RITA 6-05
Tuesday, July 5, 2005
Contact: Roger Lotz
Tel.: 202-366-2246
South Carolina State University Receives RITA Grant
For Transportation Education and Research
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Research and Innovative Technology
Administration (RITA) announced today that just over $1 million in grant money
was awarded to South Carolina State University’s James E. Clyburn University
Transportation Center (UTC) to support the full range of the Center’s education
and research programs.
“UTC programs attract talented researchers and students and engage them in new
approaches to the transportation issues of tomorrow,” said U.S. Secretary of
Transportation Norman Y. Mineta. “This grant demonstrates the Bush
Administration’s continued commitment to fostering innovation and leadership, as
transportation continues to move the U.S. economy forward in the 21st century.”
The goal of South Carolina State University’s James E. Clyburn University
Transportation Center is to assist federal, state, and local agencies in
developing a highly skilled workforce to meet the future needs in
transportation. A major component of the Center’s work is its intermodal
research, education, and technology transfer program, which recruits and trains
minorities and women for the transportation workforce. More information about
the James E. Clyburn UTC can be found at http://www.utc.scsu.edu.
More than 75 colleges and universities throughout the United States participate
in the UTC program conducting transportation research, education and technology
transfer. Last year, UTC colleges and universities graduated over 1,100 students
with advanced transportation-related degrees, offered almost 2,000 undergraduate
and graduate transportation courses, conducted almost 300 research projects, and
trained 32,000 practicing transportation professionals.
The UTC program is administered by RITA and grant recipients are required to
provide matching funds. More information on UTC grants can be found at
www.rita.dot.gov.