Week of Giving 2026 SCSE Student Success Programs

The Peer Connections Initiative: Guiding the First-Year Journey

The Challenge: First year students in the Swenson College of Science and Engineering (SCSE) face a pivotal, high-stakes transition. Students are navigating a new environment, intense academic demands, and the search for a supportive social circle. Without a direct link to an experienced peer, students feel isolated - a critical factor in declining confidence and retention.

The Solution: SCSE First-Year Peer Connections Through our new First-Year Peer Connections Program, no student has to navigate their first year alone. We pair incoming first-year students with current students to share advice, foster academic resilience, and create a strong sense of community from day one. Give back to the community that shaped you. Your gift builds the peer-to-peer infrastructure that keeps our students enrolled, engaged and thriving.

Invest in a Student's Success: Giving Levels

Every gift between $25 and $50 helps a new student feel at home in our SCSE community:

The "Peer Connection" Level: Fuels the heartbeat of our program by funding the community building events throughout the year that turn formal pairings into friendships, ensuring the transition to college isn’t just about academics, but about building a community they can lean on. 

The Impact of Your Support

• Social Integration and Well Being: Students move from "newcomers" to "community members" faster through peer-led social events.
• Academic Confidence: New students gain practical advice from those who have successfully navigated the same journey.
• Leadership Development: Our Peer Connectors gain valuable experience in leadership and communication.

Your contribution ensures that the next generation of scientists and engineers begins their journey with a clear path and a supportive community.

Launching Careers: The SCSE Student Career Development Fund

For a student in the Swenson College of Science and Engineering, the transition from the classroom to a career is a major milestone. We provide the roadmap through interview workshops, networking dinners, and professional resume reviews. However, there is a hidden barrier to our success: our current career programs rely heavily on corporate sponsorship fees. While our corporate partners are vital, these fees often prevent community non-profits and smaller organizations from participating.

Expanding the Network

Our students’ interests are as diverse as their majors. Many want to apply their STEM skills to environmental conservation, public health, and community advocacy—fields where non-profits lead the way.

By supporting the Student Career Development Fund, you help us remove these financial barriers. Your gift allows us to:

• Offer Free Participation for Students: Ensuring that no student is barred from a networking dinner or workshop due to cost.
• Broaden the Employer Base: Inviting non-profits to the table alongside major corporations, giving students a truly expansive look at where their degree can take them.
• Build Real-World Readiness: Funding the high-impact data-driven workshops that we know result in successful internships and job offers.

How Your Gift Opens Doors

Your contribution of $25 to $100 ensures our students have access to a full spectrum of professional opportunities.

Invest in Their Next Step

Success shouldn't be limited by a fee. Help us ensure that every SCSE student—whether they dream of working for a Fortune 500 company or a local environmental non-profit—has the tools and the network to succeed.

Bridging the Gap: Empowering UMD SCSE Students

At the University of Minnesota Duluth, we believe every aspiring scientist and engineer deserves a clear path to graduation. However, for many incoming students, that path depends on a single factor: starting college calculus ready.

The Challenge: The Calculus Gateway

Calculus is the foundation of a STEM career. In fact, 24 of the 26 unique degree programs in SCSE require Calculus I as the gateway for graduating in four years.

Unfortunately, we are seeing a steady increase in students placing into Pre-Calculus (MATH 1250) rather than Calculus I (MATH 1296). The data on why this matters is clear:

• Graduation Rates: Students who start in Calculus I are nearly 9% more likely to graduate in four years than those starting in Pre-Calculus.
• Retention: Students starting in Calculus I are significantly less likely to leave the university without a degree.

The Solution: The SCSE Summer Bridge Program

We are changing the trajectory for these students. The SCSE Summer Bridge Program is a 3-week residential intensive designed to help students advance their math placement before their first semester begins.

This program is offered completely free of charge to participants, ensuring that financial means are never a barrier to academic success.

Does it work? Yes.

In our Summer 2025 cohort, 12 of the 16 participating students successfully advanced into Calculus I, saving them a semester of coursework and significantly increasing their likelihood of a timely graduation.

More Than Just Math

While math is the focus, student success is the goal. We provide a holistic "head start" on the UMD experience through:

• Intensive Math Instruction: Focused, hands-on learning to master the concepts required to test into Calculus I.
• Technical Coursework: Students engage in introductory technical work specific to their major, preparing them for the rigors of college-level labs and lectures.
• College & Life Skills: From navigating campus to building a study routine, we help students develop the confidence and "soft skills" necessary to thrive in their first year.

Small Gifts, Big Impact - Invest in a Four-Year Future

It costs approximately $3,800 to fully fund one student's transformation during this 3-week program. Because we offer this experience at no cost to the student, UMD’s community can help open up more spaces within this program.

During the UMD Week of Giving, your donation buys specific, tangible necessities that directly support our students.

Empowering the Classroom: Support the SCSE Learning Assistant Program

In a large lecture hall with 200 students, it is nearly impossible for one professor to reach every student. While research shows that students learn best by solving problems in groups, a single instructor cannot be everywhere at once.

This is where our Learning Assistants (LAs) change the game. LAs are undergraduate "near-peer mentors" who have recently mastered the course material. They don't just give answers—they are trained to engage their peers in critical thinking. The results are undeniable: In General Chemistry, the introduction of LAs helped drop the D, F, or Withdrawal (DFW) rate from 17.6% to just 3.75%. That is the difference between 35 students falling behind and only 8.

The Goal: Stronger Faculty-LA Partnerships

The rapid growth of our program—from 23 LAs in 2023 to 98 LAs supporting 57 course sections in 2026—means we must invest in the "teaching team"-- the collaboration of a faculty member with a learning assistant.  Here’s how one of our Learning Assistants views the importance of the faculty-student relationship:

“I like working with my faculty member. It's nice to get to know a professor. I asked my LA faculty member to be my advisor and it works very well. Because of our relationship I am also able to ask them to write letters of recommendation.  It's really cool to see what goes on behind just the normal lectures.” 

To maintain this success, we are seeking funds to provide specialized training for faculty. This training ensures that professors and LAs work as a seamless unit, implementing evidence-based, active-learning strategies that keep students engaged and on track for their degrees.

How Your Gift Fuels Student Success

We are seeking to raise $5,000 to support specialized training to further develop the faculty/LA collaborative partnership.  Your donation of $25 to $100 supports the professional development and collaborative training required to turn a standard lecture into an active-learning environment.

Make an Impact Today

When you support the LA program, you aren't just funding a job—you are funding a proven model for student retention. You are helping faculty move away from "the sage on the stage" and toward a classroom where every student is heard, challenged, and supported.

Making a Difference Through Research

UMD students are already changing the world. From the labs in the Heikkila Chemistry building to the depths of Lake Superior and the vast Minnesota forests, our undergraduates are pursuing knowledge that has real-world consequences.

The Power of Real-World Experience

When a student joins a research project, they move beyond the textbook. They become creators of new information:

• Chemistry students are developing molecular-level solar energy cells that mimic plant cells to revolutionize renewable energy.
• Bulldog Engineers are inventing specialized tools designed to protect U.S. soldiers in war zones.
• Biology and Environmental students are tracking climate change in the Great Lakes and studying biodiversity in our local ecosystems.

Why Early Research Matters

By participating in research as early as their freshman year, SCSE students gain a competitive edge. This experience:

• Challenges them to achieve high-level goals before they even enter the workforce.
• Clarifies their path by helping them discover what they truly love (and what they don't) in their field.
• Connects them with faculty mentors and a community of peers who share their drive and curiosity.
• Empowers them to pursue independent research on topics they are personally passionate about.

How Your Gift Fuels Discovery

Summer research often requires specialized equipment, travel to field sites, and lab supplies. Because these programs are highly individualized, small donations make a significant difference in a student’s ability to complete their project.

Support a Student's Passion

Your contribution of $25, $50, or $100 ensures that our students don't have to wait to start their careers. You are providing the tools they need to be leaders, innovators, and problem-solvers today.