“I’ve always been conscious of how much money I’m spending,” he said. “I don’t want to have tons of debt I’ll have to pay back later, especially at high interest rates.”

And so for Vasquez, who works a part-time job at The Home Depot, financial aid from the Montgomery GI Bill, the Virginia Tuition Grant (VTAG), and a new National Science Foundation (NSF) S-STEM Scholarship has been a godsend in covering the full cost of his college education.

“Without the NSF S-STEM Scholarship, I would’ve struggled financially,” he said. “The scholarship really takes the pressure off my shoulders, because now I won’t have that debt looming over my head.”

Born and raised in Harrisonburg, Vasquez graduated from high school in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and attended Blue Ridge Community College while enlisting in the military. After completing recruit training, taking time to reassess his academic goals, and changing majors from business to computer science, he transferred to EMU last fall. 

He is among an initial cohort of EMU students receiving the NSF S-STEM Scholarship, which provides:

• Up to $15,000 in unmet financial need annually for the length of the degree
• A paid one-week Bridge to College program
• A STEM mentorship program
• An eight-week paid internship
• Free conference attendance
• Forest restoration opportunities in Park Woods (EMU’s on-campus woodland)

The scholarship is open to high-achieving, income-eligible students who are majoring in Biochemistry, Biology, Computer Science, Engineering, Environmental Science, Math, or Psychology (research/STEM track).

Applications for the S-STEM Scholarship
are due by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026.

For more information, visit .

‘A welcoming community’

Forming friendships at a new school can have its challenges.

Along with other initiatives provided by the scholarship, a Bridge to College program helps new EMU students adjust to life on campus by moving them in a week early, introducing them to STEM faculty and staff members, and engaging them in activities to build camaraderie and form connections with one another. Students participating in the weeklong program receive a generous stipend for their time.

Ani Koontz, a first-year biology and secondary education double major from Newton, Kansas, is a recipient of the S-STEM Scholarship. She recalled traveling to Shenandoah National Park with students and faculty the week before classes, surveying salamanders and hiking trails, before bicycling around Downtown Harrisonburg on a tour led by city officials.

“That first week showed me how friendly and approachable my professors are,” she said. “They’ve done a great job creating a welcoming community.”

Another S-STEM Scholarship recipient, Mara Carlson, is a first-year psychology major from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. “Many of us have become close friends,” she said. “I’ll see the other scholarship recipients around campus and we’ll say hello to each other.”

Through the scholarship, each student is paired with an academic advisor specific to their major, who can answer questions and help guide them forward. Carlson said she meets with Kathryn Howard-Ligas, assistant professor of psychology at EMU. “We discussed a four-year plan, and I was really grateful for that,” she said. Part of that plan includes gaining invaluable experience through internships and conferences, additional perks of the S-STEM Scholarship.

Carlson said she already knew she wanted to attend EMU, and that receiving the S-STEM Scholarship was “a nice surprise.”

For the Kansas-born Koontz, EMU had always been on her radar, but she also considered attending in-state schools that normally would’ve been cheaper. When she learned she had been offered the S-STEM Scholarship and that it would lower her college costs to “a very affordable amount,” her choice to attend EMU became an easy one.

“It’s 100% the reason I came,” she said. “When I got that, it meant I could completely afford to go here, and it honestly made EMU more affordable than any other college in my area. It’s my joy to share how grateful I am because this is truly just an amazing thing that EMU has.”

The success has been broad-based, with grants coming from a diverse range of sources, including federal agencies, foundations, and professional associations. This mix of funding highlights the wide-ranging impact of research and programs at EMU, and positions the university as a leader in multiple fields. The results of these grants have helped support student success initiatives and professional development opportunities, and provide resources for staff and faculty roles. 

Among the notable recent achievements:

• The National Science Foundation (NSF) S-STEM Grant provides scholarships and support services for high-achieving, income-eligible STEM majors. This grant helps create a greater sense of belonging and opens new pathways for students in critical fields. It supports a STEM mentorship program, an eight-week paid internship, free conference attendance, and meets unmet financial need up to $15,000. 
• The HRSA BHWET Mental Health grant provides $25,000 stipends for 59 counseling students in internships from Fall 2025 through Spring 2029, while expanding their partnerships and services to schools and clinical sites in areas such as Page County, Virginia, and Pendleton County, West Virginia. The grant also funds conference registration and travel reimbursement for internship students and provides specialized training in telehealth, integrated behavioral health in primary care, and trauma-informed care.
• A SAMHSA grant addresses mental health support, suicide prevention, and substance abuse prevention and education among EMU undergraduate students. This is a critical initiative that provides vital support services and programming to the campus community. Royals RISE is the name of the program tasked with implementing the grant objectives and goals. 
• A DOJ Office of Violence Against Women (OVW) grant designed to reduce domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking at EMU. The OVW grant is the third iteration of a grant that EMU has had since 2017. Safer Together is the name of the EMU program that collaborates with community and campus partners to enhance its safety.

Foundation and association grants

• The supports interfaith dialogue and religious literacy initiatives that align with EMU’s commitment to peacebuilding and cross-cultural understanding. 
• The Center for Teaching and Learning Enhancement Grant: Funding from the Council for Independent Colleges supports the development and expansion of EMU’s Center for Teaching and Learning, providing faculty with enhanced resources for pedagogical innovation and student success strategies.
• The supports EMU’s distinctive approach to vocation and calling, funding programming that helps students discern their life’s work through the integration of faith, learning, and service. 
• Lilly Endowment Grants support EMU’s commitment to vocation exploration and faith integration in higher education. The university has benefited from many Lilly grants that have enabled innovative programming that connects academic study with personal calling and community service. 
• A Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) Grant expands training opportunities for students pursuing chaplaincy and pastoral care ministries, reinforcing EMU’s commitment to holistic care and spiritual formation. This grant, in collaboration with Palm Beach University, funds the training of a Resident as a Certified Educator to teach in EMU’s CPE program and expand its capacity for offering CPE units.

Together, these grants represent more than $5.6 million in support for EMU’s mission-driven work. They affirm the dedication of EMU’s faculty and staff and the potential of its students.

The grant, awarded through the NSF’s , will fund up to $15,000 annually for each scholarship recipient throughout the length of their degree. Overall, the S-STEM Scholarship will fund a quality undergraduate education for 23 EMU students among three cohorts over the next six years, beginning with first-year students entering the Fall 2025 semester.

The scholarship is open to academically talented students with financial need who are majoring in the following fields: Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Engineering, Environmental Science, Math, and Psychology (research/STEM track).

Applicants for the S-STEM Scholarship must submit their application and reference forms by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025. For more information about the program and how to apply, visit: emu.edu/stem/scholarship

In addition to scholarships, the program offers students a paid one-week Bridge to College experience, where they can meet professors, learn material from their discipline, acquire study skills, and become better prepared for college.

EMU Biology Professor Dr. Kristopher Schmidt said that some first-year students can struggle to adjust to life on campus, and that the grant aims to ease that adjustment.

“We want to create a sense of belonging,” said Schmidt, who is principal investigator for the grant program.

The program also provides funding for embedded tutoring services and paid tutoring opportunities for students, specialized advising, and guidance from professional STEM mentors.

“This would be a person outside the university in their field of interest who can encourage them, help them, and connect with them along their four-year program,” Schmidt said about the mentors. 

The S-STEM Scholarship program offers innovative opportunities for place-based learning and funding for an eight-week paid internship. Students can use grant-funded resources to conduct research on forest restoration in the Park Woods space, which serves as a key learning lab for STEM students.

This latest grant builds on the success of a similar STEM grant that wrapped up in 2023.

By leveraging grants like these, EMU lives into its mission and vision, outlined in its 2023-28 strategic plan Pathways of Promise of opening new pathways of access and achievement, and can help the NSF achieve its goal of diversifying the STEM workforce.

“We were thrilled to receive this,” Schmidt said. “We’re excited and grateful the NSF has chosen to invest in our students at EMU.”

Faculty members Kristopher Schmidt, Jim Yoder, Daniel Showalter, Stefano Colafranceschi and Dean Tara Kishbaugh wrote the S-STEM grant proposal.

��ݮ���� (EMU) is pleased to announce that senior Meredith Lehman, from Dover, Ohio, has been named a recipient of the prestigious . 

Lehman was one of only 32 students in the US—from a pool of nearly 3,000 applicants—selected to become a Rhodes Scholar for 2025. The program provides scholarships covering all expenses for student-scholars to study at Oxford University.

The award, considered to be the most prized international scholarship for American college graduates, was established in 1903 through the final will and bequest of Cecil John Rhodes. Award criteria includes the highest level of academic excellence, integrity of character, interest in and respect for fellow beings, and a student’s ability to lead. 

Lehman is excited about the opportunities that the Rhodes scholarship will provide, intending to pursue a Master of Philosophy in International Relations while at Oxford. “I hope to someday work as a bridge builder between science and policy, particularly in international spaces,” she says.

A double major in Biology and Political Science with a Chemistry minor, Lehman is an accomplished tutor, recipient of several top academic awards, and has already compiled an impressive research portfolio with several publications under review. Her research on drug delivery systems for anticancer drugs has been funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). 

During the summer of 2023, Lehman was part of a six-student undergraduate research team in North Queensland, Australia. Dr. Jim Yoder, Professor of Biology; Director of Biology, Chemistry, & Environmental Science Programs; and trip co-leader describes Lehman as “level headed, dependable, and meticulous in her work in both laboratory and field settings,” calling her research and publication record “extraordinary.”

Dr. Ji Eun Kim, Associate Professor of Political Science, adds: “Any person who meets Meredith will instantly recognize her sharp intellect and outstanding leadership which stems from her deep commitment to working for the common good and serving others.” 

During her time as President of both EMU’s Student Government Association and award-winning Young Democrats Club, Lehman has been a persistent and passionate leader in the diversity, equity and inclusion space at EMU, including around issues of human rights and climate justice. She was chosen to join the President’s Cabinet in 2022-23 as “the student voice” for the creation of the university strategic plan. 

President Susan Huxman affirms: “From working with advancement to raise money for diversity, equity and inclusion grants, partnering with faculty and designers to create a sustainable fashion design course, to assisting as a legal intern for asylum seekers and elementary students for whom English is a second language, Meredith has been a voice for equity, peace and justice in Harrisonburg, VA; Washington, DC; and her hometown in Ohio.”

About her time at EMU, Lehman says, “This amazing opportunity is truly a product of the EMU community and all of its incredible people … faculty and staff have empowered me to pursue knowledge and critical thinking and to also exercise empathy and compassion.”

Lehman will become part of a legacy of changemaking alumni, including Nobel Peace Laureate Leymah Gbowee MA ’07, renowned peace activist, trained social worker and women’s rights advocate who graduated from EMU’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP). 

A leader among faith-based universities, EMU emphasizes academic excellence, peace and justice, and an active faith. Founded in 1917 in Harrisonburg, Virginia, EMU is an educational institution of Mennonite Church USA serving undergraduate, graduate, and seminary students of diverse religious and cultural backgrounds. Learn more on the EMU admissions website or by visiting our Harrisonburg campus.

Read emerging national news coverage on Lehman and the Rhodes scholarship from and .