As one of the first entities established by the Kummer Institute, Kummer Student Programs remains directly and deeply connected to Fred and June Kummer’s desire to elevate Missouri S&T by preparing our students for an increasingly complex, technology-driven future.
Data analysis recently revealed that students in the Kummer Vanguard Scholars program earned a higher GPA and were more likely to remain at S&T following their first year, which is traditionally when students are most likely to drop out. Kummer Vanguard Scholars maintained, on average, a first‑year GPA of 3.5, and their retention rate was 93%. The average first-to-second-year retention at S&T is 85% and GPA is 3.2.
“The Kummer Vanguard Scholars program is preparing me for the real world after college by helping me develop leadership and networking skills that go beyond what I would have learned in the classroom,” says Emily Gurley, a junior in computer engineering and computer science from St. Louis County, Missouri.
Launched in fall 2021, the Kummer Vanguard Scholars program initially focused on providing professional and leadership programming and scholarships to undergraduates majoring in a STEM field.
Each fall, a new cohort of first-year and transfer students become Kummer Vanguard Scholars. The scholars receive renewable scholarships for up to four years and access to programs that emphasize entrepreneurship, social responsibility, research, design and build, and leadership.
With the arrival of a new class of Kummer Vanguard Scholars each fall, the program grows to include a wider array of services, connections and opportunities to engage beyond the classroom. These include guest lectures by prominent S&T alumni like Dr. Sandra Magnus, a former NASA astronaut, Kathy Walker, managing director of a venture capital firm, a retired telecommunications executive and a member of the Kummer Institute Foundation Board of Directors, and retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Samuel “Bo” Mahaney. At the same time, the program expands its reach to allow students who are not part of the program to benefit from its activities. For example, many of the participants in competitions organized by Kummer Student Programs — the Startup Challenge and the Miner Creativity Challenge — were not Kummer Vanguard Scholars.
The Kummer Innovation and Entrepreneurship (I&E) Doctoral Fellows program also continues to expand. Designed for Ph.D. students who are interested in research that leads to commercialization and economic development, the program gives Kummer I&E Fellows opportunities to learn from leaders in both academic research and industry. As the two Kummer I&E Fellows featured in this year’s report demonstrate, true to the vision that inspired Fred and June Kummer’s gift, they are using knowledge acquired at S&T in ways that will ultimately benefit us all.