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MU Awarded $1 Million Grant

The University of Missouri has been selected as one of 33 colleges to receive a $1 million grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.  This is a five-year grant given to universities as part of the Inclusive Excellence initiative.  This specific grant will be used to encourage the engagement of all students, regardless of their backgrounds, in the field of science.

In the press release, MU Interim Provost Jim Spain said, ““The goal of Mizzou’s efforts will be to strengthen relationships and align our programming with partner schools.  We also will engage with learning communities of students, faculty and staff to develop a culture of inclusive excellence, by empowering participants in the practice of science.”

The Inclusive Excellence initiative was started by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to “promote leadership in science education through peer-reviewed grants competitions for four-year colleges and universities.”  According to HHMI’s website, the schools that have been selected over the last two years are expected to:

  • Identify opportunities to build campus capacity for inclusion of students from diverse backgrounds
  • Engage in the process of culture change, experimenting with approaches from faculty training to revising curricula
  • Reflect on the impact of their efforts, discover areas to improve, and share results with the scientific community

“This initiative is about encouraging colleges and universities to change the way they do business ­­­─ to become institutions with a significantly greater capacity for inclusion of all students, especially those from nontraditional backgrounds,” says Erin O’Shea, the president of HHMI.