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Clockwise from top left, Berk Calli, Yunus Telliel, Gillian Smith, and Cagdas Onal
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded $2 million to Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) for scholarships and mentoring aimed at improving the retention and graduation rates of low-income undergraduate and graduate students in the fields of robotics, smart infrastructure, and advanced manufacturing.
The funding will support scholarships for 70 high-performing students, including transfer students from regional community colleges and the University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez, and contribute to national efforts to increase the size of the U.S. workforce in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
“It is important to give students from all backgrounds the opportunity to contribute to STEM fields,” said Cagdas Onal, associate professor and head of the Department of Robotics Engineering, who will lead the project as principal investigator (PI). “If we remove the financial constraints that make it difficult for students to devote themselves to learning, those students will be able to graduate at higher rates, succeed in STEM careers, and live as productive citizens.”

Top row, from left, Carrick Eggleston, Paul Mathisen, and Nima Rahbar. Bottom row, from left, Pratap Rao. Sarah Strauss. and Jing Xiao.
Onal will collaborate with a team of faculty from across WPI, including three co-PIs: Berk Calli, associate professor of robotic engineering; Gillian Smith, professor in the Department of Computer Science and director of WPI’s Interactive Media and Game Development Program; and Yunus Telliel, director of Great Problems Seminar program and assistant professor in the Department of Humanities and Arts and Interactive Media and Game Development Program.
Other faculty members who will be involved are Professor Carrick Eggleston, Associate Professor and Director of Sustainability Paul Mathisen, and Nima Rahbar, the Ralph H. White Family Professor and department head, all of the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering; Professor Pratap Rao of the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering; Professor Sarah Strauss of the Department of Integrative and Global Studies; and robotics engineering Professor Jing Xiao.
The team will seek applicants who are studying in four fields: robotics engineering; mechanical and materials engineering; civil, environmental, and architectural engineering; and interactive media and game development. Scholarships will be available for undergraduates who are recipients of Pell Grants, a form of federal financial aid, and graduate students who can demonstrate financial need. 
“Pell-eligible students have lower retention and graduation rates than other four-year undergraduates,” said Smith. “Scholarships will help lift a financial burden for these students, while supporting them in pursuing exciting, interdisciplinary opportunities in design that open doors for a wide variety of internships and future career pathways.”
To recruit transfer students, the team will seek applicants at Quinsigamond, Mount Wachusett, Berkshire, Holyoke, and MassBay community colleges in Massachusetts, as well as Northern Essex and Manchester community colleges in New Hampshire. WPI already has transfer partnership agreements with some of the colleges to ease students’ transfer to WPI. 
In addition to awarding scholarships, the team will develop and offer students programs that build on WPI’s strength as a leader in project-based learning, including the Great Problems Seminar. Faculty members will mentor students as they complete interdisciplinary projects at different levels. Participants will have access to WPI’s summer educational programs, and the faculty team will partner with companies and nonprofit organizations to provide internship opportunities for students.
“All students at WPI must complete research projects focused on real-world problems to graduate, and our programs will enable students to shape those required projects into multiyear, interdisciplinary collaborations that can help pave the way for their future careers,” said Calli. “We place great importance on empowering students to make a positive impact in their communities, and this program will provide many such opportunities, from assistive robotics in healthcare to solutions in waste management.”
WPI has previously received funding from NSF for similar initiatives aimed at supporting low-income students and building the STEM workforce. The university was awarded $2.5 million in 2023 for scholarships and programs that are still under way for computer science undergraduates. Earlier initiatives focused on students in renewable energy fields and on undergraduates who were the first in their families to attend college.
The new program will examine how a coordinated set of interventions can help talented students from low-income backgrounds succeed at WPI. Telliel said the insights will be especially important in the rapidly changing fields of robotics, smart infrastructure, and advanced manufacturing.
“Technological change requires us to broaden our understanding of the capabilities essential to STEM,” Telliel said. “Students who can link technical design with human experience and social impact will shape the future workforce in technology and engineering. By cultivating those capabilities throughout the undergraduate education, this project will identify effective ways to help more students thrive while generating insights that can be shared with universities across the country.”
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