The Del E. Webb Foundation has given $1.5 million to Northern Arizona University to support the renovation of the school’s Science Annex. The facility will become an interdisciplinary academic science-research center for faculty and undergraduate and graduate students in STEM disciplines. nau.edu
A $10 million gift to Arizona State University means that the school can advance in groundbreaking x-ray technology. The funds will go toward completing work on the Beus Compact X-ray Free Electron Laser Lab, where powerful lasers will be able to capture molecules in motion. Research there will have implications for fields like medicine, green technology, and computers. asu.edu
Facebook has given $4.2 million to Northeastern University in Boston. The money will help forward the school’s goal of expanding its Align program, a computer science master’s program that helps women, minorities, and students from other fields move into tech. northeastern.edu
The school of medicine at the University of Chicago has received a $9.1 million gift to help children and families on the city’s South Side recover from trauma. The funds will help UC Medicine integrate a system of clinical care and community services to support young patients as they recover from trauma caused by gun violence, abuse, or domestic violence. uchicago.edu
In response to lobbying from Indigenous students, faculty, and staff, McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, has retired the name of its men’s varsity sports teams — the Redmen — and instituted an inclusive process to settle on a new name. mcgill.ca
Canada’s federal government has granted $26 million to Yukon College (soon to be Yukon University) in Whitehorse for a new science building. The building will be designed to integrate Indigenous knowledge and Western science in both indoor and outdoor spaces. The college has also launched a new podcast, Walking Our Path Together. The content will support the school’s reconciliation efforts by focusing on the relationship between the school and the 14 First Nations in Canada’s smallest territory and features individuals speaking about their personal experiences. yukoncollege.yk.ca
Engineering faculty and students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will benefit from a $100 million gift to the school from the Grainger Foundation. The organization is named for alumnus William Grainger, who graduated 100 years ago in electrical engineering, and the school will be renamed the Grainger College of Engineering. The funds will be used to boost the endowment and support a range of initiatives. illinois.edu
The mining engineering program at Michigan Tech in Houghton, Mich., that was suspended in 2004 is returning in 2019. mtu.edu
The College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., has launched the interdisciplinary Center for Veterinary Business and Entrepreneurship. The center will offer several programs, including a new DVM certificate and a postgraduate executive program. cornell.edu
An interdisciplinary master of public health program will be launched this summer by the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine at Tulane University in New Orleans. Equity in health care will be a focus of the program, which is designed for working professionals. tulane.edu
A new institute focused on artificial intelligence technologies and applications has been launched at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif. The Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence will partner with government agencies, industry, and other organizations to advance AI in ways that will enhance prospects for a better future. stanford.edu
The Air Force has awarded a grant of more than $12 million to the University of Connecticut in Storrs to help prepare graduates for skills needed in the aerospace industry, assist manufacturers with research and development, and facilitate more collaboration between government agencies and industry. Students and faculty from the School of Engineering will be conducting funded research on several projects. uconn.edu
A partnership of New York University School of Medicine and the City University of New York Graduate School of Public Health and Public Policy, the NYU-CUNY Prevention Center has been awarded $3 million to reduce health disparities in underserved and ethnically diverse populations. The grant is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. cuny.edu
First-generation students at UW-Oshkosh can benefit from a “jumpstart” under the free Titan Advantage Program, which hosts incoming students at a credit-bearing summer program designed to enhance their skills in core subjects and help them keep up academically. The goal is to help students feel comfortable in a college environment before classes begin, and to close the achievement gap. uwosh.edu
The newest member of the Chicago Quantum Exchange is the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Other members of the exchange, which collaborates in the research and development of quantum technology, are the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the Department of Energy, Argonne National Laboratory, and the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. wisc.edu
Recruitment of new faculty members and research scientists at Duke University in Durham, N.C., has received a $50 million boost from the Duke Endowment, a private foundation separate from the university. duke.edu
A new National Science Foundation grant of $1 million will go to the University of Hawaii to provide scholarships for a “culturally appropriate academic journey” for low-income students who are pursuing associate degrees and plan to complete a BS in STEM fields. hawaii.edu
A $15 million commitment from private benefactors will support two new research centers at Washington University in St. Louis, both dedicated to finding new treatments for chronic diseases. wustl.edu
The 2019 Kirkness Science and Engineering Education Program was hosted by the Faculty of Science and Horticulture at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Surrey, British Columbia. The program supports enrichment opportunities and mentoring for Indigenous students, with the goal of increasing the number of STEM graduates. kpu.ca
The Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics at USC has received a $17 million gift. The center, a partnership of the School of Pharmacy and the Price School of Public Policy, addresses challenges in health care. usc.edu
First-generation Dartmouth students will have more dedicated resources, financial support, and mentoring thanks to a $13 million grant from an alumnus who was himself the first in his family to go to college. The funds are intended to promote equal access to all the college has to offer and provide support for miscellaneous needs. dartmouth.edu
The College of Dentistry at NYU has opened a new facility specifically to serve patients with physical, cognitive, and developmental disabilities. The 8,000-square-foot Oral Health Center for People with Disabilities addresses a public health issue of lifetime care for patients for whom conventional dentist offices aren’t accessible. nyu.edu
An innovative entrepreneurship program teaching business management skills from an Indigenous perspective is now available at St. Paul’s University College of the University of Waterloo in Ontario. The program is the first of its kind in Canada. uwaterloo.ca
Predoctoral fellowships for Indigenous students enrolled in another university are available at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. The opportunity provides fellows with a chance to teach, network, and advance Indigenous issues and ways of knowing while completing their research at their home institution. queensu.ca