The Porter Scholarship is offered to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) majors who have demonstrated a strong academic performance. This scholarship is specifically for ASU students majoring in Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Geoscience, Mechanical Engineering, and Mathematics.

students in physics lab

  • All students selected for the program receive some traditional scholarship support. The level of support is dependent on academic performance and unmet financial need.
  • For first year applicants, a composite academic index will be derived from the high school GPA and ACT/SAT scores.
  • Porter Scholars must be enrolled in the appropriate course(s) for the major during the first year. Students may not apply for support as a Porter Scholar if they are enrolled in any developmental course.
  • This scholarship is renewable if the student maintains at least a 3.0 GPA during the prior scholarship year(s) and is making adequate progress towards degree completion. The size of the scholarship renewal may differ from year-to-year.
  • Porter Scholars may apply for additional funding in support of Focused Academic Programs (e.g., research or travel opportunities) that will enrich the student’s experience within the major.
Porter Scholars Application

students researching an abandoned mine siteResearch

Porter Scholar Research Examples

  • Dwarf Mistletoe Ecology and Fungal Communities
  • Use of Abandoned Mines by Wildlife in the Sangre De Cristo Mountains
  • Bioinformatics Analysis of Microbial Communities Associated with Natural Occurring Acid Rock Drainage in the Alamosa River Basin
  • Characterization of Antibiotic Resistance in Microbial Communities Exposed to Nonpoint Source Pollutants
  • Analysis of microbial community composition and diversity in aeolian dust deposited on alpine snowpack using high-throughput sequencing
  • Mobile app development: Disaster management, GPS location using Raspberry Pi
  • Mathematics: Optimal Potato Field Management, Developing Projects Aimed at the Colorado Department of Education Standards

student group sits at picnic table in Costa RicaTravel

Off-Campus Program Examples

Off-campus special topics courses taught by Adams State faculty in a variety of locations worldwide. Off-campus programs at other institutions and non-profit organizations are also available.

  • Atlantis Project International Hospital Fellowship for Pre-med Students
  • The Natural and Cultural History of: East Africa; Costa Rica
  • Geology Field Camp
  • Institute for Sustainable Studies – Belize
  • Natural History of World Regions: Australia; Peru
  • SACNAS Conference
  • Natural History of the National Parks

William PorterWilliam Porter

William Porter was chairman emeritus and founder of E*TRADE and founder of the International Securities Exchange (ISE). His education included a BA in mathematics from Adams State College, an MS in physics from Kansas State University, and an MS in Management as a Sloan Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He founded Commercial Electronics, Inc., was Director of Research and Planning for Textron, was research manager and electrical engineer of General Electric’s Advanced Electronics Center at Cornell University, and was a physicist with the National Bureau of Standards.

In May 2007, William and Joan Porter made a generous donation to Adams State University to “support students who are majoring in either mathematics or science…on the basis of their need, and their ongoing academic achievement.” The generosity of William and Joan Porter will benefit science and mathematics students at Adams State University for generations.

A Tribute to William A. “Bill” Porter