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The Pentagon recently announced that it will work alongside Howard University as part of a new science research project.
With the new partnership, the university becomes the first HBCU to work officially alongside the department. The University Affiliated Research Center will have funds dedicated to it. According to the press release, Howard University will get around $12 million each year over the span of five years for the project.
Set to go towards the faculty and students, they will pay for research on technology focused primarily on tactical autonomy; the Air-Force sponsored program will work to create technology that doesn’t need much human supervision to function, according to the Air Force’s website.
“We need a team of decision-makers, researchers, scientists, engineers, and leaders who are committed to security and liberty and are excited to work on some of the world’s most important problems,” said Frank Kendall, the Secretary of the Air Force, in the press release. “This is a momentous historical occasion for the Department of the Air Force, the Department of Defense, and Howard University. ”
As part of the project, Howard University will take charge of a consortium; the group will be composed of other HBCUs, such as Tuskegee University, Delaware State University, Tougaloo College, Hampton University and Florida Memorial University, amongst others.
Through the partnership, the 15th that the Air Force has entered with a university in the country, the Pentagon and Howard University hope to harness the talents of students in science, technology, engineering and math departments of the university.
Throughout the years, the HBCU has received praise for its S.T.E.M. departments. In the past, the National Science Foundation has recognized Howard University as the institute that’s produced the most undergraduate S.T.E.M. scholars that have gone on to get a doctoral degree for a S.T.E.M. occupation.
The HBCU is continuing to further its support for S.T.E.M. students; just this past October, they announced that a new seven-floor S.T.E.M. Center will be created for S.T.E.M. students to conduct their research.
“We are excited to learn from the great minds at Howard University and see what they’ll bring to the Department of the Air Force,” said the chief scientist at the Air Force, Dr. Victoria Coleman, in a public statement. “Their motto is ‘Excellence in Truth and Service’ and I know we will see that excellence in their scientific research and development work.”
