To bolster its outreach in the Lone Star State, the Department of the Navy’s (DoN) Historically Black Colleges and Universities/Minority Institutions (HBCU/MI) Program recently held its annual Naval Opportunity Awareness Workshop (OAW) at Texas Southern University (TSU) in Houston.

TSU is one of the nation’s largest HBCU/MIs.

“This past April, the Secretary of the Navy released the latest Naval S&T Strategy, outlining priorities to strengthen maritime technological dominance, build a culture of S&T excellence and enhance naval scientific diplomacy,” said Assistant Chief of Naval Research Capt. David Murray, who gave the event’s welcome address. “A foundational attribute of our Naval S&T Strategy is cultivating our relationships with scientists, engineers and academic partners to include those at HBCU/MIs.

“Students, faculty and the leadership teams at HBCUs/MIs provide unique and diverse perspectives, and are valuable pipelines for talent, creative thinking and knowledge,” he continued. “They serve as important partners in maintaining and expanding our naval science and technology ecosystem.”

HBCU/MIs collectively enroll over 5 million students and provide critical college access to those who often come from traditionally underserved communities and are the first in their family to attend an institution of higher learning. And while HBCU/MIs represent less than 2% of U.S. higher education learning institutions, they produce 25% of African-American STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) graduates.

That’s a talent source the DoN HBCU/MI Program, which is located at the Office of Naval Research, wants to reach. One way it does so is through the Naval OAW.

The Naval OAW is the DoN HBCU/MI Program’s premier annual event. It’s aimed at university and college presidents, vice presidents, provosts, faculty, staff and students from HBCU/MIs. The workshop highlights research opportunities within the Navy and Marine Corps, summer faculty/sabbatical research opportunities and student internships.

It provides a critical platform for direct engagement between the DoN and key stakeholders, potential funding grantees and future partners. The Naval OAW also serves as a way to get more HBCU/MI faculty involved in naval-relevant scientific research — and attract students to internships.

“This year’s Naval OAW was a resounding success and helped expand awareness of our initiatives within the state of Texas,” said Anthony C. Smith Sr., director of the DoN HBCU/MI Program. “The faculty and students who attended were excited and engaged. They saw the event as a great way to make valuable networking connections; learn about available faculty fellowships, student internships and research awards; and consider exciting careers in the naval science and technology workforce.”

The DoN HBCU/MI Program provides avenues for HBCU/MI faculty and students to collaborate with scientists and engineers at naval labs and warfare centers, on projects of mutual interest. These include student internships as well as summer faculty fellowship research experiences at naval warfare centers and labs. Additionally, faculty can participate in one-semester to full-year-long sabbaticals under the ONR Summer Faculty Research Program and the ONR Sabbatical Leave Program, respectively.

The DoN HBCU/MI Program also partners with the DoD HBCU/MI Program and Outreach to offer the Distinguished Fellows Program. This provides professors from HBCU/MIs with faculty release time for three years — enabling them to focus exclusively on naval-relevant research, write academic papers and abstracts, engage with naval scientists and engineers, and mentor undergraduate and graduate students.

The DoN HBCU/MI Program has three main goals:

• Expand opportunities for schools to successfully compete for grants and contracts in basic and applied research.
• Offer fellowships to faculty and internships to students pursuing degrees in STEM studies.
• Promote greater student interest in STEM degrees at HBCU/MIs.

Learn more about the DoN HBCU/MI Program at https://www.onr.navy.mil/hbcu.

To listen to an interview with Maurice Civers-Davis, deputy director of the DoN HBCU/MI Program, promoting the Naval OAW, visit

Warren Duffie Jr. is a contractor for ONR Corporate Strategic Communications.

This "Texas Opportunity Rodeo: Naval Workshop Spotlights Talent at HBCU/MIs" was originally found on https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/News-Stories/Term/3087/