Sonja Alexander                               Feb. 17, 2000
Headquarters, Washington, DC
(Phone:  202/358-1761)

Media Advisory: m00-30

NASA AWARDS FACULTY RESEARCH GRANTS

     The NASA Office of Equal Opportunity Programs has awarded 15 
research grants to
11 minority colleges and universities for faculty research.

The awards, under the Faculty Awards for Research (FAR) 
program, went to six Historically Black Colleges and Universities 
and five Other Minority Universities, including four to Hispanic 
Serving Institutions and one to Tribal Colleges and Universities.

     The FAR grants provide opportunities for minority colleges 
and universities, in collaboration with the NASA Centers and the 
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, to provide research experiences in 
NASA-related fields for faculty and students to support and 
encourage their teaching and research careers.  These experiences 
will enhance cultural diversity in the NASA-sponsored research 
community as well as increase the employment pool from which NASA 
and the aerospace industry can draw.

     Each Institution will receive up to $100,000 per year for 
each award for a maximum of 3 years based on performance and 
availability of funds under the program.

     The 11 institutions selected to receive grants are: 
          Florida A & M University, Tallahassee, FL (3 grants)
          Florida International University, Miami, FL
          Hampton University, VA
          North Carolina A & T University, Greensboro, NC (2 
grants)
          Prairie View A & M University, Prairie View, TX
          Salish Kootenai College, Pablo, MT
          Tuskegee University, AL
          University of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC
          University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM
          University of Texas at El Paso, TX (2 grants)
          University of Texas at San Antonio, TX

Additional details on these awards can be found on the 
Internet:

               http://mured.alliedtech.com

                            -end-