August 31, 2023

Manchin Announces $1.2 Million for Four West Virginia Research Projects

Charleston, WV – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), member of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, announced $1,224,680 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for four West Virginia research projects. The funding will support critical research into artificial intelligence and machine learning, recruitment and retention strategies for engineering students and fluid mechanics.

“I’m pleased the National Science Foundation is supporting these important research initiatives that will advance our understanding and application of artificial intelligence and machine learning in our daily lives, as well as fluid mechanics,” said Senator Manchin. “The funding announced today will also be used to improve strategies for recruiting more West Virginians to the engineering field. I look forward to seeing the positive impacts of these projects for years to come and, as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will continue advocating for resources that bolster academic research across the Mountain State.”

Individual awards listed below:

  • $350,000 – West Virginia University (WVU): Effective Strategies to Recruit Underserved Students to Baccalaureate Engineering Success and Transition (BEST) Programs
    • BEST programs are holistic student success programs at four-year undergraduate universities that provide evidence-based, well-structured activities to enhance engineering students' academic and professional success in the college transition and to increase their retention in the engineering major. This project will examine the most effective methods for reaching underserved students and recruiting them to BEST programs.
  • $349,681 – West Virginia State University (WVSU): Information Integration and Association Pattern Discovery in Precision Phenomics
    • This project, which is a collaborative initiative with WVU, will investigate challenges in artificial intelligence and machine learning and their applications to various fields, including agriculture, medicine and ecology.
  • $275,000 – QubitSolve Inc., Morgantown: Computational Fluid Dynamics Software for Quantum Computers
    • This project will investigate computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations and their role in solving problems in the aerospace and automotive industries.
  • $249,999 – West Virginia University (WVU): Information Integration and Association Pattern Discovery in Precision Phenomics
    • This project, which is a collaborative initiative with WVSU, will investigate challenges in artificial intelligence and machine learning and their applications to various fields, including agriculture, medicine and ecology.