The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) awards of $824,234 to 17 faculty members from minority serving institutions (MSI) to advance their research projects.

The research funding is being provided by the S&T Office of University Programs (OUP) as part of the 2021 Summer Research Team (SRT) program.

Focusing on DHS mission and research needs, participants will develop research projects while collaborating and conducting their studies at the Centers of Excellence (CoE) – which partner with each SRT project with a university or academic lead.

“Students and faculty can keep moving forward with research that is relevant to the complex challenges to the Homeland Security mission,” said S&T OUP Director Rebecca Medina. “The SRT Program provides early-career faculty, undergraduate, and graduate students with 10 weeks of research experience and integrates the intellectual resources of the MSI community with DHS’ scientific leadership to enhance and inspire the next generation of homeland security thought leaders.”

Among the 2021 award winners who are receiving additional funding for projects and associated CoEs are researchers from:

• The Arctic Domain Awareness Center led by the University of Alaska;
• The Center for Accelerated Operational Efficiency led by Arizona State University;
• Cross-Border Threat Screening and Supply Chain Defense led by Texas A&M University;
• The Coastal Resilience Center led by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partnership with Jackson State University;
• The Criminal Investigations and Network Analysis led by George Mason University;
• The Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute led by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; and
• The Maritime Security Center led by the Stevens Institute of Technology.