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.
Bowie State University in Maryland has been awarded a $50,000 grant from the Maryland Higher Education Commission’s Teacher Quality and Diversity Program. The funds will be used to promote the HBCU’s master’s degree in teaching program to former federal employees interested in transitioning to a career in teaching. Additionally, Bowie State will encourage students to pursue the English for speakers of other languages certificate program to address the shortage of ESOL services in Maryland’s K-12 schools.
The Ocean of Soul Marching Band at Texas Southern University has received a $100,000 gift from the BeyGOOD Foundation, a philanthropic organization founded by global music icon and Houston native Beyoncé Knowles-Carter. In 2024, the band performed with Beyoncé during halftime of the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens football game on Christmas Day. The new funds will support scholarships for marching band members, student recruitment and retention, and enhancements to the HBCU’s infrastructure and technology.
Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, has received a $1 million grant from the United States Department of Defense to advance thermoelectric materials research. The grant will allow scholars in the HBCU’s School of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences to investigate the physical and structural properties of these materials and explore how heat is converted to electrical energy at the microscopic level.
