NIBIB Initiative Expands Bioengineering Aspirations of HBCUs

The opportunity to pursue higher education at one of the country’s 100 or so historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) comes with a caveat for those students wishing to pursue a degree in biomedical engineering. While HBCUs confer as many as 25% of the country’s Black graduates with STEM degrees, only about a third of the schools offer an engineering program, with fewer still offering a biomedical engineering degree program.

To begin to help HBCUs build and sustain biomedical engineering programs, the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) has designed an initiative called Enhancing Biomedical Engineering, Imaging, and Technology Acceleration (eBEITA) at HBCUs. This dual-phase award allows institutions time to plan and initiate activities before launching into the program’s full implementation.

The eBEITA format encourages HBCUs to develop a unique vision for expanding research capacity, fundings streams, and impact in this fast-growing area of innovation and technology development. Recently, NIBIB made its first round of eBEITA grants to two HBCUs.

Dr. Albert Avila, NIBIB extramural scientific officer, hopes these awards deepen the scope and range of biomedical engineering offerings and scientific opportunities for undergraduate, graduate students and faculty at HBCUs. He also sees the eBEITA initiative as a way to help HBCUs continue to address the nation’s urgent STEM-workforce needs.

“It is critical that we continue to invest in biomedical engineering, imaging, and technology development at HBCUs,” Avila said. “The eBEITA program vision must be sustainable and embedded in the fabric of the institution, even beyond the proposed seven years of the award.”

The program has essential elements that promote unique needs at the applicant institution. Applications must propose innovative strategies and milestones to enhance scientific workforce diversity, institutional research capacity, science and technology and faculty development.

An undergraduate and a graduate program received awards this year with the expectation of further funding pending successful progress and available funds. The awardees are Delaware State University (DSU) and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (N.C. A&T).

DSU proposed to establish a three-year bachelor of science degree program in bioengineering at DSU to be followed by a two-year master of science degree program in biomedical engineering at the University of Delaware, Newark, or Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ. The center will also develop a hub that promotes bio-entrepreneurship and networking with biomedical professionals at regional facilities, enhancing job opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds.

N.C. A&T proposed the Center for Neurovascular Engineering Research and adVanced Education (NERVE). The center will serve as a sustainable hub to transform research and technology development of brain science. The center will target clinically important brain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, and will develop and advance cutting-edge technology, including the integration of nanodevices for vascularized organoids, small animal testing capacity, advanced imaging and machine learning applications. The award would support establishing a standalone bioengineering Ph.D. program — the first such degree program at an HBCU in the country.

For more information and how to apply, visit the NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices item RFA-EB-25-002.