U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s (CCDC’s) Army Research Laboratory (ARL) Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)/Minority-Serving Institutions (MIs) Centers of Excellence (COE) Research Program.  Under the ARL HBCU/MI COE Program, funding will be provided for HBCUs/MIs to participate in highly collaborative research opportunities within the HBCU/MI community with major CCDC ARL Army Research Office (ARO) research programs.

This is a call for HBCUs/MIs to submit whitepapers expressing their interest in participating in research opportunities with major ARO research program areas articulated in this announcement.  This COE initiative will support innovative research and education at HBCUs and/or MIs, and will be focused on areas of high Army interest that provides a basis for future technology innovation.  These new COEs will conduct multidisciplinary, collaborative research that can increase knowledge in the areas of research emphasis specified in this announcement and have the potential to lead to practical application(s) for the Army.  The topic areas described within this announcement are from ARO’s Information Sciences Directorate (ISD), Physical Sciences Directorate (PSD), and Engineering Sciences Directorate (ESD). 

WHITEPAPER SUBMISSION INFORMATION: Whitepaper submissions must be received by 4:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Thursday, 1 October 2020. Whitepaper submissions are due with DoEd eligibility letter to the ARO HBCU/MI Outreach Program at the following e-mail address: [email protected]. Please see full special notice for additional dates.

The primary goals of the HBCU/MI COE Program are to:

• Expand and diversify the research base through partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Minority-Serving Institutions (MIs).
• Encourage research and education collaborations with other institutions of higher education and defense organizations.
• Enhance research and engineering capabilities at HBCU/MIs that align with Army research priorities in the fields of physical, engineering, and information sciences related to long term national security needs.
• Provide opportunities for student participation leading to the next generation of scientists and engineers.
   
  A whitepaper (and any subsequent proposal) should address scientific study and experimentation directed toward increasing fundamental knowledge and understanding in fields of physical, engineering, and information sciences related to long-term national security needs, as described in this announcement.
   

An applicant is encouraged to consider innovative approaches for their research projects with a view toward enhancing the ability of their institution to develop stronger science and engineering programs that will enable the institution to participate more competitively in a variety of defense research programs and attract and retain good students by exposing them to state-of-the-art research, further encouraging them to pursue careers in STEM disciplines.