The Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program, a federally funded program, has been denied funding for the following year and until further notice, said program coordinator Thelma Harding.

Harding received word for the discontinuation of the McNair program last week but hopes the university will pull through with funds.

“As of Sept. 30, because that’s the end of the federal fiscal year, our program will not exist,” Harding said. “We are having conversations with the university to see if we can institutionalize the program.”

The program was created by Congress and named for Ronald McNair, an astronaut who perished in the 1986 Challenger space shuttle explosion Harding said. According to the McNair website, the goal has always been to increase the number of underrepresented, low-income and first-generation college students who receive doctoral degrees. This goal is put into action by exposing students to research projects that will help them receive admittance into graduate schools.

After meeting the requirements of the program, 28 students are selected and mentored for two years while pursuing bachelor’s degrees. They must complete an original research project on their own or in conjunction with a faculty member and present all findings at national conferences and on campus.

While the honors program, which is sponsored by Iowa State, similarly offers students a way to get involved with research, it does not help with the graduate school preparation process. If a student does not qualify for the honors program or the McNair program, they are left on their own to seek out faculty members who need research assistants.

Unfortunately, without encouragement, most students find it hard to get started with research projects or even the graduate school applications themselves.

“We try to make sure the students understand this is something that’s doable and let’s figure out how to put the steps in place so you can accomplish it,” said Jackie Pryor, the McNair program coordinator.

Each student in the McNair program receives a research stipend of $2,800 per year and an exposure to a wide array of cultural activities with chances to travel to multiple national conventions. The Ronald McNair program prides itself on its ability to help low-income, minority and first-generation college students achieve a doctorate degree when most were unsure if college was even possible.

“What I’m committed to do is all of our graduating seniors who would be starting their second year of McNair, I’m going to make sure that they finish all of their research projects and complete their graduate applications,” Harding said. “That’s my personal commitment.”