The University of North Dakota is the first university to join a partnership program with the U. S. Space Command. Chief of Space Operations General John W. Raymond traveled to Grand Forks today (Monday) to sign a Memorandum of Understanding.
The eventual goal is to harness the innovation of ten universities across the country for engineering…science…and technology.
U. S. Senator John Hoeven says the ultimate goal is winning the race in space and UND is leading the way. “This is a long term agreement…this is a relationship that will include as many projects as the creativity can come with.”
U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer says UND has incredible assets that contribute to the security of the world.
Aerospace Dean Dr. Bob Kraus says it’s the first step in leveraging what has been learned through UAS development and bringing it into the space world. Kraus says the MOU will help attract students and faculty to UND. “We have to give a call out to our state lawmakers who this session authorized $4 million dollars in space infrastructure funding. The university and colleges are throwing in another several million dollars to hire new faculty and to grow upon the already outstanding programs we have and to take them to the next level.”
Universities were selected based on four criteria: the quality of degree offerings and space-related research labs…ROTC programs…a diverse student population…and programming designed to support military and families in pursuing higher education.
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