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.
Historically Black Voorhees University in Denmark, South Carolina, received a grant for more than $860,000 from the rural development program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The funds will be used to upgrade the university’s health center, specifically to enhance the center’s food distribution, transportation, and mobile healthcare capabilities. Funds will also be used to purchase and install heating, ventilation, and air conditioning equipment throughout the Voorhees campus.
Xavier University of Louisiana has received a $100,000 donation from Biogen to fund the creation of the Biogen Sharp-Verret Award. The scholarship funding will benefit four students, each to receive $25,000 in assistance split between their junior and senior years. To be eligible for the scholarship, applicants must be a rising junior at Xavier and a minority student studying pre-medicine, neuroscience, pharmacy, in Xavier’s physician assistant program, or other related disciplines. The student must also plan to pursue a focus in neurology or neuroscience.
PENN Entertainment is donating $4 million over five years to fund scholarships for students in STEM fields at historically Black universities. PENN Entertainment had previously committed to support STEM students at Norfolk State University in Virginia, Bowie State University in Maryland, and Wilberforce University in Ohio. It is now adding three additional HBCU partners: Jackson State University in Mississippi, Prairie View A&M University in Texas, and Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The company operates racetracks, casinos, and online gaming services.
Lincoln University, the historically Black educational institution in Jefferson City, Missouri, is participating in a grant program run by Washington University in St. Louis. Lincoln University students involved in the project will conduct research at Washington University on the biomanufacturing assets of yeast and develop an artificial intelligence model to predict product yields of different yeasts.
