Scholarship Program To Encourage Top High School Students To Pursue STEM Careers

 Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci, the Ranking Republican Member on the Assembly’s Higher Education Committee, announced today that the state has launched a New York State Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Incentive Program. The program, created as part of the 2014-15 State Budget, encourages high school students who graduate at the top of their classes to pursue high-demand, high-tech careers through full SUNY or CUNY tuition scholarships. The scholarships are available to students who graduate in the top ten percent at every New York high school who major in a STEM field and work in a STEM job in New York State for five years after graduation. 

“Investing in STEM education is a critical component of reinvigorating New York’s economy. In recent years, we have seen jobs leave New York for greener pastures in states with more business-friendly economies. By creating a workforce skilled in the fields of math and science, we will create a fertile climate for start-up companies and established companies that need people to fill these critical roles. I am pleased to have worked with my colleagues in the Assembly and Senate, as well as the governor, to see this program come to fruition,” said Lupinacci.

To be eligible for the NYS STEM Incentive Program, students must attend a New York State high school and be ranked in the top ten percent of his/her graduating class (beginning with the 2014 graduating class). They must then enroll in full-time study at a SUNY or CUNY college in the fall term following high school graduation. Award details and applications are available at the New York State Higher Education Services (HESC) website at HESC.ny.gov. Applications for inclusion in this year’s program are due August 15, 2014. 

“I strongly encourage high school seniors across the 10^th Assembly District and all of Long Island to give the program sincere consideration as they prepare for the upcoming school year and evaluate how to best afford their higher education dreams,” concluded Lupinacci.