Spelman awarded $14 million grant for research at HBCUs

Spelman College, along with other historically Black colleges in Atlanta, has received a $14 million federal grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation. Spelman will lead the project, collaborating with the Atlanta University Center Consortium, which includes Morehouse School of Medicine, Morehouse College, and Clark Atlanta University.

The grant aims to expand research capabilities, particularly at minority-serving institutions and those with smaller research operations. The participating schools plan to establish a research hub that could serve as a national model for emerging research institutions and other Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The grant is expected to have a significant and lasting impact on strengthening research support infrastructure within the Atlanta University Center. 

In a written statement, Spelman President Dr. Helene Gayle said the grant “will have a significant and long-lasting impact on strengthening the research support infrastructure within the AUC. It will provide the opportunity to advance knowledge and thought leadership and spur innovation and entrepreneurship. It will also enable Spelman and the collaborating AUC institutions to increase their role in the growth of the state’s economy.”

The National Science Foundation program awarded about $20 million to four projects through the initiative. Director, Sethuraman Panchanathan, said in a statement that the work is about “breaking down barriers in research access.”

Spelman received the largest of the grants. Other recipients include the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, Pomona College and University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, and Iowa State University.