Western University
A new Indigenous Learning Center, slated to open this spring, is undergoing finishing touches at Western University in Ontario. The facility will include a medicine garden, study lounge areas, computer labs, kitchen, media studio, and classroom space for cultural programming and other special events.westernu.edu
University of Kentucky
The undergraduate engineering program at the University of Kentucky has received a $3 million gift. The funds will cover laboratories and classrooms in the new Department of Engineering Technology and the planned aerospace engineering program. uky.edu
Syracuse University
A new Center for Global Indigenous Cultures and Environmental Justice will be funded by a $1.5 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Native American and Indigenous studies at the university will also be expanded thanks to the grant. syracuse.edu
Johns Hopkins University
The Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University will apply a new $50 million donation toward funding faculty positions, post-doctoral fellowships, and graduate research fellowships. The school plans to grow its faculty from 33 to 46 within five years. jhu.edu
University of New Orleans
The College of Engineering at the University of New Orleans has received a $5 million donation, which will fund scholarships, research, and facilities upgrades. uno.edu
Virginia Tech
A donation of $35 million will help fund a new $248 million, 284,000-square-foot engineering hall at Virginia Tech (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University). Construction could begin as soon as next year. vt.edu
Colorado School of Mines
A new undergraduate major in space mining has been launched at the Colorado School of Mines. Students will explore logistical and ethical issues involved in accessing extraterrestrial resources. mines.edu
University of California, Fullerton
The 2022 Mathematics Programs that Make a Difference Award, presented by the American Mathematical Society, went to the Department of Mathematics at the University of California, Fullerton. The department won for its achievement in mentoring and graduating students from under-represented populations. fullerton.edu
Yale University
The Center for Natural Carbon Capture at Yale University will benefit from a $10 million commitment by Southwest Airlines. The company is funding research to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions. yale.edu
Northern Arizona University
A professor of elementary education has received an NSF grant to develop a science content curriculum for future elementary educators. The course will be piloted in the 2022–2023 academic year. nau.edu
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania has committed $100 million to establish the Center for Precision Engineering for Health. The center will bring together researchers in multiple scientific fields to increase understanding of biomaterials and biological functions. Funding will provide new state-of-the-art labs and several faculty positions. upenn.edu
Louisiana State University
A faculty team at LSU has received a $1.5 million, six-year grant to retain and support underprepared students in engineering. The grant will fund 45 scholarships to full-time undergraduates in engineering. lsu.edu
University of Winnipeg
The Manitoba Métis Federation and the University of Winnipeg have announced new scholarships of up to $10,000 a year for Red River Métis, First Nations, and Inuit undergraduate students. The scholarships are renewable for up to five years. uwinnipeg.ca
Drake State Community and Technical College
NASA’s Minority University Research and Education Project has given a multi-year grant to Drake State Community and Technical College in Huntsville, Ala., to support the school’s project to increase the number of minorities and women in STEM. The project will serve pre-college and college students as well as high school science teachers. drakestate.edu
University of Utah
A $15 million gift to the College of Engineering at the University of Utah will seed a fundraising campaign earmarked for a $120 million facility for computer science programs. The expansion will help the school double the number of graduates in those disciplines. utah.edu
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Coinciding with Indigenous Peoples’ Day last October, Cal Poly (California Polytechnic State University) opened the new Native American and Indigenous Cultural Center with a mural that proclaims “Rooted in Native Knowledge.” calpoly.edu
Drexel University
The goal of recruiting more diverse faculty members for research on health disparities at Drexel University will be boosted with a five-year, $14 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. The funds will go to the Dornsife School of Public Health and the College of Nursing and Health Professions. drexel.edu
University of Chicago
A $50 million gift from the estate of an alumnus will support financial aid, undergraduate research, and commitments to educational access, among other programs and research collaborations. The bequest is the largest in the school’s history. uchicago.edu
Texas Southern University
Apple’s Community Education Initiative has a new community center for Coding and Creativity in Texas Southern University. The initiative fosters technology and creativity in nearly four dozen universities across the country serving underrepresented students. tsu.edu
Washington University
Thanks to a favorable return on endowment investments, Washington University is able to commit $1 billion to financial aid. The funds will make it possible for applicants to Washington University to be considered for admission without regard to their financial status. wustl.edu
University of Arkansas
The NSF has given the University of Arkansas a $17.87 million grant to build and operate a national semiconductor fabrication facility. The only openly accessed facility of its kind in the U.S., it is expected to fill a void in the domestic production of integrated circuits. Research opportunities will be available to students at all degree levels. uark.edu
Prescott College
A five-year, $2.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education has gone to Prescott College to implement a comprehensive development plan. This Title III project will expand services to ensure student success, especially for diverse and low-income students. Prescott serves many rural Latinx and Indigenous students. prescott.edu
Cornell University
A $50 million gift to Cornell University will establish the Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration. The gift will fund scholarships and support the school’s commitment to need-blind admission and socioeconomic diversity. cornell.edu
University of Michigan
The Kessler Scholars Program, a fund to benefit first-generation students at the University of Michigan, will be endowed in perpetuity by a $40 million gift from alumnus Fred Wilpon. So far Wilpon and his wife have given $65 million to the Kessler program. Also at the University of Michigan, a $1 million NSF grant will help researchers develop bipedal (walking) robots that can work alongside first responders in situations like fighting wildfires. The project hopes to develop robots that can work on treacherous ground and navigate obstacles even in situations too dangerous for humans. umich.edu
University of Maryland
A National Quantum Lab (Q-Lab) will be established at the University of Maryland thanks to a partnership between the school and IonQ, a developer of quantum computing devices. A nearly $20 million investment will position this first-of-a-kind facility in the UMD Discovery District. Also at the University of Maryland, the first new dining hall in almost 50 years has been named Yahentamitsi in honor of the Piscataway people. The name, which means “a place to go to eat,” was suggested by a committee of students, faculty, staff, the American Indian Student Union, and Piscataway elders and tribal members. umd.edu
University of New Hampshire
NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) has awarded a $1.8 million grant to the University of New Hampshire to study resilience in coastal roads in the face of sea level rise. Research leads plan to develop a number of hydrodynamic models.
unh.edu
University of Notre Dame
A new center for experiential learning and advanced manufacturing has opened at the University of Notre Dame. The 10,000-square-foot Engineering Innovation Hub will foster collaboration and advances in fabrication, robotics, and modeling. nd.edu
University of Saskatchewan
The College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan is adding a Division of Indigenous Health. The division is expected to improve collaboration with the province’s Indigenous people while improving patient care and outcomes. usask.ca
Boston University
The Faculty of Computing and Data Sciences at Boston University will be bolstered by a $1 million gift starting this spring. Some of the funding is earmarked to promote DEI in data science, and some will go toward externship stipends for undergraduates. bu.edu
McGill University
Starting in fall 2022 medical students at McGill University in Montreal will be able to take a new course, Inuit Health in the Canadian Context. A central aim of the course is to educate health care providers about Inuit culture. The course is one of two Indigenous-focused courses offered by the university’s Department of Family Medicine. mcgill.ca
Stanford University
In a major development for climate science, a new school focused on researching climate change and sustainability will launch in fall 2022 at Stanford University. The still-unnamed school will reorganize several existing departments into four units: Earth and planetary sciences; engineering for sustainability; climate, environment, and biodiversity; and integrated socio-environmental systems. Students will be accepted beginning in the 2022–2023 academic year. stanford.edu
University of North Carolina
An initiative to create the virtual Artificial Intelligence Institute for Engaged Learning has been funded by a five-year, $20 million NSF grant. Participating schools are the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina State University, Indiana University, and Vanderbilt University. The goal is to use AI to enhance education. unc.edu
Georgia Tech
A $744,000 portion of a $3 million EPA grant has gone to Georgia Tech (the Georgia Institute of Technology) to study bioremediation (using microorganisms to “eat” pollutants). Other schools sharing the grant are Washington University in St. Louis, University of California San Diego, University of Colorado Boulder, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute. gatech.edu
University of California System
The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded a $15 million grant to the six institutions of the University of California to encourage academic careers for women and minority PhD recipients. The funds will go to the President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program. universityofcalifornia.edu
Central New York LSAMP Alliance
A $1.99 million NSF grant has gone to colleges in the Central New York LSAMP (Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation) Alliance to attract and retain underrepresented students in STEM. The alliance includes Ithaca College, SUNY Cortland, SUNY College of Environmental Studies and Forestry, Elmira College, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Herkimer College, and Tompkins Cortland Community College.
Kettering University
Two faculty members at STEM-focused Kettering University have devised a new advanced-level undergraduate mathematics course centered on social justice issues, including climate change and racial disparities. kettering.edu
Purdue University
An online master’s in nuclear engineering has been added to the degrees available through the engineering graduate program at Purdue University. The program is designed and taught by the faculty members at the university’s flagship campus. purdue.edu
West Virginia University
The NSF has awarded a research grant of $425,000 to West Virginia University. The funds will support a project that will encourage engagement in STEM studies and prepare future educators. wvu.edu
University of Oregon
The next phase of the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact at the University of Oregon has been made possible by a second $500 million gift from the Knights. This expanded phase will include a new building and additional faculty positions, as well as additional opportunities in bioengineering, applied scientific research, and training. An initial $500 million gift from the Knights launched the campus in 2016. uoregon.edu