Bowie State University (BSU) in Prince George’s County, MD, has received a nearly $1 million, three-year grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to launch the Computing Experiential Hub (CEH).
According to a news release shared with AFROTECH™, the CEH combines classroom learning with real-world experience to prepare students for careers in AI and emerging technologies. The initiative will establish new partnerships with leading tech companies, startups, and entrepreneurial ventures — including IBM — to support its goal.
“With the Computing Experiential Hub, BSU is taking a bold step to ensure our students are not just learning about artificial intelligence but actively applying it through real-world projects and industry partnerships,” Dr. Rose Shumba, who chairs the computer science department and serves as principal investigator for the CEH, said in the press release.
Dr. Shumba added that the CEH will “expand diversity in the AI workforce and position BSU as a national leader in preparing the next generation of innovators.”
As Maryland’s oldest historically Black college, the CEH supports Bowie State’s long-standing mission of expanding access to education and economic opportunity.
According to Bowie State’s LinkedIn page, the university serves over 6,100 students. Its website states that it offers more than 30 undergraduate majors, 50 master’s programs, 18 specialty certificates, and three doctoral programs across disciplines that span science, technology, business, and mathematics.
The CEH will recruit 12 students per year for its first three years, with plans to grow to 30 annually through additional funding and backing from the HBCU, per the press release.
Students will engage in industry-sponsored AI projects, faculty-led research, and entrepreneurial collaborations, supported by close mentorship and professional development from faculty, graduate students, and industry experts.
They will also receive stipends and travel funding to fully participate in off-campus internships, industry immersion experiences, and collaborative research, reports the press release.
“Our goal is to give students the kind of industry-aligned, real-world experiences that will make them stand out as future leaders in the AI workforce,” Dr. Shumba mentioned in the press release.
“By building these bridges now, we are creating lasting pathways to success for our students and strengthening Bowie State’s role as a hub of technological innovation,” Dr. Shumba continued.
Bowie State Continues To Expand
The funding from NSF’s Experiential Learning for Emerging and Novel Technologies program follows a four-year $2.2 million grant awarded to Bowie State from the Maryland Higher Education Commission, which will help the nursing Ph.D. program enroll 20 Ph.D. students by 2029.
As AFROTECH™ previously reported, the initiative aims to grow the state’s nursing workforce by expanding the pipeline of nurse educators across Maryland.
“MHEC’s grant is nothing short of a game changer for Bowie State’s department of nursing,” said Dr. Jacqueline Hill, chair of the Department of Nursing, in a press release.
“With an increase in Ph.D. nursing faculty, we will be able to prepare more nurses to expand the workforce in a field that is in dire need of highly qualified healthcare clinicians,” Dr. Hill continued.
