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Lilly Endowment awards $6 million
The Lilly Endowment has awarded two grants totaling $6 million to Rose-Hulman Institute
of Technology to build a new residence hall and to create a collaborative program with
Vigo County teachers to better prepare middle-school students for college success by using
computers to enhance students’ skills in science, mathematics and pre-engineering.
The grants are part of the Endowment’s continuing efforts to address the problem that
Indiana ranks 48th among the 50 states in the percentage of its adult population with a
baccalaureate degree, according to Ralph Lundgren, Endowment vice president for education.
Residence Hall Designed to Enhance Sophomore Academic Success
A $5 million grant will help build a new residence hall that will feature
new programs to increase sophomore retention. The residence hall will house expanded
educational enrichment and career planning programs targeted at enhancing sophomore
academic success. Two juniors and seniors will serve as tutors on each floor.
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Two study areas per floor will be used for group or individual sessions. The hall will
utilize the latest in academic computer networks.
Data show that if Rose-Hulman students progress to the junior year, their chances of
graduating increase dramatically. During the past five years, an average of only four
percent of the Rose-Hulman students who successfully completed their sophomore year did
not graduate.
The facility will also alleviate an on-campus housing shortage that has existed for many
years. The last residence hall constructed at Rose-Hulman was 23 years ago.
The new three-story building with a basement will be located on the west side of campus
next to Speed Hall. The 56,000 square-foot structure will house 216 students.
Total cost of the residence hall will be $11.3 million. That amount includes money for
a relocated observatory.
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Construction has begun and will be completed in about 12 months.
“We’re overjoyed by the Endowment’s generosity that has turned our dreams
into reality,” said Rose-Hulman President Samuel Hulbert.
“The funding will create a new type of residence hall environment that will meet the
needs of our students into the 21st century,” stated Hulbert. |
Increasing Young Students’ Chances for Success in College
The Endowment has awarded $1 million to Rose-Hulman for a program to collaborate with the
Vigo County School Corporation to increase middle-school students’ skills in science,
mathematics and pre-engineering by using advanced computer technologies. The program is
titled, “Enabling Academic Excellence Through Computer-Mediated Technologies.”
Other objectives of the program are:
• To increase knowledge transfer, professional development and curriculum reform by
expanding collaboration between Rose-Hulman faculty and middle-school teachers.
• To sponsor activities that build student academic competencies, strengthen
self-confidence and self-motivation.
• To sustain these efforts beyond the three-year grant period by increasing awareness
about the benefits of computers in education and securing funds through alliances with
business, government, parents and foundations.
Computer technologies will be integrated into the classroom through various programs. Each
year, used laptop computers from Rose-Hulman will be moved to middle-schools, and summer
workshops to instruct teachers on effective uses of computers will be conducted. Teams of
Rose-Hulman faculty and middle-school teachers will work to create curricular reform and
enhance student motivation.
Six grants will be awarded each year for the next three years to teams of Rose-Hulman and
Vigo County School Corp. educators to participate in the program. A competitive grant
application process will be judged by Indiana educators.
The program begins in January 1999, and will be coordinated by Patricia Carlson,
Rose-Hulman professor of American Literature and director of English programs.
Hulbert said the Endowment grant is significant because it will enable Rose-Hulman to
develop its largest program ever to collaborate with secondary educators to increase the
number of Indiana students who will succeed in college.
“The colleges receiving grants were most imaginative in devising projects and
programs to help prepare young people to succeed in college,” according to Lundgren.
— by David Piker
 
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