Above: Florida A&M Provost Maurice Edington, Col. Garry Haase, FSU Provost Sally McRorie and FAMU-FSU College of Engineering Dean Murray Gibson participated in a ceremonial signing of the partnership March 18, 2019

The FAMU-FSU College of Engineering and researchers and engineers from Eglin Air Force Base celebrated the beginning of a new partnership Monday to train undergraduate students in areas critical to the U.S. Air Force.

The Air Force Research Laboratory at Eglin will fund a $400,000 grant to create the Air Force Research Laboratory Scholars program at the College of Engineering. The program will bring students into the lab environment where they can directly benefit from working with faculty researchers on Air Force-related research.

The five-year program will provide the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering with funding for four AFRL scholars. College of Engineering Associate Professor Rajan Kumar, along with Gibson and Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies Farrukh Alvi, will develop a tailored curriculum for these scholars that focuses on use of the polysonic wind tunnel and other facilities that support the AFRL’s research agenda.

Above: Dr. Rajan Kumar tours the Anechoic Jet facility located in the FCAAP wing of the AME Building in Innovation park

Kumar, who will serve as the point person for the program, said the new agreement will provide students with specialized training that would prepare them for their future professional endeavors.

“This program will provide maximum exposure to students across a broad spectrum of educational background,” he said. “Students will conduct relevant and necessary research during an internship that focuses on the critical needs of AFRL Munitions Directorate, particularly in the areas of supersonic and hypersonic flows.”

Kumar, Gibson and Alvi participated in a ceremonial signing of the partnership with Haase and other officials from the Air Force Research Laboratory. Haase and other Air Force officials, along with aides from the offices of U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., also toured the wind tunnel facilities with FSU and FAMU administrators.

Read the full story for more details on this exciting program!