Student Success & Undergraduate Affairs Update
NSM Living Learning Community
The NSM Living Learning Community (LLC) hosted its Welcome Back event on January 21 in Cougar Village 2. Students reflected on fall achievements and set spring goals by writing letters to their future selves.
Spring programming includes academic sessions on undergraduate research, schedule planning with NSM Academic Advisors, and career planning with the NSM Career Center. Social events will include a Valentine’s celebration, Mardi Gras gathering, and a group trip to Frontier Fiesta.
Dr. Donna Pattison will hold office hours for LLC students and provide individualized support for those seeking to strengthen academic performance this semester.
Houston-Louis Stokes STEM Pathways and Research Alliance Workforce Study
NSM leaders Donna Pattison and Eduardo Cerna co-led a large-scale workforce study examining long-term outcomes of STEM graduates across five partner institutions. The study surveyed more than 38,000 alumni, with 1,743 respondents, and analyzed workforce retention, preparedness, and career transitions.
Published in Industry and Higher Education under the title STEM Workforce Retention and Preparation: Landscape Analysis of STEM Students in the Workforce Across Texas, the research provides recommendations for universities and industry partners to strengthen the STEM talent pipeline.
Scholar Enrichment Program (SEP) Update
This semester, SEP is supporting 1,248 students across 18 STEM courses through 51 one-credit academic excellence workshops—the largest number offered in a single semester. A new workshop in Algorithms and Data Structures (COSC 3320) expands support in high-demand courses.
The program now exceeds its goal of offering 50 workshops by 2027, aligning with NSM’s 50th anniversary milestone. Workshops are facilitated by 99 undergraduate peer facilitators, who foster collaborative learning, academic skill development and student persistence in STEM.
Office of First Year Programs Update
Recruitment, Transition and Retention
Academic Excellence Scholarship Call Campaign
OFYP and the Student Leadership Team (SLT) launched spring call campaigns to support enrollment yield among scholarship recipients. During the first session, SLT members connected with 61 students and families.
First-Year Seminar
Eighteen students are enrolled in the spring First-Year Seminar course, which provides structured academic and professional support and includes an embedded tutor as co-facilitator.
Coffee & Conversations
Approximately 35 students attended the January 28 Coffee & Conversations event, fostering mentorship connections and community engagement.
Student Leadership Team (SLT) Update
Mentorship Mixer
The first Mentorship Mixer of the semester was held January 23, strengthening peer connections and community-building.
SLT Recruitment
Recruitment for the 2026–2027 SLT cohort opens February 23 and closes March 20.
teachHOUSTON Update
Faculty represented teachHOUSTON at the Hawaii International Conference on Education, presenting mentoring and induction support for early-career STEM teachers.
On January 28, teachHOUSTON hosted a VIP Brunch honoring Houston-area district partners and celebrating continued collaboration in preparing certified STEM educators and teacher leaders.
NSM Career Center Updates
Workflow Training
The NSM Career Center held its annual Workflow Training on January 17 to prepare Student Directors for the upcoming year, including support for the Internship Bootcamp.
Training focused on operational workflows, employer engagement strategies, FERPA compliance, technology systems (HireNSM and Symplicity), branding and professional standards. Six Student Directors participated, strengthening readiness for employer outreach and event execution this spring.