Lone Star College and Rice University train future STEM professionals

HOUSTON, TX -- The United States Bureau of Labor and Statistics projects a 10% increase in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers over the next 10 years. To help address that need, Lone Star College Honors College and Rice University recently renewed a memorandum of understanding and signed an articulation agreement that allows transfer students in LSC’s Take Flight program to receive Rice University credit for core science, technology, engineering and mathematics courses completed at LSC.

“The Take Flight program gives Lone Star College Honors College students, seeking STEM-related associate degrees, opportunities to participate in speaker series, meet with Rice University students, attend lectures and conduct research projects with university faculty and leadership teams,” said Dwight Smith, Ed.D., LSC vice chancellor, Academic and Workforce Success. “Honors College students receive insight into transfer and enrollment processes at competitive universities and learn what it will take to succeed in a STEM-industry.”

The LSC Honors College developed the Take Flight STEM Pathway as a co-curricular program with San Jacinto College and Rice University to expand education access and increase the number of students who complete STEM degrees. Take Flight supports students who are not ready to graduate but are interested in pursuing STEM degrees and careers, as well as high-achieving STEM students who are graduating and want to pursue a four-year degree.

“Participating in the Lone Star College Honors College and the Rice University Take Flight STEM program opened doors to many educational and professional opportunities,” said Angelica Bernal Penaloza, LSC 2022 graduate and Cornell University biomedical engineering student. “Through Take Flight, I participated in the American Heart Association’s Summer Cardiovascular Research Internship Program where I learned to culture and engineer mammalian cells and continue my passion for medical research.”

This year’s LSC students include Alexis Lopez, Jocel Angelo Reyes and Carlos Carreon who spoke at the event saying they are happy to serve as representatives of the program that gave them the opportunity to apply the research skills they learned as LSC honors students.

After her first year as a LSC Honors College student and a member of the Take Flight program, Lopez conducted research at Cornell University on using computer vision to study plant health. “The Honors College at Lone Star College created these foundational research skills,” said Lopez.

Along with the Take Flight program, Rice University offers other initiatives to LSC Honors College students, including summer paid research internships and mini summer research experiences for undergraduate students. Learn more at LoneStar.edu/College/Honors.

“One of the shared values that makes this Take Flight program and partnership so fruitful is Lone Star College and Rice University’s shared commitment to student success — and that means every student’s success,” said Amy Dittmar, Rice University’s Howard R. Hughes provost and executive vice president, Academic Affairs in a statement.