Gordon Secures $1.6 Million For TTU Science, Research Efforts

December 20, 2007, WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon has secured $1.6 million in federal funding to help Tennessee Technological University enhance its science and math center, conduct energy research and help combat meth abuse in Tennessee.

“TTU has some of the finest faculty and some of the best and brightest researchers,” said Gordon. “The university has the ability to improve math and science education throughout schools in the Upper Cumberland and conduct research that can benefit the state, as well as the nation.”

“The passage of this bill is an important step that will allow us to make progress on these programs, and all of us at Tennessee Tech University appreciate Congressman Gordon’s efforts on our behalf,” said TTU President Bob Bell. “These projects bring with them tremendous opportunities to serve the Upper Cumberland region through enhanced education, drug eradication and energy efficiency efforts.”

TTU will receive $752,000 to improve science and math education in Tennessee’s schools through its Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Center, or STEM Center. TTU already has many STEM programs in place, such as summer training institutes for teachers across the state, educational programs for schoolchildren and curriculum for TTU students who intend to become teachers.

The university is planning to build a 20,000 square foot STEM Center building to house state-of-the-art laboratories, staff and support areas, an auditorium and virtual theatre. The center, to be named after TTU benefactor Millard Oakley, will link local schools and communities with the university to improve educational opportunities for teachers and students.

“Strong math and science education is the key to keeping our nation competitive in today’s world,” Gordon said. “Our students will need strong math and science skills so they can secure the jobs of the future regardless of whether they are high school graduates or Ph.D.s.”

Energy research at TTU will advance with $442,000 in funding that was included in the bill. The funding will allow TTU researchers to continue their work on high voltage transmission lines, helping to create a more efficient and reliable power flow for consumers.

Power lines sag when they are overstressed due to the high amount of current passing through them. Two major blackouts in the United States in 1996 and 2003 were caused by sagging power lines.

University researchers will monitor sagging power lines using global positioning satellites. Through their research, they should be able to estimate needed clearances so that power lines can operate with maximum efficiency and with a reduced chance of power failure.

The university will also participate in efforts to combat meth abuse in Tennessee with $423,000 for the Middle Tennessee Methamphetamine Task Force. The joint effort is carried out by TTU, Tennessee’s 13th Judicial District and Middle Tennessee counties

“It’s not a university’s place to go out into the streets to arrest criminals or to treat an abuser’s addiction,” Bell said. “It is a university’s place to train the professionals who take on the difficult jobs on the front line of the meth battle. And it is a university’s place to conduct research that can provide the tools these professionals need to make a difference. Thanks to Congressman Gordon’s efforts, Tennessee Tech University can do that.”

Funds secured by Gordon in previous years have enabled the task force to hire a full-time prosecutor for meth, provide training to district law enforcement officers and purchase equipment to create a shared database of meth lab locations. The task force also has used funds to educate and train teachers, apartment owners, trash collectors, motel operators and other groups to identify signs of meth production and abuse.