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.
Loneke Blackman Carr, assistant professor in the department of nutritional sciences at the University of Connecticut, received a new grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to study the effects of a weight-gain prevention program on Black women’s health. The project aims to more holistically address Black women’s lived experiences and support healthier choices that promote weight stability.
A team of faculty members at Winston-Salem State University received a $496,376 grant from the National Science Foundation to advance scholarship on cybersecurity attacks involving artificial intelligence. The funds will allow faculty members to create four teaching units on AI security and integrate them into existing courses across health care management, education, and computer science programs. Students will learn about how AI systems can fail or be attacked, how to evaluate an AI tool before implementing it, what to do when an AI system causes harm or a data breach, and the legal and ethical obligations governing AI use in public-sector settings.
A team from Southern University and A&M College and Grambling State University received a $893,779 grant from the National Science Foundation for a new project focused on the environmental effects of tire-wear pollution. Led by Southern’s Sanjay Batra and Grambling’s Waneene C. Dorsey, the three-year project will bring togethers scientists and students from both HBCUs to study 6-PPDQ, an emerging environmental contaminant associated with tire wear. Using human lung epithelial cells, the research team will combine molecular biology, high-resolution imaging, transcriptomics, proteomics, and computational approaches to better understand how the contaminant affects cellular process.
Elizabeth City State University was awarded a $1.2 million federal TRIO Educational Opportunity Centers grant from the U.S. Department of Education to expand college access and career opportunities for adults across seven northeastern North Carolina counties. The funds will allow the HBCU to establish Educational Opportunity Centers serving 850 adults annually in Beaufort, Chowan, Hyde, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Tyrrell and Washington counties. The program will assist adults who want to begin or resume their education by providing free college-access and career-planning services.
Coppin State University in Baltimore received a $1,185,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Education to prepare 20 special education teachers. The initiative will support 10 students pursuing a bachelor’s degree in special education and 10 students pursuing a master’s degree in teaching with a concentration in special education. Students will receive support for tuition and fees, books, supplies, technology, and licensure exams, along with advising, tutoring, mentoring, and professional development. Coppin State faculty will also partner with Anne Arundel County Public Schools to give school-based experience to future educators as they complete their degrees.
The College of Arts and Sciences at Tuskegee University received a $595,217 grant from the Sherman Fairchild Foundation to modernize the HBCU’s biology and chemistry teaching laboratories. The new initiative aims to integrate contemporary scientific instrumentation, inquiry-based instruction, course-based undergraduate research experiences, and data science applications into introductory laboratory courses.
Florida A&M University received a $2 million gift from Bernard and Shirley Pooler Kinsey to provide scholarships and operational support to the HBCU’s Marching “100.” The investment allocates $1.5 million for an endowed fund benefiting marching band student scholarships and operational needs, while the remaining $500,000 will be directed to immediate program priorities. The gift also establishes the Kinsey Marching “100” Matching Challenge, a 36-month fundraising initiative designed to inspire an additional $2 million in philanthropic support.
