National Website
University of Missouri Kansas City SI WebsiteSI was created by Deanna C. Martin, Ph.D., at the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 1973. Martin was assigned the task of reducing the attrition rate of minority students in the schools of medicine, pharmacy, and dentistry. After its initial offering at the health science professional schools, SU was extended throughout the university.
After a rigorous review process in 1981, the SI Program became one of the few postsecondary programs designated by the U.S. Department of Education as an Exemplary Educational Program. The National Diffusion Network (NDN), the national dissemination agency for the U.S. Department of Education, provided federal funds to implement SI at other institutions. Although the NDN was discontinued, the value of SI programs had been demonstrated and universities in the U.S. and abroad began to implement them.
Faculty and staff from hundreds of institutions across the nation have received training to start their own SI programs. Outside the United States, SI operates in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Mexico, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Sweden, United Kingdom, and the West Indies.