Here is this week’s news of grants to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.
North Carolina Central University, the historically Black educational institution in Durham, received a three-year, $897,840 grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to develop techniques for reducing rates of alcohol and drug abuse and HIV transmission among young adults. The grant program will be under the director of Arnold Dennis, executive director of the Juvenile Justice Institute at the university.
Historically Black Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, North Carolina, received a $500,000 grant from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation. The grant will fund the Career-to-Career program which provides professional development and training for students so they will be prepared to enter the workforce.
North Carolina State University received a four-year, $12.4 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop genetic improvements to sweet potatoes. The effort hopes to make the crop, an important food staple in sub-Saharan Africa more resistant to drought and insects. Partnering with North Carolina State University on the project will be the National Crops Resources Research Institute in Uganda and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in Ghana.
Michigan State University received a five-year, $600,000 grant from the National Science Foundation for a study on how diversity impacts scientists’ ethical behaviors. The researchers are attempting to prove that more diverse research teams promote ethical standards and practices.
Historically Black Texas Southern University in Houston received a five-year, $800,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The grant will fund curriculum development and support resources for the university’s undergraduate program in maritime transportation.
