Air Force, Ohio State announce partnership to improve diversity in science, engineering

The Ohio State University and the U.S. Air Force are creating a national consortium to increase opportunities in the Air Force for minority STEM students and graduates.

Ohio State will co-lead the new effort with Wright State University, North Carolina A&T State University, and the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

The six-year, $40 million project, funded by the AFRL, will include summer internships for minority engineering students, access to specialized research equipment and laboratory space at AFRL, Ohio State and Wright State, and support for projects to be determined by collaborating with historically black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions. Ohio State will also work with minority institutions in developing technical proposals for research funding and will work collaboratively to create lasting infrastructure that encourages diversity in Air Force hiring.

"This funding provides an exciting opportunity for Ohio State to partner with minority institutions from across the nation to develop creative approaches to cultivating a prepared, diverse research workforce for the next generation of scientists for the U.S. Air Force," said Morley O. Stone, senior vice president of research at Ohio State. "In addition, through this work, these organizations will be better positioned to propose and perform on AFRL research opportunities and the larger U.S. Department of Defense enterprise."

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