The $270,000 grant also provides the students with a laptop computer, equipped with software that complements their class work and is not usually found on home equipment.

During their first year in the program, students will complete workshops in career counseling, maintaining their computers, and using the provided software. In the second year, they will work as interns in an industrial setting, strengthening their experiences and increasing their job readiness. Lehman has established student internships with IBM's Research Division and other computer and software companies, as well as with the information technology departments of several area corporations.

Professors Linda Keen and Katherine St. John (Mathematics and Computer Science) wrote the successful proposal for the two-year grant and were among those celebrating with their students at a recent reception on campus.