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For Immediate Release
Contact:
Debra Humphreys, Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs
202-387-3760, ext. 422
Humphreys@aacu.org
AAC&U Announces Thirteen Historically Black Colleges and Universities Chosen to Participate in Preparing Critical Faculty for the Future
NSF-Supported Initiative Provides Professional and Leadership Development to Women of Color in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Fields
Washington, DC—December 16, 2010—The Association of American Colleges and Universities announced today the names of thirteen colleges and universities chosen in a competitive process to participate in Preparing Critical Faculty for the Future (PCFF), a project that will support women of color faculty in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines in becoming strong academic and administrative leaders, both on campus and within their respective disciplines. The project is funded by the National Science Foundation's Historically Black Colleges and Universities-Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP). The institutions selected represent many different types—including two year and four year, public, and private.
“We are grateful to the National Science Foundation for giving AAC&U the opportunity to provide professional and STEM leadership development to women of color at HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions,” said AAC&U President Carol Geary Schneider. “We also are delighted that this initiative connects our STEM reform efforts led by Project Kaleidoscope with our work supporting women in higher education through our Program on the Status and Education of Women.”
The list of institutions chosen to participate includes:
Bennett College for Women |
Greensboro, NC |
Central State University |
Wilberforce, OH |
J.F. Drake State Technical College |
Huntsville, AL |
Livingstone College |
Salisbury, NC |
North Carolina Agricultural
and Technical State University |
Greensboro, NC |
North Carolina Central University |
Durham, NC |
Spelman College |
Atlanta, GA |
Tennessee State University |
Nashville, TN |
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff |
Pine Bluff, AR |
University of Maryland Eastern Shore |
Princess Anne, MD |
University of the District of Columbia |
Washington, DC |
Wiley College |
Marshall, TX |
Winston-Salem State University |
Winston-Salem, NC |
Each participating institution nominated two women of color faculty in STEM disciplines to participate in all phases of the project. Institutional leaders also identified three additional participants, primarily women of color, to engage in the second phase of the project—participating in AAC&U’s Engaging Departments Institute in July 2011.
“We expect the project to make great strides in advancing undergraduate STEM education and the professional and leadership development of women of color in STEM fields,” said AAC&U Senior Scholar and Project Director Alma Clayton-Pedersen.
Additional cohorts of HBCUs will be selected to participate in PCFF in 2011 and again in 2012. Nearly 40 percent of the nation’s HBCUs are expected to have participated in PCFF at the end of the grant cycle in 2013. The project is also open to non-HBCUs, but these institutions must fully support their teams in both phases of the project.
The goals of the PCFF project are to provide professional and leadership development for women of color faculty in STEM disciplines, or in NSF natural and behavioral science disciplines; and to improve undergraduate STEM education at HBCUs and beyond. This new project will provide participants with the opportunity and the financial support to engage in and influence the national dialogue on improving undergraduate STEM education. Project participants will both contribute to and gain from national efforts to develop and implement innovative STEM teaching and learning practices and effective curricular change strategies. By uncovering useful strategies for preparing women faculty of color for academic leadership in STEM fields, PCFF expects to improve STEM education broadly, as well as at HBCUs.
This initiative is supported with a grant from the National Science Foundation. For additional information about the project, see: www.aacu.org/pcff.
About AAC&U
AAC&U is the leading national association concerned with the quality, vitality, and public standing of undergraduate liberal education. Its members are committed to extending the advantages of a liberal education to all students, regardless of academic specialization or intended career. Founded in 1915, AAC&U now comprises more than 1,200 member institutions—including accredited public and private colleges and universities of every type and size.
AAC&U functions as a catalyst and facilitator, forging links among presidents, administrators, and faculty members who are engaged in institutional and curricular planning. Its mission is to reinforce the collective commitment to liberal education at both the national and local levels and to help individual institutions keep the quality of student learning at the core of their work as they evolve to meet new economic and social challenges.
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