In February, it was announced that Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) was selected as the first historically Black college or university (HBCU) to lead a competitively awarded national-tier University Transportation Center by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The HBCU has now received a $2.5 commitment from the Texas A&M University System for the development of the university’s new National Center for Infrastructure Transformation.
PVAMU will lead the National Center for Infrastructure Transformation as part of a consortium that includes several members of The Texas A&M University System, including Texas A&M University, Texas A&M Transportation Institute, and Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station. Other partnering institutions include Arizona State University, Michigan State University, Rutgers University, and Blinn College.
The commitment was announced by Texas A&M University System Chancellor, John Sharp during a special ceremony Monday at the Willie A Tempton, Sr. Memorial Student Center on the PVAMU’s campus.
“This historic first for Prairie View A&M University shows the power of its partnership with the A&M System, which made this success possible,” said Sharp. “Prairie View A&M University’s alliance with the Texas A&M Transportation Institute and Texas A&M University is an example of how this kind of collaboration makes it possible for us to compete against the best research institutions in the country and win.”
Prairie View’s National Center for Infrastructure Transformation (NCIT) will receive $4 million per year for the next five years and is one of only five awarded national-tier centers.
Its focus will be on practical research to improve the durability and resilience of the nation’s transportation infrastructure for the next century.
“This National Transportation Center will display to the World Prairie View A&M University’s long-held transportation research expertise, and the combined research capacity and capability of the Texas A&M University System,” said Michael McFrazier, the president of Prairie View A&M University.
