The National Science Foundation's (NSF) Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program was established in 1991 by Congress and was designed to facilitate the success of historically underrepresented students pursuing baccalaureate and graduate degrees in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Today, there are 40 LSAMP Alliances across the United States with more than 500 participating institutions throughout the country.

The Islands of Opportunity Alliance–LSAMP (IOA–LSAMP) NSF award #1826864 is the only LSAMP Alliance serving the US-affiliated Pacific region, and our mission is to increase the number of underrepresented minority students—especially students of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander ancestry—graduating with two- and four-year degrees in STEM disciplines. The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo serves as the lead institution in an Alliance that comprises 10 partner institutions across the Pacific, including: American Samoa Community College, College of the Marshall Islands, College of Micronesia—FSM, Chaminade University of Honolulu, Guam Community College, Hawaiʻi Pacific University, Northern Marianas College, Palau Community College, University of Guam, and University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.