North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University is the No. 1 public historically black university in the nation, according to the U.S. News & World Report’s 2016 Best Colleges rankings released Sept. 9.

The multi-platform news provider ranked N.C. A&T No. 9 out of 72 historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), up one spot from the previous year. A&T last ranked as the top public HBCU in 2014. To qualify for ranking, a college or university must be designated an HBCU by the Department of Education and be a baccalaureate-granting institution that enrolls primarily first-year, first-time students. The college or university had to have also taken part in the 2016 Best Colleges survey and ranking process.

“For 125 years, N.C. A&T has maintained a rich tradition in academics, research, discovery and outreach. It gives us great pride to be recognized as the No. 1 public HBCU in the nation and ranked among the top 10 of the nation’s outstanding historically black institutions,” said Chancellor Harold L. Martin Sr.

“As we pause to celebrate this university’s dynamic resilience from humble beginnings, there is still much work to be done as outlined in our strategic plan, A&T Preeminence 2020.”

For this ranking, U.S. News & World Report compared HBCUs using the key measures of graduation and retention rates; peer assessment; faculty resources; student selectivity; financial resources; and alumni giving to calculate each college or university’s rank.

The university was also ranked among the top half of the Best Online Degree Programs for undergraduate degrees, in the second tier of Best National Universities and among the top of the nation’s Best Undergraduate Business Programs, Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs as well as the graduate industrial/manufacturing/systems engineering, mechanical engineering and rehabilitation counseling programs.

Established in 1891, A&T is a land-grant doctoral research university dedicated to learning, discovery, and community engagement. This is the fourth consecutive year the university has been ranked as the top HBCU in North Carolina.

Through the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering, North Carolina A&T State University is part of a collaboration being funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to advance research, education and infrastructure in nanoscale science, engineering and technology.

NSF has selected the Southeastern Nanotechnology Infrastructure Corridor (SENIC), a collaboration between Georgia Institute of Technology’s Institute of Electronics and Nanotechnology (GT-IEN), N.C. A&T and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG), as a site for the prestigious National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI).

Dr. Oliver Brand, executive director of GT-IEN will direct the SENIC program. The work at A&T and UNCG will be conducted at the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering (JSNN).

Nationwide, NSF will provide a total of $81 million over five years to support 16 NNCI sites, a network of user facilities to advance research, education and infrastructure in nanoscale science, engineering and technology. The SENIC program will receive a total of $8 million in funding. JSNN’s portion of this funding is $1.8 million over five years.

“NSF’s long-standing investments in nanotechnology infrastructure have helped the research community to make great progress by making research facilities available,” said Pramod Khargonekar, assistant director for the NSF Directorate of Engineering. “NNCI will serve as a nationwide backbone for nanoscale research, which will lead to continuing innovations and economic and societal benefits.”

“This grant will provide an affordable, open and one-stop-shop to leading-edge nanofabrication and characterization tools to a growing user community from academia, government, small and large companies across the southeastern United States” said Dr. Shyam Aravamudhan, co-principal investigator and assistant professor of nanoengineering at A&T. “This is the first time that JSNN will be involved in this elite network of nanotechnology user facilities.”

“This new award is a testament to JSNN’s core lab, open-use and shared user model that promotes access to its unique set of state-of-art tools, faculty and staff expertise,” said Dr. James Ryan, founding dean of JSNN.

Dr. Daniel Herr, co-PI and chair of nanoscience at UNCG said, “SENIC will strengthen and accelerate innovation in both traditional disciplines, such as electronics and materials, and newer areas, such as computational nanotechnology, biomedical and environmental sciences.”

Dr. Joseph L. Graves Jr., associate dean for research at JSNN, added, “SENIC will greatly aid our local economies. The 21st century will require a skilled workforce trained in the tools and techniques of nanotechnology.  This grant will allow us to implement a comprehensive education and outreach program, embedded with lessons in socially and ethically responsible development and use of nanotechnology, designed to reach a broad and diverse audience of students, teachers and the public.”

The National Science Foundation has awarded a $1.19 million grant to support the North Carolina A&Teach STEM Scholars Program, which aims to produce and support highly qualified K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics educators (STEM) who can effectively deliver inquiry-based instruction that is concurrently culturally relevant to students in high-need schools.

Funding will be awarded over a period of five years. Dr. Anthony Graham is the principal investigator (PI), and Drs. Tyrette Carter, Ereka Williams, Sayo Fakayode and Cailisha Petty are the co-PIs.

This collaborative project between North Carolina A&T State University, Guilford County Schools, Guilford Education Alliance and the Elimu Learning Center for Refugee Newcomers will recruit high-achieving undergraduate STEM majors at N.C. A&T and prepare them to concurrently earn baccalaureate degrees in a STEM discipline and an initial teacher certification in the state of North Carolina. The program will subsequently assist STEM Scholars with gaining employment as a secondary STEM teacher in a high need school and will supplement the district’s induction support services, ensuring the employment retention of newly certified STEM Scholars.

North Carolina A&Teach is designed to achieve the following objectives: (1) recruit 25 high-achieving undergraduate STEM students to attain teacher licensure and baccalaureate degrees in a high need STEM discipline; (2) engage STEM Scholars in a preparatory curriculum and professional development that enhance their STEM content knowledge and expertise with inquiry-based learning and culturally relevant pedagogy in STEM courses; and (3) prepare STEM Scholars to positively impact K-12 student learning through early field experiences with diverse students, community-based activities with families and non-profit organizations, clinical practice in high need schools, mentoring relationships with master classroom teachers, apprenticeship experiences with University STEM faculty, and internships in STEM businesses.

The Department of Leadership Studies at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University will host its inaugural Contemporary Issues in Transformative and Innovative (CITI) Leadership Conference, 8 a.m.–4 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 8, at the Alumni-Foundation Event Center. The theme is Leadership for Justice in a Global Society.

With a focus on leadership issues in institutional and organizational entities, the conference will include panel discussions on organizational, educational and social justice leadership, a keynote presentation, and poster presentations by graduate students from the leadership studies department.

Cedric M. Bright, M.D., who served as the 112th president of the National Medical Association from July 2011 to July 2012, will deliver the keynote address at 9:45 a.m. Bright is currently the assistant dean of special programs and admissions in the Department of Medical Education at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.

Students and professionals from academic, corporate, non-profit, government, military and community leadership sectors are invited to attend. The pre-registration fees are $35 for students and $70 for professionals. On-site registration the day of the conference is $50 for students and $90 for professionals.

To pre-register online, visit https://ncat2.gosignmeup.com/CITI. For information, contact Deborah Eaton at deaton@aggies.ncat.edu or 336-285-2157.

As part of the initiative to complete 125 service projects in observance of North Carolina A&T State University’s 125th anniversary celebration, a team of Aggies participated in Big Sweep Greensboro on Sept. 12, becoming the first group of volunteers to complete its “125” service project.

The Division of University Advancement joined forces with Mr. and Miss Junior, and members of the junior class to clean the muddy creek area from Memorial Stadium to Aggie Stadium. Click here to read an article and to view a video about the Greensboro Beautiful-sponsored event, featuring the Aggie volunteers.

As a land-grant university, N.C. A&T has a special responsibility to strategically partner with groups and individuals locally, nationally and globally to make a lasting, positive impact on social and environmental challenges that proactively respond to the needs of others.

As an extension of the university’s commitment, and as part of the university’s 125th anniversary observance, a challenge has been issued to all students, alumni, faculty and staff to actively participate in a service project in their respective communities.

For information on how to have your service project designated as part of the celebration, visit www.ncat.edu/125/service-projects.html.