The College of Southern Maryland (CSM) was awarded 36 grants totaling $6.7 million in Fiscal Year (FY) 2020. A large portion of the monies arrived in mid-April when CSM received $2,707,755 in federal funding through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to help the college with its response to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition to the multiple awards, project proposals totaling more than $700,000 are pending award notification from funders such as the National Science Foundation and other public and private organizations. What follows is a glimpse of the funding since the first of the calendar year.
COVID-19 Assistance
Under the CARES Act Student Emergency Aid, the U.S. Department of Education granted CSM $1,289,511 to cover costs associated with significant changes to the delivery of instruction due to the coronavirus and $1,289,511 to provide emergency financial aid to students for expenses related to the disruption of on-campus operations. An additional $128,733 was granted to CSM under the CARES Act Strengthening Institutions Program to address CSM’s continuing institutional needs related to the pandemic. In late May, CSM disbursed $1,124,855 directly to 2,042 of its students who met eligibility criteria.
Grants were also received to support the CSM Hawks Emergency Fund which was established by the CSM Foundation to support CSM students during the pandemic—whether educational or personal—with one-time financial assistance to help with enrollment-threatening emergencies. Needed funds came from:
Learning Initiatives
CSM was awarded $20,000 from the Maryland Open Resource Textbook (M.O.S.T) Initiative – Institutional Open Educational Resource Grant Program offered by the University System of Maryland Kirwan Center. This grant will support strategic institutional efforts to increase access, affordability and achievement for CSM students through systemic incorporation of open educational resources (OER) into teaching practice.
CSM was successful in this highly competitive grant cycle as one of only two institutions to receive the award to support significant advances in OER adoption, scaling and sustainability in support of student success. Additionally, CSM will receive strategic planning and implementation support.
Thanks to a $863,053 Consolidated Adult Education and Family Literacy Services Grant from the Maryland Department of Labor, CSM will be able to provide low/no cost Adult Basic Education (ABE), GED Preparation, and English as a Second Language (ESL), EL civics and family literacy instruction in Charles, St. Mary’s and Calvert counties. These classes help to prepare students to enter career pathways to either post-secondary education or through continuing education workforce training. The Maryland Adult National External Diploma Program (NEDP) is also offered. NEDP is a nationally recognized high school diploma option for adults, 18 and older.
Charles County Mediation Center
The Charles County Mediation Center is located at CSM’s La Plata Campus to provide a confidential process for residents involved in a dispute, or who need to have a difficult conversation with the help of trained mediators. This year, the Maryland Judiciary’s Mediation and Conflict Resolution Office awarded CSM $22,000 through the Community Mediation Performance Grant for the Charles County Community Mediation Center.
In addition, CSM was awarded $65,000 through a Conflict Resolution Project Grant, also offered by the Maryland Judiciary Mediation and Conflict Resolution Office to help build out the Community Conferencing practice, which provides participants who are involved in and affected by a conflict or crime, a safe and structured space to resolve matters.
Velocity Center
Included in the FY 2020 grant summary is $100,000 from a Maryland Consolidated Capital Bond to go toward the CSM Velocity Center in Indian Head. These funds assisted with completion of the build out and capital equipping of the project.
The CSM Velocity Center at Indian Head will have dedicated space for Navy research, ideation and design supporting small learning workshops and seminars, vendors’ showcases, and use of visualization tools while maximizing the technology transfer of dual-use technologies and supporting educational partnerships.
Within this space, CSM will also host classes such as computer-aided design, cybersecurity, digital photography, drones/small unmanned aircraft systems, governmental procurement, social entrepreneurship and tech transfer entrepreneurship, among others. As a catalyst for workforce development, the Velocity Center has been described as a critical part of the future creative economic development of the town of Indian Head.
In addition to the multiple awards, project proposals totaling more than $700,000 are pending award notification from funders such as the National Science Foundation and other public and private organizations. What follows is a glimpse of the funding since the first of the calendar year.
COVID-19 Assistance
Under the CARES Act Student Emergency Aid, the U.S. Department of Education granted CSM $1,289,511 to cover costs associated with significant changes to the delivery of instruction due to the coronavirus and $1,289,511 to provide emergency financial aid to students for expenses related to the disruption of on-campus operations. An additional $128,733 was granted to CSM under the CARES Act Strengthening Institutions Program to address CSM’s continuing institutional needs related to the pandemic. In late May, CSM disbursed $1,124,855 directly to 2,042 of its students who met eligibility criteria.
Grants were also received to support the CSM Hawks Emergency Fund which was established by the CSM Foundation to support CSM students during the pandemic—whether educational or personal—with one-time financial assistance to help with enrollment-threatening emergencies. Needed funds came from:
- $2,500 from WesBanco Community Relief Fund
- $2,500 from Charles County Charitable Trust COVID-19 Emergency Fund (Round 2)
- $20,000 from Chaney Enterprise Foundation through the Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County
“CSM’s Grants Specialist Lesley Quattlebaum does an outstanding job collaborating with our faculty and staff to target appropriate funding resources, building relationships and writing incredibly lengthy and detailed applications all aimed at ensuring our students’ success,” said CSM Vice President of Advocacy and Community Engagement and the Executive Director of CSM Foundation Michelle Goodwin. “The amount of coordination with our many subject matter experts is impressive, and so is the CSM-wide effort to compete for these funds.”
Learning Initiatives
CSM was awarded $20,000 from the Maryland Open Resource Textbook (M.O.S.T) Initiative – Institutional Open Educational Resource Grant Program offered by the University System of Maryland Kirwan Center. This grant will support strategic institutional efforts to increase access, affordability and achievement for CSM students through systemic incorporation of open educational resources (OER) into teaching practice.
CSM was successful in this highly competitive grant cycle as one of only two institutions to receive the award to support significant advances in OER adoption, scaling and sustainability in support of student success. Additionally, CSM will receive strategic planning and implementation support.
Thanks to a $863,053 Consolidated Adult Education and Family Literacy Services Grant from the Maryland Department of Labor, CSM will be able to provide low/no cost Adult Basic Education (ABE), GED Preparation, and English as a Second Language (ESL), EL civics and family literacy instruction in Charles, St. Mary’s and Calvert counties. These classes help to prepare students to enter career pathways to either post-secondary education or through continuing education workforce training. The Maryland Adult National External Diploma Program (NEDP) is also offered. NEDP is a nationally recognized high school diploma option for adults, 18 and older.
Charles County Mediation Center
The Charles County Mediation Center is located at CSM’s La Plata Campus to provide a confidential process for residents involved in a dispute, or who need to have a difficult conversation with the help of trained mediators. This year, the Maryland Judiciary’s Mediation and Conflict Resolution Office awarded CSM $22,000 through the Community Mediation Performance Grant for the Charles County Community Mediation Center.
In addition, CSM was awarded $65,000 through a Conflict Resolution Project Grant, also offered by the Maryland Judiciary Mediation and Conflict Resolution Office to help build out the Community Conferencing practice, which provides participants who are involved in and affected by a conflict or crime, a safe and structured space to resolve matters.
Velocity Center
Included in the FY 2020 grant summary is $100,000 from a Maryland Consolidated Capital Bond to go toward the CSM Velocity Center in Indian Head. These funds assisted with completion of the build out and capital equipping of the project.
The CSM Velocity Center at Indian Head will have dedicated space for Navy research, ideation and design supporting small learning workshops and seminars, vendors’ showcases, and use of visualization tools while maximizing the technology transfer of dual-use technologies and supporting educational partnerships.
Within this space, CSM will also host classes such as computer-aided design, cybersecurity, digital photography, drones/small unmanned aircraft systems, governmental procurement, social entrepreneurship and tech transfer entrepreneurship, among others. As a catalyst for workforce development, the Velocity Center has been described as a critical part of the future creative economic development of the town of Indian Head.