ECONOMIC IMPACT
1. Alabama A&M University has an economic impact of over $350 million statewide and $228 million on the region, according to the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce.
2. Through its more than 5,800 students and 800 employees, AAMU is among the Top 20 largest employers in the Tennessee Valley region.
3. AAMU has consistently made strides to enhance its fiscal integrity. A measure of an organization’s fiscal health is its liquidity ratio, with a ratio of 1 denoting a healthy financial picture. AAMU’s liquidity ratio is 1.32.
4. Alabama A&M University secured a $96 million refinancing package through the U.S. Department of Education (the largest ever for an HBCU) to restructure debt and to build a new residence hall facility.
5. In 2017, AAMU completed over $7 million in upgrades, repairs and renovations to student facilities, including William Hooper Councill Hall (student support services), Robert A. Carter Hall (science) and the Student Center.
6. The Association of Public and Land Grant Universities recognized AAMU as the recipient of the 1890 Research Award because it achieved the largest increase (9.13%) in federal research funding and research dollar acquisition.
INTERNATIONAL, NATIONAL, REGIONAL AND STATE DISTINCTIONS
7. With nearly 75 percent (74.8) of its students residents of Alabama, AAMU provides a quality and cost-effective education for the state’s citizens.
8. AAMU is the only 1890 land-grant university with three Ph.D. programs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) areas. The fourth Ph.D. program (and state’s only one) focuses on Reading/Literacy.
9. AAMU is the site of a coveted Confucius Institute, one of only 107 such entities in the United States and one of only four located on a historically black college or university campus.
10. Alabama A&M University has been a member of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) since 1963. The University was reaffirmed in 2014.
11. U.S. Cabinet administrators have visited the campus on a wide range of initiatives pertaining to their unique missions. Among them were USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack; U.S. Department of Education Secretaries Arne Duncan and John B. King; and Attorney General Eric Holder.
12. The University enjoyed an unprecedented relationship with U.S. Army four-star and HBCU alumnus General Dennis L. Via, former 18th commanding general of the United States Army Materiel Command.
13. AAMU is one of only three universities in Alabama to participate in NASA‘s Technology Transfer University (T2U) Initiative, and it is the first HBCU to do so.
14. AAMU continued its distinction as a Bronze-level Military Friendly School for 2017.
15. The Alabama Veterinary Medical Association (ALVMA) awarded its prestigious Distinguished Service Award to AAMU Trustee Jerome Williams of Birmingham, Ala., during its the Distinguished Service Award.
16. Fredrick Law Olmstead, Sr., designer of New York City’s Central Park was commissioned by the State of Alabama to layout the Alabama A&M University campus in 1928.
17. AAMU was featured in an article by the website Affordable Schools. AAMU was ranked #15 among the "25 Largest HBCU Bachelor’s Colleges by Enrollment."
18. Brigadier General Patrick W. Burden is Deputy Program Executive Officer Ammunition and Senior Commander Picatinny Arsenal (N.J.). Gen. Burden is the first graduate of AAMU’s ROTC Program to achieve the rank of General in the Army.
19. The significant role of HBCUs in the production of outstanding football athletes was recognized during Super Bowl LI, when President Andrew and First Lady Abbiegail Hugine attended a tribute to AAMU alum, Pro Football Hall of Famer and former Pittsburgh Steeler John Stallworth.
20. World-wide attention following a segment by the local CBS affiliate was given to Justin Franks, the Mobile, Ala., native whose residence hall food pantry was featured on "The Rachel Ray Show" during the holiday season.
21. The engineering facility, which houses a STEM Knowledge Center, is named for Arthur J. Bond, former dean and late "Father of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)." AAMU enrolls and graduates the largest number of minority STEM students in the State of Alabama.
22. Alabama A&M University’s forestry program is accredited by the Society of American Foresters and is the only such program at an HBCU.
23. A new 580-bed residence hall facility could further distinguish AAMU from its fellow HBCUs around the nation. The housing complex will feature a complete building automation system that monitors occupancy through motion sensors. Additionally, the residence hall will have lighting motion sensors in hallways and rooms. The estimated completion time for the facility is spring 2018.
24. AAMU boasts the only certified (Planning Accreditation Board - PAB) undergraduate Community Planning program in Alabama. It is also the only HBCU in the U.S. with both the master’s and undergraduate programs accredited by PAB.
25. AAMU established the state’s first computer science program in 1969 with the assistance of the late Clyde Foster, who was on loan from NASA.
26. The College of Education, Humanities and Behavioral Sciences was the first in Alabama to set up an e-tutorial program in teacher education. Its teacher education programs are accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). Moreover. AAMU is among the Top 10 schools in the nation in the production of African-American male teachers for the nation’s classrooms.
27. AAMU has established the Virginia Caples Lifelong Learning Institute (VCLLI), established in honor of the longtime educator and administrator and the first such center at an 1890 institution of higher learning.
28. The Department of Food and Animal Sciences offers the only Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) certified food science program at a historically black college or university (HBCU) in the U.S. The Food and Animal Sciences Department is one of two and the oldest Ph.D. food science program among HBCUs in the U.S.
29. The social work programs, undergraduate and graduate, are accredited by the Council of Social Work Education.
30. The Rehabilitative Counseling program is accredited by the Council on Rehabilitation.
31. The Communicative Sciences and Disorders program is accredited by the American Speech and Hearing Association.
32. The Family and Consumer Sciences program is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Family and Consumer Sciences.
33. The Nutrition and Hospitality program is accredited by the Commission of Accreditation for Dietetics Education.
34. Alabama A&M University is mentioned in the article, "50 Most Affordable College Towns in the U.S," posted by http://www.valuecolleges.com/rankings/ affordable-college-towns/. AAMU is based in Huntsville, which ranked 22nd on the list.
35. The programs in Civil Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering, are accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).
36. Three Greek-lettered organizations provided contributions to AAMU for scholarship endowments (Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., $150,000; Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., 100,000; and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., $100,000).
37. AAMU has hosted a Nobel Laureate for nearly 20 consecutive years, the only institution in the country to have such a distinction. The 20th Putcha Venkateswarlu Memorial Lecture of 2017 was slated for December 1, 2017, with a public presentation by Nobel Laureate Nobel Laureate David Wineland of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
38. Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University Historic District, also known as Normal Hill College Historic District, has 28 buildings and 4 structures, listed in the United States Register of Historic Places.
39. A national article about the role of AAMU and other American universities in promoting science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) among diverse populations appears in the August 2, 2016, issue of DIVERSE magazine. In the article, Gerald Vines of the College of Engineering, Technology and Physical Sciences explains the current efforts of the STEM Knowledge Center to embed math "in every part of the learning sessions," from robotics to mechanical, civil and physical engineering.
ACADEMICS/FACULTY
40. College of Business and Public Affairs faculty are systematically expanding online degree offerings, launching an online Bachelor of Science degree in management especially suited for the nontraditional student.
41. Faculty from the College of Agricultural, Life and Natural Sciences (Dr. Anthony Overton and Dr. Ernst Cebert) teamed with Horizon Elementary School’s Wall-E’s Lego Alliance Team to build and hang 50 bee hotels at Winfred Thomas Agricultural Research Station ("The Farm").
42. AAMU still boasts the only Master of Social Work (MSW) degree in the region and is one of only two in the state; however, it maintains a Memorandum of Understanding with the University of North Alabama.
43. Education professor Delores Price has been reappointed to the Governor’s prestigious Women’s Commission of Alabama through January 2018.
44. The USDA Secretary re-appointed Dr. Duncan M. Chembezi to serve a third term on the Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers (ACBFR). The new term expires in 2017.
45. Extension specialist Robert Spencer has received national recognition for his volunteer work in Haiti over the past seven years. Spencer was nominated by the Partners of the Americas to receive the distinguished President’s Volunteer Service Award.
46. The three-day annual expo of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT)—one of AAMU’s accrediting bodies--is the food industry’s largest gathering of individuals affiliated with food ingredients, equipment, processing, suppliers, and academicians under one roof. The expo featured over 100 scientific and applied sessions and over 23,000 food science experts from over 90 countries. IFT attendees from AAMU had an opportunity to learn and explore the latest global trends in food science and technology by attending technical sessions and visiting the food exposition.
47. An institution-wide MOU was signed by the presidents of AAMU and Middle Tennessee State University to encourage greater collaboration on faculty and student scientific research in the areas of aerospace, agriscience and engineering.
48. Dr. Melvin L. Williams, coordinator of AAMU’s communications specialist program, co-wrote the chapter "Flawless Feminist or Fallible Freak? An Analysis of Feminism, Empowerment and Gender in Beyonce’s Lyrics." The chapter appears in Adrienne Trier-Bieniek’s "The Beyonce Effect: Essays on Sexuality, Race and Feminism."
49. The Department of Food and Animal Sciences (CALNS) hosted the 2016 Summer Cochran Fellowship program. The fellows arrived in New York and attended The Summer Fancy Food Show, America’s largest specialty food and beverage drawing 46,000+ industry professionals, and the premier showcase for industry innovation showcasing the next big products, big companies and the big trends.
50. Dr. Virginia Caples, retired 1890 administrator, professor, and two-time interim president of Alabama A&M University, has been selected among the 2016 list of 30 "Women Who Shape the State," sponsored by AL.com and Von Maur.
51. Alabama A&M University’s College of Agricultural, Life and Natural Sciences and Meridianville Middle School teachers introduced the FEAST Project to the public via an open house at Meridianville Middle School. The FEAST acronym stands for "Fostering Environmental and Agricultural Scientists for Tomorrow." Spearheaded by AAMU faculty, the brief activity was held on AAMU-owned land that is part of the Winfred Thomas Agricultural Research Station ("The Farm"). The land is immediately adjacent to Meridianville Middle School.
52. AAMU Family and Consumer Sciences Professor Cynthia Smith is president of the 67-chapter, 92,000-member Alpha Kappa Mu National Honor Society. The African-American organization will celebrate its 80th anniversary in November 2017.
53. Directed by Dr. Horace Carney, chair of the Department of Visual, Performing and Communication Arts, the world-renowned AAMU Concert Choir performed at the Lincoln Center, marking the first such performance by a historically black college or university.
54. Bandmaster and alum Carlton Wright led the Marching Maroon and White to the 2017 Honda Battle of the Bands at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Ga.
ALUMNI
55. The Honorable Anthony L. Daniels, Alabama State Representative, became the first African American and youngest Minority Leader.
56. AAMU produces leaders for higher education. Two A&M alumni, Dr. Carl Harris Marbury and Dr. Jack Thomas, former English major and AAMU track star, served as presidents of Alabama A&M University and Western Illinois University, respectively. Dr. Nathan Essex serves as president of Southwest Tennessee Community College, and Norman Cephus was a two-year college president at C. A. Fredd Technical College in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
57. AAMU produces governmental leaders: Kenneth Gulley, Mayor of Bessemer, Alabama and former Bessemer Mayor Edward May; Jay Roberson, Birmingham City Council; Senator Linda Coleman and Representatives Laura Hall and Mary Moore; James Perkins, former Mayor in Selma, Alabama; Mandela Barnes, Wisconsin State Assembly; and Chris Carter and Michael Butler, Missouri General Assembly. Other local governmental leaders include Richard D. Showers, Sr., former Huntsville (Ala.) City Council president; and Wil Culver, Huntsville City Council.
58. AAMU produces leaders in public education, among them current and former superintendents of schools: Eugene White, Indianapolis Public Schools; Arlester McBride, Wilcox County Schools; Dee O. Fowler, Madison County Schools; Dr. Fred Primm, Jr., Bessemer City Schools; Woodie E. Pugh, Jr., Clarke County Schools; Elam Ray Swaim, Madison County Schools; Dr. Robert Brown, first black superintendent of Greene County Schools (a middle school in Eutaw, Ala., was named in his honor); and Bernadeia Johnson, superintendent of Minneapolis, Minn., schools (featured on CNN’s "Blacks in America" series).
59. Julian "Juels" Pierrot interned a summer before the launching of the tenth year of the noted Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival, which has attracted performances by Kanye West and, most recently, Jay-Z. Now Pierrot, an AAMU alum, is the marketing and communications guru behind the 13th Annual Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival in 2017.
60. Dr. Robert Doyle Bullard, professor and dean of the Barbara Jordan - Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs at Texas Southern University is widely considered "The Father of Environmental Justice.
61. Dr. Henry Panion III is widely known for his work as a conductor and arranger for superstar Stevie Wonder, for whose performances and recordings he had led many of the world’s most notable orchestras.
62. William E. Cox, Sr., is president of Cox Matthews & Associates, publisher of the nationally distributed higher education publication DIVERSE magazine and others.
63. Julian Green has joined the Chicago Cubs operation as vice president of communications and community affairs, following a stint as the spokesperson for MillerCoors. He was also a communications specialist for then Senator Barack Obama.
64. Dr. Hadiyah Nicole-Green, remembered her Alma Mater during an interview by Roland Martin on "NewsOne Now." The AAMU alum gained national attention for her ground-breaking cancer research in her lab formerly at Tuskegee University and now at the Morehouse Medical School, where she is a physicist.
65. Dr. Marquita Furniss Davis served as the first female finance director for the State of Alabama.
66. Paul Pinyan is executive director of the Alabama Farmers Federation and general manager of ALFA Services, Inc.
67. Singer Mitty Collier of Chess Records fame, who popularized "I Had a Talk with My Man Last Night," still influences the next generation of vocalists through her role as a pastor in Chicago.
68. Late alumnus Booker T. Whatley was noted internationally for developing a process of year-round farming for a 100-acre family. The plan attracted the attention of the Wall Street Journal and the founder of Domino’s Pizza.
69. Rose Crumb Johnson is a senior adviser for Pan-American Risk Management, LLC. She pioneered new methods of service delivery in the health care arena and was noted for her innovation in implementing new initiatives.
70. John O. Hudson, III, is vice president of public relations and charitable giving for Alabama Power. He also serves as president of the Alabama Power Foundation, one of the largest foundations in Alabama.
71. Carolyn Caldwell is president and CEO of Centerpoint Medical Center in Independence, Mo. She has also been elected to the American Hospital Association Board of Trustees.
72. Dr. Alease S. Sims of Birmingham, Ala., was a co-defendant in the long-running Knight & Sims vs. Alabama higher education desegregation lawsuit, first launched in 1981.
73. W. Clyde Marsh has achieved the highest rank of any graduate of the AAMU ROTC. He retired with the rank of Rear Admiral and is currently serving as the Director of Veterans Affairs for the State of Alabama and as President of the National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs.
74. Adrienne Pope-Kelly Washington (retired) is the first black female to earn the permanent grade of GS-15 in the history of the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, first black female to hold the position of Director of Security Assistance Management Directorate (SAMD) and first black female to serve as the Division Chief of Air and Missile Defense Systems in SAMD. She has also headed the South Eastern Region of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
75. Sadie Britt, Class of 1960 and member of the Talladega County Area AAMU Alumni chapter, was elected the first black female president of the League of Municipalities for the State of Alabama.
76. Miranda Bouldin-Frost, president/CEO of Huntsville-based LogiCore, was listed among Fortune’s Top 10 "Most Promising Women in Business."
ATHLETICS
77. Betty Austin, AAMU’s first female athletic director, is one of the winningest volleyball coaches in the history of the sport.
78. AAMU annually plays in the Magic City Classic, first played in 1924. The Magic City Classic is one of the oldest and now largest continuing rivalries between historically black colleges and universities.
79. An annual Robert Mathis football camp is held in Louis Crews Stadium with the support of Mathis, a former A&M standout and recently retired member of the Indianapolis Colts. With some help from the Bulldog football coaching staff, Mathis conducted the free clinic on the fundamentals of football, footwork, use of hands, position drills and many more football-related activities.
80. AAMU joined forces with the City of Huntsville and Huntsville Public Schools on a stadium artificial turf project that enables access to junior high and high school football teams at Louis Crews Stadium.
81. NFL Hall of Famer John Stallworth is a former American football wide receiver who played 14 seasons in the National Football League for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Stallworth, a native of Tuscaloosa, Ala., played in six AFC championships and four Super Bowls.
82. The annual "Bulldogs Excellence in Sports & Teams" (B.E.S.T.) Awards honors the sacrifices and successes of AAMU student athletes.
83. Jearl Miles Clark was inducted into the U.S. Track and Field Hall of Fame and is a five-time Olympic winner in track and field, winning two gold and one silver medal.
84. At least eighty (80) former Bulldogs have played professional sports.
85. All-time NFL draft picks (19) include: Johnny Baldwin, Robert Mathis, Joe Patton, Fred Lester, Todd Woulard, Howard Ballard, Morris Johnson, Reginald Gipson, Thomas Hopkins, Mike Williams, Raymond Cooley, Frankie Smith, Oliver Ross, John Stallworth, Louis Swain, Onree Jackson, Alvin Presnell, Bill Kendricks and Bernard Corbin.
86. The Alabama A&M University Athletic Hall of Fame boasts nearly 200 members.
87. Free agent Frank Kearse is an American football nose tackle who has played for the Carolina Panthers, Tennessee Titans, Dallas Cowboys, and Washington Redskins.
88. At a capacity of 21,000 seats, Louis Crews Stadium is still the largest such athletic facility in the North Alabama vicinity.
89. Barry Wagner is a retired player from the Arena Football League for the Orlando Predators with whom he won his first Arena Bowl Championship and the San Jose SaberCats, with whom he won two championships. He is considered the best arena football player of all time.
OUTREACH
90. The Alabama Cooperative Extension Program, a joint program between Alabama A&M University and Auburn University, has extension offices in all 67 Alabama counties.
91. The Small Farm Research Center holds a series of practical workshops designed for the general public throughout each year as part of its unique program targeting beginning farmers and ranchers. The Center also conducts and promotes interdisciplinary research on the economic and social development of limited resource, new and beginning farmers, ranchers and rural entrepreneurs in Alabama’s underserved communities. The Center serves nearly 700 small farmers and over 100 rural entrepreneurs annually.
92. The Edmonton Heights Family Life Center, in conjunction with the AAMU Community Development Corporation, provides tutorial, tax preparation and other services to the neighborhood.
93. Karnita Golson-Garner and Extension partners coordinated the first One Health Conference on Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Huntsville, Alabama. This successful event allowed experts in human, animal, and environmental health to present current research and national efforts being conducted to reduce the environmental impacts of PPCPs.
94. AAMU has been a long-time partner with the Madison County Commission District 6 to form and sustain community/public gardens.
95. Ranging from rodeos to dog shows, the AAMU Agribition Center hosts a number of unique events for the greater Huntsville and Madison County community.
96. The AAMU Community Development Corporation (AAMU-CDC) is working to revitalize the Edmonton Heights neighborhood adjacent to the campus and to assist first-time homebuyers. More than a dozen homes have been built, renovated, or upgraded. A Family Life Center for after school care and other activities has been built and expanded. The community park has also been upgraded.
97. AAMU students have provided consistent mentoring services to students at local elementary schools in Huntsville, Ala. AAMU student volunteers have clocked more than 60,000 hours at more than 60 local agencies and schools.
98. The AAMU-based Confucius Institute is promoting free Chinese language and culture classes among residents of the Tennessee Valley. It was also instrumental in the formation of a Chinese Club.
99. More than 800 AAMU students volunteered in the 2017 "Serving the City as One" initiative, coordinated by the City of Huntsville and First Baptist Church-Governors. AAMU students, faculty and staff also volunteered for Habitat for Humanity projects.
100. First Lady Abbiegail Hugine and Bulldog Pride recycling chairperson Clarene Teague-Johnson donated plastic caps to Lakewood Elementary. Bulldog Pride members support Huntsville Green Team by adopting local schools in their respective "Going Green" efforts.
101. In addition to participation in drug take-back programs throughout the Tennessee Valley, AAMU joined the Alabama Cooperative Extension System’s Urban and New Nontraditional Programs unit in Operation Green Team’s 2017 Earth Day Festival at Hays Nature Preserve.
102. The Alabama Cooperative Extension System’s Urban Affairs and New Nontraditional Programs Unit held the 9th Annual Small Ruminant Conference at Perdido Beach Resort in Orange Beach, Ala. During this conference, research data was presented on post-mortem diagnosis in sheep and goats, selecting breeding stock, reproduction practices in hair sheep, foot diseases among sheep and goats, creep feeding, gastrointestinal parasites, crossbreeding among Boer and Savanna goats, and anthelmintic resistance in meat goat herds.
103. The AAMU Student Wellness Center boasts state-of-the-art fitness equipment, a bowling alley and numerous health and wellness outreach programs for the community.
104. The Bulldog Pride Committee, headed by First Lady Abbiegail Hugine, pulls together University and community persons in a partnership focused on campus aesthetics, pride and scholarship support.
105. Education majors have provided tutoring and enrichment to students in the Sparkman Homes (Oscar Mason) Public Housing Community and Martin Luther King Elementary School.
106. The Confucius Institute celebrated the Chinese Autumn Festival at Von Braun Center. The AAMU-based center promotes Chinese language and culture, supports local Chinese teaching internationally and facilitates cultural exchanges.
107. AAMU’s 100,000-watt WJAB-FM airs a nationally syndicated radio program, "Return to the Source," hosted by political science professor and jazz enthusiast Douglas Turner. The show is a welcomed addition to the African-American Public Radio Consortium’s listings.
108. The College of Education, Humanities and Behavioral Sciences teamed in spring 2017 with Crisis Services of North Alabama and hosted 60 area agencies that provide quality field placements for AAMU students, as well as service to the community.
109. The AAMU Gallery of Art, located in the R.D. Morrison Fine Arts Building, is a professional and accessible showcase for on-campus and community artists. Professors coordinated SPACES, a program sponsored by the City of Huntsville and the Huntsville Arts Council to bring art and sculptures to public places.
110. First Lady Abbiegail Hugine and the Bulldog Pride Committee have coordinated the Be the Match Walk, a worthwhile event organized to further increase awareness of bone marrow research.
111. The Center for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Economic Development (CEIED) and AAMU RISE hosted the SBIR-STTR workshop on campus in 2017, specifically designed for small businesses interested in innovation and technology transfer.
RESEARCH
112. Dr. Srinvasa Rao Mentreddy is project director for a $480,000 grant through 2019 that will allow him to conduct research on the commercial production of the anti-cancer crop turmeric for growth by small farmers in Alabama.
113. AAMU physicists received NSF funding in the amount of $8 million through 2017 for an "Alliance for Physics Excellence" (APEX) program for improving physics education for up to 40,000 high school students statewide. The program also donated over $200,000 in science equipment to Alabama schools.
114. There are more than 25 specialized research laboratories and three outdoor research stations and forest sites, where agricultural, environmental, forestry and wildlife research is undertaken by students and faculty members in the College of Agricultural, Life and Natural Sciences.
115. The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded nearly $1 million for an HBCU-RISE proposal on the "Design of Nanostructures for Energy Efficient Devices." Housed in the Department of Physics, the three-year project, funded for $999,866, will run through March 31, 2019. The principal investigator is Dr. Rami R. Bommareddi, and the co-principal investigators are Drs. Ashok Batra, Satilmis Budak, Matthew Edwards and Vernessa Edwards. Drs. Padmaja Guggilla and Michael Curley are senior scientists on this project, Dr. Lydia Davenport is the project evaluator.
116. Dr. Padmaja "Paddy" Guggilla, associate professor of physics (PI), and Dr. Tianxi Zhang, professor of physics (Co-PI), received $270,000 for the third time from NSF to facilitate the Physics-Research Experience for Undergraduates program at AAMU for next three years.
The Physics REU Site at AAMU is a 10-week summer program that provides research opportunities to 24 talented undergraduate students from institutions with limited or no access to basic research in science and engineering.
117. Dr. Rao Mentreddy, professor and crop scientist at AAMU, has been conducting research on the medicinal effects of basil in the long-running battle against for diabetes for years. He is working with Dr. Suresh Mathews, chair of Samford University’s Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, on a three-year $493,892 USDA-NIFA grant. The grant to the Birmingham-based institution will allow continuing study on the antidiabetic effects of basil.
118. A team of administrators and faculty at Alabama A&M University were successful in securing a second five-year National Science Foundation grant aimed at improving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) undergraduate education at historically black colleges and universities. The Team has been awarded a $1.75 million Historically Black Colleges and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP) grant focusing on "Advancing Success in STEM Undergraduate Research and Education" (ASSURE).
119. AAMU’s Center for Forest Ecosystem Assessment (CFEA) is part of the National Science Foundation’s Center of Research Excellence in Science and Technology (CREST).
120. The J.F. Drake Learning Resources Center (LRC) and the AAMU Forestry Program have received funding from the USDA and the Alabama Forestry Commission to improve forestry education, research, public service, workforce diversity and career opportunities through their partnership. Attendees for a Center of Excellence in Forestry meeting also took part in a tour of the LRC facility.
121. Two former AAMU researchers teamed with two researchers at Florida A&M University/Florida State University to edit the 454-page book, "Triboluminescence: Theory, Synthesis and Application." Ross S. Fontenot and William A. Hollerman are both graduates of AAMU’s Ph.D. program in physics.
STUDENTS AND VOLUNTEERISM
122. According to AAMU’s Office of International Programs, AAMU students are expanding their collegiate experiences far beyond the traditional classroom settings to include experiences in Africa, Asia and Europe.
123. Two AAMU Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) scholars, Winston Jackson, a biology major, and Antoinette Jackson, majoring in computer science, were selected to participate in the Brookhaven National Laboratory Summer Internship program. The students conducted research in the Sustainable Energy Technology Department to develop a low firing rate fuel nozzle that does not suffer from the drawbacks of current commercial available nozzle.
124. Students in the College of Engineering, Technology and Physical Sciences used classroom, lab and leadership skills to build the formula race car dubbed "SuperLucy."
125. AAMU students participated in zero gravity experiments as part of a NASA reduced gravity flight team in Houston.
126. As part of its ongoing 100th anniversary the U.S. Army Cadet Command (ROTC) featured AAMU ROTC cadets and alumni around the world during the month of June. The Command featured AAMU’s Cadet Ryan Glenn of Woodbridge, Va.
127. Overall STEM Day 2017 contest winner Angela Reedy, a graduate student in physics, displayed a winning poster on "Moderate Temperature Dielectric Surface and Bulk Currents and Low-Frequency Dielectric Constant Measurements of Pure and Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNT) Doped Amorphous Polyvinyl Alcohol Thin Films." The poster also placed first at the 92nd annual Alabama Academy of Science Conference and earned 2nd place at the Alpha Kappa Mu National Honor Society Conference. Above, engineering faculty member Stoney Massey inspects student project at 2017 STEM Day.
128. Xantheia Watkins, a Bulldog Transit System staffer, and new alum of the Department of Community and Regional Planning, has spearheaded Earth Day efforts in 2017 aimed at extolling the benefits to the environment of a viable public transportation system.
129. Only within its sixth year in 2017, the First Lady’s Scholarship Initiative, launched by First Lady Abbiegail Hugine and a team of volunteers, has raised more than $175,000 and has provided several scholarships to deserving students.
130. An energetic team of AAMU volunteers joined parents and other supporters to make the 2017 Field Day program at Martin Luther King Elementary School a huge success.
131. Four students under the banner of the College of Agricultural, Life and Natural Sciences received scholarships from Alabama Farm Credit, based in Cullman, Ala., in spring 2017. The students were: Victoria Ice-Gipson, junior, food and animal sciences; Keilah R. Washington, junior, family and consumer sciences; Jazmine McGinnis, junior, biological and environmental sciences; and Mario Dofat, junior, community and regional planning.
132. AAMU students participated in the "Race, Justice and Hope Listening Sessions", touted as one way for students to voice concerns and provide recommendations for dealing with police officers on campus and in the community.
133. Alabama A&M University MBA student Jaquila White received the 2016 STEM/MBA Scholarship. The recipient of the scholarship must be a student who has earned a degree in either Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) and is currently pursuing an MBA degree. The scholarship provides financial support to and encourages high-achieving STEM graduates pursuing the MBA. Research has shown that a combination of technical strengths with principles of business provides students with the business knowledge needed to successfully manage high-tech businesses.
134. Allison Bohlman, a second-year master’s student working in the Geospatial Research and Education Center (GREC) and NGA/USGS Center for Academic Excellence in Geospatial Sciences (NGA/USGS CAE GS) was awarded an academic scholarship from the US Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF). Bohlman was selected from a highly competitive field of geospatial graduate candidates from across the United States.
HONORING OUR OWN
135. In Spring 2017, AAMU and unit supervisors paid tribute to nearly 60 professional office workers during Administrative Professionals Day for their roles in carrying out the University’s mission.
136. In April 2017, some 875 students participated in the Academic Honors Convocation, where they were recognized for achieving distinctions as members of the Dean’s List, Honor Roll, Who’s Who, as well as bronze, silver and gold presidential medallions, and other distinctions.
137. First Lady Abbiegail Hugine and the Bulldog Pride Committee spearheaded and brought into existence "Legacy Lake," the aesthetically pleasing tribute to the first ladies of the University.
138. The "Normal Legacy Society," established by President Andrew Hugine, Jr., recognizes lifetime contributions of $100,000 or more to AAMU, contributed more than $1.2 million. The members include: Dr. Henry & Mrs. Nell Bradford; Dr. Belvie Brice and Mrs. Dorothy Brice; the late Ms. Bertha M. Jones; Dr. Ernest and Mrs. Marion Knight; Mrs. Ella Byrd McCain and the late Dr. John McCain; the late Rev. Lucien M. Randolph; the late Ms. Velma Walker; Mrs. Geneva Wright and the late Mr. Elbert Wright; the Tom Joyner Foundation; Atty. W. Troy and Mrs. Sue Massey; Huntsville Hospital; and Mr. Ronald and Mrs. Patricia McIntosh.
139. AAMU celebrated at the 2017 Black Tie Scholarship Gala the completion of its $25 million capital campaign.
140. Active alumni help solidify AAMU’s involvement in the college preparations of a class of students at the Mae Jemison High School ("The Hill Project"). The University’s partnership with the students is supported by school administrators, local administrators and teachers in the Huntsville City School System, as well as by alumni educators within the system. The terms of the partnership are revisited and revitalized annually on the eve of the Louis Crews Classic.
141. The University paid tribute to student Rodney Smith, whose Raising Men Lawn Care Service was a tool through which young men could give back to their communities by assisting the elderly and disabled with the care of their lawns.
142. AAMU sent four students to participate in the Black Enterprise TechConneXt Summit in San Francisco. "We are connecting black talent to Silicon Valley," said Earl Graves, Jr., CEO and president of Black Enterprise magazine.