With funding from the National Science Foundation's Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) program, this project will provide financial scholarships and academic support to low-income students transferring from community colleges to the University of Arizona (UA) to major in STEM disciplines. The dual goals of the project are to increase the academic success of these transfer students and to ensure their persistence to graduation with a STEM degree. Scholarship recipients will be academically talented, with documented financial need. The principal investigator team also aspires to recruit cohorts of students that represent the gender and ethnic diversity of the State of Arizona. The rationale for the project is that students with financial need, of first generation status or who transfer from community colleges often face challenges that impede achieving their academic goals. The animating idea of the project is that academic and financial support, faculty and peer interactions, and support of a diverse student body will lead to persistence to STEM degrees. Specifically, the project is designed to show that mentoring, tutoring, advising, and financial assistance, from the time the students enroll at UA, will enable an efficient path to graduation. Community and relationship building early in their academic careers will allow students to develop self-confidence and a sense of belonging. Two first-year courses will provide professional development opportunities, focused initially on academic success, utilization of campus resources, and career exploration, followed by preparation for a research or internship experience. A citizen science project in this course will integrate social and science identities and help students understand how STEM research impacts issues of importance on a personal level. The principal investigators will study the influence of individual support, community building, and professional development activities on three key outcomes for the two-year college transfer students: retention, persistence in STEM, and graduation. In addition, they will also explore the potential for broad implementation of citizen science projects early in the STEM curriculum. Toward the project's goals detailed above, need-based funding up to $10,000 per year will support 60 to 150 S-STEM scholars for the five years of the program. Students transferring from community colleges to UA are more ethnically diverse compared to the total student body, providing the intrinsic opportunity to focus on underserved populations. In addition to financial assistance, the program will create an environment of welcome and support for students in a structured setting focused on building a strong academic foundation, resiliency skills, a sense of belonging in STEM fields, and planning for a well-matched career. A student-centered approach will meet all scholars at their academic point of development, recognize each student's unique circumstances, and validate a student's cultural wealth, altogether building confidence, motivation, and success. This project will advance understanding about factors and activities associated with retention, success, academic/career pathways and degree attainment in a diverse population. Program analysis will focus on effectiveness, sustainability and feasibility of expansion within the scope of the UA's policy of 100% engagement. Key aspects that significantly contribute to the success of students from diverse backgrounds and that may have a long lasting and sustainable impact will be disseminated to other programs and institutions.