Following up on the recent Biden Administration announcement about their record-setting $16 billion in federal funding and investments in Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) over the last three years, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has just released a new $5 million notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for funding research at one or more Research Centers of Excellence (RCEs) at HBCUs.
These Research Centers will study housing, economic and community development, as well as environmental challenges in underserved communities, and offer evidence-based solutions.
“Here at HUD, we are always looking for new, creative, and evidence-based ways to create affordable housing. It is also important that we work with institutions that prioritize Black and brown communities, to ensure we understand the full spectrum of need,” said HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman. “We are making another $5 million available to HBCUs to invest in housing and community development research, so all of us, together, can build affordable and resilient communities.”
Last year, Texas Southern University and North Carolina A&T University received $5.5 million in HUD awards for HBCUs to establish or fund existing RCEs conducting research in housing and community development.
“The HBCU Research Centers of Excellence program at HUD is designed to help support and build capacity at HBCUs to conduct innovative, community-informed and actionable research to support policymaking and change around some of the nation’s most pressing housing, community development and urban development challenges,” said Solomon Greene, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research. “This funding will bolster efforts HBCUs are making to expand opportunities for underserved communities and strengthen community development.”
HUD recently expanded its Research Centers of Excellence program to include Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), and granted $10.5 million in awards to four HSIs. These Research Centers Research Centers conduct research projects on topics of strategic interest to HUD and produce research that provides evidence-based solutions to housing, community development, economic development, or built environment challenges in underserved communities. Using a multidisciplinary approach, the Centers of Excellence will support evidence-based, data-driven, and community-informed policymaking and program improvements at the local, state, and national levels. HUD has seven active Centers of Excellence at HBCUs and Hispanic-Serving Institutions nationwide.
