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.
Southern University, the historically Black educational institution in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was awarded a $1.65 million grant from the National Science Foundation to study cybersecurity for additive manufacturing (CSAM), better known as 3D printing. Students will be able to use virtual reality to visualize how cyberattacks on digital 3D printer files can cause changes that might not otherwise be detected without monitoring every layer during the printing process. The grant project is under the direction of Karen E. Crosby, an associate professor of mechanical engineering at the university. She holds a Ph.D. in engineering science from Louisiana State University.
Two historically Black universities in Florida will share a 3-year, $999,702 grant for research to improve coastal water quality. The researchers at Bethune-Cookman University and Florida A&M University will investigate oyster-associated bacteria, which have the potential to remove nitrogen from estuarine waters. Excessive nitrogen can act as a fertilizer and exacerbate undesirable harmful algal blooms in coastal waters.
Historically Black Morgan State University has received a $248,442 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to fund the development of a programmatic, civil rights-based educational curriculum aimed at Baltimore City middle school and high school students. The grant will also address staffing needs at Lillie Carroll Jackson Civil Rights Museum at the university. The grant project is under the direction of Iris Leigh Barnes, the curator at the Lillie Carroll Jackson Civil Rights Museum. Barnes earned a master’s degree in museum studies and historical preservation at Morgan State University and is also completing her doctorate in history at the university.
