Jose Lopez Vasquez is a junior at EMU, a first-generation college student, and a reservist in the U.S. Marine Corps. Like many students on campus, he is mindful of the cost of his education and the long-term impact of student debt.
“I’ve always been conscious of how much money I’m spending,” he said. “I don’t want to have tons of debt I’ll have to pay back later, especially at high interest rates.”
And so for Vasquez, who works a part-time job at The Home Depot, financial aid from the Montgomery GI Bill, the Virginia Tuition Grant (VTAG), and a new National Science Foundation (NSF) S-STEM Scholarship has been a godsend in covering the full cost of his college education.
“Without the NSF S-STEM Scholarship, I would’ve struggled financially,” he said. “The scholarship really takes the pressure off my shoulders, because now I won’t have that debt looming over my head.”
| Did you know? More than 99% of all undergraduate students at EMU receive financial aid. |
Born and raised in Harrisonburg, Vasquez graduated from high school in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and attended Blue Ridge Community College while enlisting in the military. After completing recruit training, taking time to reassess his academic goals, and changing majors from business to computer science, he transferred to EMU last fall.
He is among an initial cohort of EMU students receiving the NSF S-STEM Scholarship, which provides:
- Up to $15,000 in unmet financial need annually for the length of the degree
- A paid one-week Bridge to College program
- A STEM mentorship program
- An eight-week paid internship
- Free conference attendance
- Forest restoration opportunities in Park Woods (EMU’s on-campus woodland)
The scholarship is open to high-achieving, income-eligible students who are majoring in Biochemistry, Biology, Computer Science, Engineering, Environmental Science, Math, or Psychology (research/STEM track).
Applications for the S-STEM Scholarship
are due by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026.
For more information, visit emu.edu/stem/scholarship.
‘A welcoming community’
Forming friendships at a new school can have its challenges.
Along with other initiatives provided by the scholarship, a Bridge to College program helps new EMU students adjust to life on campus by moving them in a week early, introducing them to STEM faculty and staff members, and engaging them in activities to build camaraderie and form connections with one another. Students participating in the weeklong program receive a generous stipend for their time.
Ani Koontz, a first-year biology and secondary education double major from Newton, Kansas, is a recipient of the S-STEM Scholarship. She recalled traveling to Shenandoah National Park with students and faculty the week before classes, surveying salamanders and hiking trails, before bicycling around Downtown Harrisonburg on a tour led by city officials.
“That first week showed me how friendly and approachable my professors are,” she said. “They’ve done a great job creating a welcoming community.”
Another S-STEM Scholarship recipient, Mara Carlson, is a first-year psychology major from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. “Many of us have become close friends,” she said. “I’ll see the other scholarship recipients around campus and we’ll say hello to each other.”
Through the scholarship, each student is paired with an academic advisor specific to their major, who can answer questions and help guide them forward. Carlson said she meets with Kathryn Howard-Ligas, assistant professor of psychology at EMU. “We discussed a four-year plan, and I was really grateful for that,” she said. Part of that plan includes gaining invaluable experience through internships and conferences, additional perks of the S-STEM Scholarship.
Carlson said she already knew she wanted to attend EMU, and that receiving the S-STEM Scholarship was “a nice surprise.”
For the Kansas-born Koontz, EMU had always been on her radar, but she also considered attending in-state schools that normally would’ve been cheaper. When she learned she had been offered the S-STEM Scholarship and that it would lower her college costs to “a very affordable amount,” her choice to attend EMU became an easy one.
“It’s 100% the reason I came,” she said. “When I got that, it meant I could completely afford to go here, and it honestly made EMU more affordable than any other college in my area. It’s my joy to share how grateful I am because this is truly just an amazing thing that EMU has.”
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