Creating value for students
Rachel Kohman explains Kummer Student Programs by describing the impact it has on student success.
“We connect the dots across campus, bridge the work from different departments and translate it into a value-add for S&T students,” says Kohman. “Rather than just making new things, we lean into the incredible work already being done on campus and encourage students to capitalize on existing opportunities.”
Kummer Student Programs is home to scholarships made possible by the gift from Fred and June Kummer — the Kummer Vanguard Scholars program for undergraduates, and the Kummer Innovation and Entrepreneurship (I&E) Doctoral Fellows program, for Ph.D. students. There are currently 1,300 Kummer Vanguard Scholars and 47 I&E Fellows.
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Kohman, who has directed the program since 2021, was named the 2024 recipient of the Dr. Elizabeth Cummins Women’s Advocate Award. She credits her team for the success of the program.
“Many team members started in other departments, so we have a wealth of institutional knowledge,” she says. “That gives us a broad view of the gaps that need to be filled to increase our impact on student success.”
Finding good partners across campus is key, she says.
Kummer Colloquims, for example, are led by alumni, faculty and staff who volunteer to develop creative, hands‑on, discussion-driven programs.
Colin Potts, S&T’s provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs, led one in which students envisioned the university of the future. And Phillip Mulligan, assistant teaching professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, led a colloquium on reverse engineering that evolved into a summer camp offered by the Kummer Center for STEM Education. Kohman, ever the optimist, says the experience may inspire young students to eventually become a Kummer Vanguard Scholar or I&E Fellow.