The Integrated Achievement and Mentoring (iAM) Program
About
The Integrated Achievement and Mentoring (iAM) Program for Student Success is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and run by an interdisciplinary group of faculty from the Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the DeMatteis School of Engineering and Applied Science, and faculty from Nassau Community College.
With funding from the NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) program, the iAM Program provides support to students with the academic promise to succeed in STEM disciplines at Hofstra and Nassau Community College. The iAM Program provides integrated support and mentorship to promote academic and career success for its scholars. The iAM Program also prepares upper-level scholars to mentor new arrivals in the program. The iAM Scholars find a new community of peers and professors dedicated to helping them succeed.
Scholars who meet financial criteria receive scholarships funded by the NSF. To receive funding, scholars must maintain Pell eligibility and matriculation in an approved STEM major at Hofstra and Nassau Community College. Students join the iAM program via one of two pathways:
(1) Current Hofstra STEM majors
Participation of Hofstra STEM majors is by invitation only. Eligible students are contacted in January and offered the opportunity to apply. The iAM Program team reviews applications before the spring semester.
Students whose applications are selected are invited to an interview to ensure that the iAM Program is a good fit for each scholar.
(2) High School Students Interested in STEM careers
Each year, beginning in spring 2023, high school seniors will be recruited to join the iAM Program. Seniors from any Long Island school district may apply with priority given to students from four anchor high schools (Freeport, Hempstead, Roosevelt, and Uniondale High Schools). Students submit applications and are interviewed by the iAM Program leadership team. These scholars begin at Nassau Community College, conducting research in the summer following high school graduation and enrolling in classes for the fall semester. Following two years in the iAM Program at Nassau Community College, scholars transfer to Hofstra University, continue with the iAM Program at Hofstra, and complete a bachelor’s degree.