SUPPORTING STUDENT
SUCCESS
Students attending the 2022 fall semester welcome event hosted by the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs.
Patricia and John Morgan Academic Advancement Fund supports student achievement
For the past decade, the Patricia and John Morgan Academic Advancement Fund has supported UMKC programs that help students successfully navigate their college experience.
The fund’s most recent gift of $60,000 over two years supports students from the time they are introduced to UMKC through the transitions that follow — from acceptance to enrollment and beyond — with graduation as the goal.
Summer Bridge Scholars, an eight-week college prep program for incoming students, is one of the programs the Morgan Fund supports.
“Funds from the Morgan Fund help our students become connected to the Kansas City community,” said Megan Elsen, associate director of Academic Support and Mentoring. “We work in conjunction with our Multicultural Student Affairs office to develop programming that exposes students to the city’s history and the different cultures that Kansas City offers.”
Laura Casey, academic success coordinator for Summer Bridge Scholars, notes that the fund supports a broad range of students.
“A large majority of our students are first-generation and low-income,” she says. “We see lower [high school] GPAs and ACT scores, so they may need additional academic support, which we provide.”
In addition, new students are introduced to established UMKC programs within the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs including Avanzando, a support and resource program for Latinx students; African Americans Cultivating Excellence; and Emerging Research Scholars.
"It’s important to get students engaged early in their college experience, and the majority of the Morgan funding goes toward helping our scholars in the African Americans Cultivating Excellence and Avanzando mentoring programs get connected to the community as a whole,” said Keichanda Dees-Burnett, assistant dean of students for student support and director of Multicultural Student Affairs.
The support of the Patricia and John Morgan Advancement Fund has been critical to student success.
“Significant and consistent support from the Morgan Fund is providing life-changing opportunity for UMKC students,” said Jennifer Lundgren, Ph.D., provost and executive vice chancellor. “The success of these students will impact their futures, their families and our community for generations.”