WASHINGTON – Arizona senior Senator Kyrsten Sinema backed a bipartisan bill that renews Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) funding for several Arizona institutions.
“We’re strengthening STEM education to better equip Arizona students for the jobs of the future,” said Sinema.
“This bipartisan proposal represents critical funding opportunities that support access and high quality educational experiences for our increasingly diverse college students attending MSIs across the nation; without it, we compromise our ability to graduate a diverse and talented workforce. As a Hispanic Serving Institution, the University of Arizona is grateful to Senator Sinema for supporting the FUTURE Act,” said Marla Franco, University of Arizona’s Assistant Vice Provost, Hispanic Serving Institution Initiatives.
“I fully support the passage of the FUTURES act because the loss of Title 3 Part F funding would have a huge negative impact on our students at Diné College. T3 funds 80% of our student success programs. This means the support for students who need it most would be eliminated. Most of our students at Diné College are first generation and T3 allows us to give targeted assistance to provide the equity our students deserve to be successful. Today, T3 allows Diné College to provide additional support like peer mentoring, first year experience, Freshman Institute and advising,” said Monty Roessel, President, Diné College.
The Fostering Undergraduate Talent by Unlocking Resources for Education (FUTURE) Act provides funding for 16 Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) and four Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) in Arizona. The bipartisan legislation provides funding that improves STEM programs, expands research opportunities, and provides services like counseling, tutoring, and mentoring. Sinema’s work in the Senate involves expanding opportunity and increasing affordability of education for Arizona students. Sinema recently introduced the bipartisan Student Loan Tax Elimination Act that eliminates federal student loan origination fees, lessening the burden on students borrowing from college. The Senator also helped secure a $2.5 million grant to Arizona State University, a Minority Serving Institution, to reduce textbook costs for students and their families.