K-12 Programs Overview

Since 1997, CEED's K-12 programs have served nearly 70 teachers, over 4,000 students and over 600 parents from urban schools in both Los Angeles Unified School District and the Inglewood Unified District. K-12 efforts are designed to both increase college-going rates of under-represented youth, and increase the number of urban youths interested in and prepared for majors in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Among the key K-12 programs are:

MESA Schools Program (MSP) - A student-centered middle and high school program designed to improve college-going cultures at each school and to engage students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

SMARTS, a free commuter program, is sponsored by the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science Center for Excellence in Engineering and Diversity (CEED).  Its purpose is to increase the number of high school students in urban areas who are interested in careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) based fields. SMARTS offers a six-week summer college preparatory program in these fields for 30 - 40 students. Some of the students admitted to SMARTS will also participate in the Research Apprentice Program, a paid summer internship.

SMASH -  a free residential pre-college program, will host 30 current ninth grade students to participate in a five-week, intensive, math and science academy.
SMASH is geared toward high achieving, economically disadvantaged, high school students who are underrepresented in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields.

The goals of SMASH are to:

1· Prepare students from underrepresented communities to be competitive in STEM related studies at competitive universities.

2· Educate students about graduate school opportunities and encourage them to eventually attend in order to further pursue professional, STEM-related studies or careers.

3· Encourage a sense of social responsibility through promotion of critical thinking, civic awareness and leadership.

2013 SMASH Application Information

Registration Deadline: March 22, 2013

Application Deadline: March 8, 2013

Teacher Professional Development - Various opportunities for professional development are made available to UCLA MESA teachers as well as MESA teachers in the local Los Angeles region and on the West coast.