Here is this week’s news of grants or gifts to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.
The College of Engineering at historically Black Tuskegee University in Alabama has received a $600,000 grant from the Department of Defense to support faculty in multiple departments to study aerodynamics phenomena for the next three years. Specifically, the research will focus on the complex flow field of slender delta wings at high alpha with vectoring jets. The research team expects the project to yield an advanced understanding of how to control an aircraft by using unconventional techniques, like thrust vectoring, as well as the study of computational aerodynamics techniques.
Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, has received a $100,000 federal grant to research ways that Fairbault Public Schools can serve the needs of their diverse student body. In 2018, the population of students of color in the school district rose to 55 percent. The project involves participatory action research conducted by five research teams. The teams will investigate how the staff at Fairbault can better serve their students of color and help them succeed and feel welcome.
The Daniel I. Linzer Grants for Innovation in Diversity and Equity at Northwestern University have awarded $172,348 to 12 projects throughout the university. The funding will be used to develop conferences, conduct research, and build relationships to foster diversity and inclusion in the fields including science, history, medicine, and engineering.
Historically Black Morehouse College in Atlanta has received a $1.5 million gift from Robert F. Smith, the founder, chairman, and CEO of Vista Equity Partners, to support endowed scholarships and the establishment of a campus park to act as an outdoor study area for students. Some of the funding will be used to establish the Robert Frederick Smith Scholars Program and the remaining money will be used to buy land for the creation of a park next to the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center on Morehouse’s campus.
Historically Black Spelman College in Atlanta has received a $900,000 grant from the Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment as part of its Thriving in Ministry Initiative. The funds will be used to establish a fellowship and programming that provides leadership development, mentoring, and relationship building among Black millennial women ministers. The fellowship will be a part of Spelman’s WISDOM (Women in Spiritual Discernment of Ministry) Center and will identify cohorts of six Black millennial women theologians, pastors, and activists and pair them with WISDOM scholars who desire mentors in professional ministry, theological academy, and activism for one year. The college will also host two national Sisterhood Summits focusing on issues relevant to African-American women.
The United Negro College Fund (UNCF) has received a $500,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation to continue its support of historically Black colleges and universities. This is the 11th consecutive year that Walmart has supported the UNCF Institute for Capacity Building. The funds will support UNCF in providing its member institutions with access to consultative services, technical assistance, and mini-grants that will help them move through the accreditation process, improve operations, and meet fiscal sustainability.
