FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, DISTRICT PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT SIGN PARTNERSHIP WITH HOWARD UNIVERSITY |
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Federal Highway Administration
March 24, 1998
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, March 24, 1998
Contact: Karen Whitney
Telephone: 202-366-0660
FHWA 12-98
For transportation education and research
FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, DISTRICT PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT SIGN PARTNERSHIP WITH HOWARD UNIVERSITY
Deputy Federal Highway Administrator Gloria J. Jeff today joined D.C. Department of Public Works (DPW) Chief Cellerino Bernardino and Howard University Provost Dr. Antoine Garibaldi to sign a partnership agreement that focuses on transportation education and research.
"President Clinton pledged to be a good neighbor to the District of Columbia, and in support of that pledge, we are committed to increasing opportunities for historically black colleges and universities to participate in and benefit from federal programs and projects," Jeff said. "This is an opportunity to develop a lasting and productive partnership with Howard University, one of the nation’s outstanding institutions of higher learning."
"The Department of Public Works and the Federal Highway Administration enjoy a productive relationship thanks to U.S. Transportation Secretary Rodney E. Slater’s efforts to translate President Clinton’s commitment to the nation’s capital into tangible results," Bernardino said. "The agreement linking FHWA, DPW and Howard University will inspire students to embrace the challenges of public service and transportation in an urban environment. While learning, they will contribute their energy, intelligence and enthusiasm to solving real-life problems. I would like to think that future Howard alumni will say their innovations in transportation systems were born while working on a project for DPW."
The agreement is intended to increase the participation of Howard University students, faculty and graduates in scholarships, fellowships, employment, grants, personnel exchanges, contracts and other activities with the FHWA and DPW. In addition, FHWA’s Turner Fairbanks Research and Development Center has established an arrangement with Howard to expose the university engineering faculty to a full range of the latest highway technologies. Specific goals of the partnership include:
During the signing ceremony, Jeff also announced that Howard would be one of 18 historically black colleges and universities and other minority institutes of higher education participating in FHWA’s Summer Transportation Institutes program. The full list of participants is scheduled to be announced in Atlanta on March 25.
The partnership agreement signed today complements another national educational initiative, the Garrett A. Morgan Technology and Transportation Futures Program, which was established by Secretary Slater in May 1997.
Prompted by President Clinton’s strong support for education, Secretary Slater established the Technology and Futures program with four key objectives: improving students’ math, science and technological skills; strengthening the links between the transportation sector and community colleges, junior colleges, and technical schools; expanding transportation programs at undergraduate and graduate institutions; and easing the transition from school to work in the transportation field.
The Morgan Program is named in honor of Garrett A. Morgan (1876-1963), an African-American entrepreneur who invented the three-phased automated traffic signal and the safety hood, later known as the gas mask.