FRIDAY: UC Celebrates 20 Years of Emerging Ethnic Engineers' Summer Bridge Program

The Emerging Ethnic Engineers (E3) Summer Bridge program began at UC in 1989 and ever since has had a tremendous impact on the recruitment and graduation of African-American, Hispanic, and Native-American students for the College of Engineering. More than 400 students have participated in this successful residential summer program.

“This past fall, 56 percent of Summer Bridge students earned Dean’s List honors and 75 percent had a grade point average of 3.00 or better,” says

Kenneth Simonson

, director of academics and head of E3. “In fact, 88 percent of the students will matriculate to the sophomore year.”

For two of the past three years UC has been ranked in the top 25 engineering schools that graduate African-American baccalaureate degrees. Among the many initiatives begun by the E3 Program that have been implemented campus-wide are cooperative learning courses in calculus and physics, Learning Communities patterned after the E3 cohorts and a campus-wide summer bridge program for incoming freshman from different disciplines.

The program is open to incoming first-year, under-represented students of color who are enrolled in the College of Engineering. Students live on campus as they attend a program that’s similar to what they’ll experience in the fall quarter. From 9:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. each day, students take courses in calculus, chemistry, English and physics, with mandatory study sessions each night.

Students receive college credit for the English course, thus reducing their course load for the following fall. E3 covers all of the students’ costs, including room and board. Students who pass English during the summer receive advanced standing for English 101. The textbooks used in the program are for the students to keep and use during their freshmen and sophomore years.

Details on the anniversary event:
What: A luncheon celebrating the 20th Anniversary of E3’s Summer Bridge Program at the University of Cincinnati
When: Friday, Aug. 15, 2008, 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Where: Tangeman University Center Great Hall
How much: $20 per person
Who to call: Susan Berman at 513-556-6271

The luncheon keynote speaker will be Julian Earls, PhD, former Director of the National Aeronautic and Space Administration’s Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field in Cleveland, Ohio.

To read more about E3:

UC's Emerging Ethnic Engineers Program Helps Under-Represented Students Through the Summer Bridge Program
UC’s Summer Bridge Program is a six-week residential program that assists under-represented first-year students make the transition from high school to college.