Campuses participating in the Foundation’s University Centers of Exemplary Mentoring (UCEM) program are on a three-year funding cycle. The rigorous grant renewal process includes the compilation and analysis of detailed metrics on performance, development of plans for the next three-year cycle, and intensive site visits by Sloan Foundation staff and advisors to observe the operation of the UCEM and interview key stakeholders. Three (of eight) participating UCEM campuses—at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and the University of California, San Diego—were scheduled to submit their renewal applications in late 2020, with a funding decision to be made in early 2021. Disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic made this timeline unrealistic.
As an emergency measure, the Foundation decided to continue funding each of the above-mentioned UCEMs for a period of one year and allow them to submit two-year renewal applications in late 2021, with a decision to be made in early 2022. This grant, to be administered by the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering, provides funds for this purpose.