OU Faculty Member Receives NASA Research Award

Dr. Everett Roper is the recipient of a $50,000 NASA Administrator’s Fellowship Project (NAFP) Research Award, overseen by the UNCF Special Programs Corporation (UNCFSP). The project, entitled, “Implementation of a Student Technical Assistance Need-based Developmental Undergraduate Program (STANDUP),” supports collaboration between Oakwood University, Science Application International Corporation (SAIC) Inc., Rochester Institute of Technology, The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) of Carnegie Mellon University and The National Aeronautics and Space Administration. UNCFSP provided $25,000 of support for this project with The Office of Academic Affairs of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center providing the matching funds of $25,000.

The aim of the project is to attain technical development assistance for students majoring in the technical degree areas of computer information systems, computer science and information technology. One of the goals is to peak students’ interest in information technology and engineering through course curriculum enhancements then to fully employ these graduated students in the workforce supporting NASA’s mission to return to the moon, then Mars, and beyond. The research focuses on the technical development assistance segments of instruction. These technical components include training, curriculum re-design in information technology, and the use of outside resources for consultation, instruction and support. The project offers scholarships to high school students matriculating to Oakwood University who will major in computer information systems, computer science and information technology, as well as to graduating students who will matriculate to one of the collaborating institutions, Rochester Institute of Technology, or Carnegie Mellon University, to pursue graduate degrees in an approved technical degree program.