Sascha Owen, Senior Vice Chancellor for Strategy & Policy Implementation at CUNY; Niki Jones, Director of STEM Initiatives at LaGuardia; Dr. Abderrazak Belkharraz, Chair of the Mathematics, Engineering, and Computer Science Department at LaGuardia; Dr. Eric Hofmann, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs at LaGuardia; Dr. Billie Gastic Rosado, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs at LaGuardia; LaGuardia President Kenneth Adams; QC President Frank H. Wu; Dr. Patricia Price, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs at QC; Dr. Nathalia Holtzman, Associate Provost for Innovation and Student Success at QC; Seth, a LaGuardia graduate, Q-STEM student, and Computer Science major at QC; and three LaGuardia STEM majors. Photo courtesy of LaGuardia Community College.
April 7, 2025 By Shane O’Brien
LaGuardia Community College has formalized a partnership with Queens College, aiming to increase the number of Hispanic and low-income students pursuing STEM majors.
The partnership, formalized by LaGuardia President Kenneth Adams and Queens College President Frank Wu on Wednesday morning, promotes the Queens STEM Academy (Q-STEM), which enhances STEM education and provides students with support both in and out of the classroom. It also creates a “seamless” pathway between the two colleges.
The collaborative partnership between LaGuardia and Queens College sees students graduate with an Associate’s degree at LaGuardia and then transfer to a STEM major at Queens College to pursue a Bachelor’s degree.
CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez said the partnership addresses several key priorities at CUNY, including preparing students for careers in high-demand fields and promoting a seamless transfer experience between two CUNY schools. The program further aims to reduce “longstanding” equity gaps for Latinos and members of other groups that are underrepresented in STEM, Rodríguez said.
“Kudos to Presidents Adams and Wu, and to the faculty and staff members at LaGuardia Community College and Queens College, for their collaborative efforts to benefit CUNY, our students and New York,” Rodríguez said in a statement.
Q-STEM launched as a pilot program at LaGuardia Community College in March 2022, thanks to a $4.6 million grant from the US Department of Education Hispanic-Serving Institutions STEM and Articulation Program. Students participating in the program have opportunities to participate in experiential learning projects with faculty, earn stipends, and acquire valuable skills in research methodology and project management.
In the 2022/23 academic year, 72% of the 257 STEM majors who graduated from LaGuardia transferred to a four-year program. Meanwhile, the program helps students remain in the same STEM major after graduating LaGuardia, with the retention rate almost doubling from 8% to 15% last year.
Adams extolled the success of the Q-STEM program, stating that LaGuardia graduates more STEM majors than any other community college in the CUNY system.
“This program will help ease the transfer process and help make jobs in STEM, where there’s high demand and financial reward, more accessible for residents of Queens and beyond,” Adams said in a statement.
Wu said Queens College is “delighted” to partner with LaGuardia for the Q-STEM program, pointing to the fact that Queens College boasts full-time undergraduate student enrollment that is at least 25 percent Hispanic.
“We are deeply committed to this effort for the scope of opportunities that it offers students while strengthening their skills in preparation for postgraduate research and employment,” Wu said in a statement.
Queens College, a large producer of STEM graduates, receives more than $20 million in grants and funding for a wide variety of STEM disciplines. Degrees range from environmental studies and climate dynamics to addressing equity in computer science.
Both LaGuardia and Queens College are Hispanic-serving institutions, with 46% of LaGuardia students identifying as Hispanic or Latino and 28% of Queens College students identifying as Hispanic or Latino.
Dr. Billie Gastic Rosado, LaGuardia’s Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, said Q-STEM has become a supportive community for students, helping them navigate college with the help of a network of peers and faculty.
“Q-STEM has also helped us reduce the textbook costs that students face. Notably, 38 STEM faculty at LaGuardia developed Open Educational Resources (OER) materials that were implemented in 424 class sections last year, resulting in estimated cost savings for students of $1,220,906,” Gastic Rosado said.
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