THE CAROLINATIMES-SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 2016-7
Roundtable at NCCU Features Five Former Ambassadors - A panel of five in
ternational relations experts, all with former experience serving as U.S. Ambas
sadors oversees, will came together at North Carolina Central University (NCCU)
for a roundtable discussion of issues and opportunities in American diplomacy and
international relations.
The roundtable took place in the Albert L. Turner School of Law Building on
Monday, Feb. 29.
The panel included": Andrew Young, former mayor of Atlanta and congressman
from Georgia’s Sth district who served as United States Ambassador to the United
Nations from 1977 to 1979; Brenda Schoonover, a retired career Foreign Service
officer who was the U.S. Ambassador to Togo from 1997 to 2000; W. Robert Pear
son, who served as U.S. Ambassador to Turkey from 2000 to 2003 and was previ
ously executive secretary at the Department of State; Gwen C. Clare, a 30-year
career diplomat who served as Ambassador to Ecuador from 1991 to 1994; and
Michael Cotter, a former Foreign Service Officer and U.S. Ambassador to Turk
menistan from 1995 to 1998 who now publishes American Diplomacy, an online
journal based in Chapel Hill.
The discussion was moderated by Attorney Kimberly Cogdell, professor in NC-
CU’s School of Law. (NCCU photo by Chioke Brown)
NCCU To Host NASA
Road Tour, March 22-24
North Carolina Central University (NCCU) has been selected by NASA to participate
in the Technology Infusion Road Tour, an initiative that links historically black colleges
and universities (HBCUs) and other minority-serving institutions to education and busi
ness opportunities at the national space agency.
During stops on the Road Tour, workshops and informational sessions will provide
overviews ofNASA initiatives designed to engage historically black and minority-serv
ing institutions, including the Mentor-Protege, Small Business Innovative Research,
and Small Business Technical Transfer programs. The agency’s Office of Education
will also introduce a number of grant and cooperative agreement opportunities that are
available.
Initial host sites for the tour national include NCCU, the University of Texas-El Paso,
Morgan State University and Florida A&M University.
“NCCU is honored to host the NASA HBCU/MSI Technology Infusion Road Tour,”
said Dr. Undi Hoffler, interim vice chancellor for Research and Economic Develop
ment. “Participating in programs ofthis nature further enhances NCCU’s capabilities to
address national priorities in scientific research and technology.”
NASA officials said they hope the Technology Infusion Road Tour will enable the
agency and its prime contractors to increase the number of minority-owned businesses
and research institutions carrying out the agency’s work. The Road Tour will provide
HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions with an introduction to NASA and its
large prime contractors and opportunities to pursue non-grant funding.
NCCU departments participating include the Biomedical/Biotechnology Research
Institute (BBRI); the Biomanufacturing Research Institute and Technology Enterprise
(BRITE), the Fabrication Laboratory (Fab Lab); the NASA Center for Aerospace Re
search and Education; and the National Science Foundation’s Center'for Research Ex
cellence in Science and Technology (CREST) in Fundamental and Applied Science and
Education.
Minority-owned small business in the area will also be invited to participate in por
tions of the program, Hoffler said. The 100-plus anticipated attendees will learn funda
mentals of NASA’s programs and ways to pursue procurement and technical opportu
nities through the agency. Guest speakers will include past and present participants in
Mentor-Protege, Small Business Innovative Research and other NASA programs, who
will discuss their experiences.
To register for the free event, visit http://www.osbp.nasa.gov/.
Acting Secretary John B. King Jr. to Visits Alabama A&M University
Acting U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. visited Alabama A&M University on Wednes
day, March 16, in Huntsville, Alabama, as part of his “College Opportunity Across America” tour. King
will participate in a town hall discussion on the impact of Historically Black Colleges and Universities
(HBCUs) in meeting the nation’s science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) needs.
King was joined by several Alabama A&M campus leaders as well as Todd May, director of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Marshall Space Flight Center. Alabama A&M
students regularly intern at the Marshall Center and participate in several experiential (or co-curricular)
learning programs. In honor of Women’s History Month and women’s accomplishments in STEM fields,
Dr. Shelia Nash-Stevenson who is a Program Integration Engineer in the Planetary Missions Program
Office at Marshall Space Flight Center will be a guest at the event. She received the first master’s de
gree awarded by Alabama A&M’s physics program in 1994 and later became the first African American
woman in Alabama—and one of only about 20 nationwide—to earn a doctorate in physics.
King and Under Secretary Ted Mitchell launched the “College Opportunity Across America” tour
to meet with students, professors and college leaders in three states and Washington, D.C. King’s first
event is on Wednesday in Atlanta, and the tour will continue with visits to Huntsville, Alabama; San
Francisco; and Washington, D.C.
Throughout the tour, King will hear from students and campus leaders about innovative strategies
that increase access, affordability and positive outcomes for all students - no matter their zip code. He
will emphasize the Department’s continued focus on the most important outcome: completing a quality
degree at a.reasonable cost. Mitchell will also make stops as part of the tour and join King at some of
his events.
To register or to get additional information, please visit
www.nasa.gov http://www. osbp.nasa.gov.
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