Bloomberg Philanthropies Recognizes Stevens Institute of Technology as an American Talent Initiative High-Flier for Transformative Leadership in College Access and Success for Lower-Income Students

NEW YORK, NY and HOBOKEN, NJ – May 23, 2023 – Bloomberg Philanthropies today recognized Stevens Institute of Technology as an American Talent Initiative (ATI) High-Flier, a group of 28 high-graduation-rate institutions that are national leaders in college access and success for lower-income students. Stevens Institute of Technology received the distinction for its steady gains in lower-income student enrollment since 2015-16, and innovative recruitment, enrollment, and retention practices. Over the next year, ATI and Bloomberg Philanthropies will work with High-Fliers to amplify what they have learned to other four-year colleges and universities across the nation. The full list of ATI’s 28 High-Fliers is listed below.

An initiative led by Bloomberg Philanthropies in partnership with Aspen Institute’s College Excellence Program and Ithaka S+R, ATI serves as a growing nationwide alliance of high-graduation-rate colleges and universities grounded in the belief that they can collectively expand access for tens of thousands of high-achieving, lower-income students. By doing so, these institutions are increasing socioeconomic diversity within their respective student communities.

"The economic fallout from the pandemic has made it even more important for schools across the country to adopt innovative new ways to attract and retain students from under-represented backgrounds," said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies and 108th mayor of New York City. “I applaud ATI's 28 High-Fliers for leading the way in this work and increasing the diversity of their campuses. We hope their efforts serve as an example for other schools that are committed to creating opportunity for more lower-income students, so we can accelerate national progress on this critical challenge.”

Since ATI’s launch in 2016, Stevens Institute of Technology has been one of the five fastest growers in Pell enrollment among the 137 members of ATI.

Stevens has achieved this through its Accessing Careers in Engineering and Science (ACES) initiative, partnering with high schools in underserved communities to provide educational support for students, school counselors and STEM teachers, as well as scholarships for students to attend Stevens’ summer pre-college programs. ACES students who go on to pursue a degree at Stevens continue to receive both academic and financial assistance. The program received the 2019 Innovation in Education Award from the NJ Tech Council, as well as the New Jersey Business and Industry Association’s 2020 Diversity and Inclusion Award.

"At Stevens Institute of Technology, we are honored to be an ATI member and embrace the Accelerating Opportunity campaign. Our commitment to this initiative aligns with Stevens' mission to increase lower-income students' participation in STEM education,” said Dr. Nariman Farvardin, President of Stevens Institute of Technology. "I am particularly proud that Stevens has been one of ATI’s highest-performing members, making significant progress in Pell enrollment since 2015. We recognize the importance of fostering access and providing support to low- and moderate-income students who demonstrate exceptional talent and potential. Through our collaboration with ATI and our fellow member institutions, we can ensure that these students have the resources and opportunities they need to thrive and succeed in higher education and beyond."

"An example of Stevens Institute of Technology's commitment to ATI's Accelerating Opportunity campaign is our ACES program,” said David Zeng, Vice Provost for Academic Innovation and Faculty Affairs at Stevens Institute of Technology. "Stevens ACES introduces talented students with financial need, particularly URM students, to college life, inspires them to pursue STEM education and provides financial and academic support.

Initiatives like ACES have helped driveStevens Institute of Technology’s renewed commitment to this work. Along with their fellow ATI members, they set public, aspirational lower-income student enrollment goals for the first time to help combat the lingering impacts of the pandemic. Two years in, Stevens Institute of Technologyhas achieved its Accelerating Opportunity goal of20% Pell share. They also are advancing a shared commitment among all 137 ATI members to close equity-based retention and graduation gaps.

As a result of Stevens Institute of Technology’s leadership in ATI and the Accelerating Opportunity campaign, thousands of additional lower-income students across the United States are accessing and earning bachelor’s degrees. Data shows these students are historically more likely to have higher wages, pursue graduate degrees, become entrepreneurs, and engage in their communities.

“By expanding partnerships with community-based organizations and reducing barriers to experiential learning and research opportunities, we aim to reduce equity-based gaps for students across their higher education experience, including their sense of belonging, graduation rates, postgraduate education and job placement,” said Zeng.

For more information on ATI and Bloomberg Philanthropies’ other initiatives to expand college access and success, please visit: https://www.bloomberg.org/education/expanding-college-access-and-success/.

###

List of American Talent Initiative High-Fliers (in alpha order)
Baruch College (New York, NY)
Boston University (Boston, MA)
Centre College (Danville, KY)
Claremont McKenna College (Claremont, CA)
Colby College (Waterville, ME)
George Mason University (Fairfax, VA)
Gettysburg College (Gettysburg, PA)
Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago, IL)
Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD)
Muhlenberg College (Allentown, PA)
Northwestern University (Evanston, IL)
Princeton University (Princeton, NJ)
Rowan University (Glassboro, NJ)
State University of New York at Oneonta (Oneonta, NY)
Stevens Institute of Technology (Hoboken, NJ)
Stony Brook University (Stony Brook, NY)
Towson University (Towson, MD)
University of California, Merced (Merced, CA)
University of California, San Diego (San Diego, CA)
University of Chicago (Chicago, IL)
University of Dayton (Dayton, OH)
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (Champaign, IL)
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (Ann Arbor, MI)
University of Texas-Austin (Austin, TX)
University of Wisconsin-Madison (Madison, WI)
Washington University in St. Louis (St. Louis, MO)
Wellesley College (Wellesley, MA)
Yale University (New Haven, CT)

###

About Bloomberg Philanthropies
Bloomberg Philanthropies invests in 700 cities and 150 countries around the world to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on five key areas for creating lasting change: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation, and Public Health. Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg’s giving, including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a pro bono consultancy that works in cities around the world. In 2022, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $1.7 billion. For more information, please visit bloomberg.org, sign up for our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

About the American Talent Initiative
The American Talent Initiative (ATI) is a Bloomberg Philanthropies-supported collaboration between the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program, Ithaka S+R, and more than 135 top colleges and universities nationwide committed to making progress toward their Accelerating Opportunity lower-income student enrollment goals by 2025. To realize this milestone, ATI facilitates research, practice-sharing, and communications campaigns around presidential leadership, access and affordability, community college transfer, student veteran engagement, and student success and equity in the academic experience. With this support, members can make measurable progress toward their aspirational lower-income student enrollment goals and minimize equity-based graduation gaps by 2025. To learn more about ATI, visit https://americantalentinitiative.org.

About Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology is a premier, private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey, overlooking the Manhattan skyline. Since its founding in 1870, technological innovation and entrepreneurship have been the hallmarks of Stevens’ education and research. Within the university’s three schools and one college, Stevens prepares its more than 8,000 undergraduate and graduate students for an increasingly complex and technology-centric world. Our exceptional students collaborate closely with world-class faculty in an interdisciplinary, student-centric, entrepreneurial environment, readying them to fuel the innovation economy. Academic and research programs spanning finance, computing, engineering and the arts expand the frontiers of science and leverage technology to confront the most challenging problems of our time. Stevens is consistently ranked among the nation’s leaders in ROI and career services and is in the top 1% nationally of colleges with the highest-paid graduates.

Media Contacts:

Thania Benios, Stevens Institute of Technology
[email protected]

Jamila Johnson, Bloomberg Philanthropies
[email protected]

Adam Rabinowitz, Aspen Institute College Excellence Program
[email protected]