effort to reduce their work hours and thereby increase the number of hours they have to devote to their studies. The goal also is to enable them to devote more time to community service, a major component of LeMoyne-Owen College’s curriculum.

The students also will be housed in a designated dormitory to encourage academic and professional camaraderie. “This kind of dynamic goes on at Ivy League schools where students develop close-knit working relationships that go beyond their college years and into their professional lives,” President Watson said. “These enduring relationships serve to increase the likelihood of higher academic achievement and professional success.”

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