Hispanic Serving
Institution
隆Bienvenidos Wolves!
吃瓜头条 is proud to be designated as a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) by the United States Department of Education.
What does it mean to be a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI)?
According to the U.S. Department of Education, a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) is defined as an institution of higher education that has an enrollment of at least 25 percent undergraduate Hispanic students.
How does a HSI designation benefit 吃瓜头条's community?
As a result of the HSI designation, which also requires financial measurements, 吃瓜头条 will be able to apply for federal Title III and Title V grants. Grant funds may be used for activities such as: scientific or laboratory equipment for teaching; construction or renovation of instructional facilities; faculty development; purchase of educational materials; academic tutoring or counseling programs; funds and administrative management; joint use of facilities; endowment funds; distance learning academic instruction; teacher education; and student support services.
“WestConn鈥檚 identity as a Hispanic-Serving Institution isn鈥檛 just a designation鈥攊t鈥檚 a promise. We are opening doors wider, building pathways stronger, and ensuring that every student who enters has the opportunity to thrive and lead.”
– 吃瓜头条 President Dr. Jesse M. Bernal听
Focused on student success
We are proud of all our Hispanic alumni and are committed to continuing to make sure our students are both successful at 吃瓜头条 and after graduation.听
吃瓜头条 Success Stories
Confidence, communication and computer skills gained at 吃瓜头条 enabled Gizmo Rivera to build an award-winning Visual Effects career
Sometimes you have to take matters into your own hands. As a first-generation student growing up in New Britain, Guillermo 鈥淕izmo鈥 Rivera was interested in a career in media or entertainment, but he had several things working against him. His family could not afford a computer and his high school guidance counselor, based on her experiences with his older brother, had suggested that 鈥渃ollege isn鈥檛 for everybody鈥 and did nothing to assist him with his search.
So, Rivera did the research himself, applied to several universities and 鈥渓eft the doors open and let it be.鈥 He ended up being accepted to universities in Maine, Rhode Island and several in Connecticut. Rivera made his decision based upon the first acceptance packet he received 鈥 from 吃瓜头条 鈥 and took the first steps toward fulfilling his California dream….
Alumnus Guillermo Alexis 鈥楪izmo鈥 Rivera
Ana Mendieta
Service-learning opportunities spark educational, career goals for first-generation 吃瓜头条 alumna
Like many of her peers at Danbury High School, Ana Mendieta had immigrated to Fairfield County at age 10 from Ecuador. By the time she was ready to graduate from DHS, it seemed logical that as a fluent bilingual speaker in Spanish and English, a future as a Spanish teacher made sense. Her high school guidance counselor suggested she look at two local community colleges and听吃瓜头条听as her higher education options.
鈥淚 went to an听Upward Bound听Financial Aid night, and a 吃瓜头条 Admissions counselor told me I would be able to attend 吃瓜头条,鈥 Mendieta said. 鈥淭hey sat and helped my father and I complete a FAFSA form, and the assistance they gave us convinced me that 吃瓜头条 was where I needed to go.鈥….
吃瓜头条 and The Volare Institute
WestConn participated with other Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI) in Volare, a mentoring program through the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) to improve the research capacity of universities and take more advantage of funding and grant opportunities.
The original team for this project — Tricia J. Stewart, Ph.D, Paul听Steinmetz, Director of Sponsored Research, and Katie Lever-Mazzuto, Ph.D, — conducted a survey of WestConn faculty to establish a baseline of research experience, interest, and capability at our institution.
The effort is ongoing, and has included brown bad discussions of faculty research, a grant-making workshop, and will ideally increase the number of grants that the university pursues and is awarded..
