Temple College has moved another step closer to opening a new STEM-focused program for high school students in East Williamson County, thanks to a $150,000 grant from the Texas Pioneer Foundation.

The grant will be used to create a new chemistry lab at the East Williamson County Higher Education Centerr. The chemistry lab is needed so the college can expand its award-winning Texas Bioscience Institute Middle College program to East Williamson County.

The TBI Middle College program offers highly motivated juniors and seniors in high school students the opportunity to earn up to 60 college credit hours in a STEM–focused (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) curriculum while they are still in high school. Students spend a half day at the Temple College center in Taylor and spend the remainder of the day at their high school.

Temple College is currently recruiting sophomores in high school for its first TBI-Hutto class, which will start in fall 2021.

Last year, Temple College received a $620,107 grant from the Greater Texas Foundation that will enable the college to hire full-time physics and chemistry instructors for the new program. It also received $75,000 from the W.D. Kelley Foundation of Georgetown to furnish a new physics lab.

“This grant from the Texas Pioneer Foundation will help us ensure that TBI students in East Williamson County have an exemplary lab experience and teaching facilities to prepare students for high-wage, high-demand careers,” said Temple College President Dr. Christy Ponce.

For more information on TBI-Hutto, write tbihutto@templejc.edu or call 254-298-8952. Information on the TBI Middle College program also is available at www.templejc.edu/tbi.