Minot State University is part of a collaboration of higher education institutions in North Dakota that have been approved for a National Science Foundation E-CORE award for its Sustainable Programs Advancing Research and Knowledge across North Dakota (SPARK-ND) proposal, according to the North Dakota Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (ND EPSCoR). The total award is anticipated to be $7.96 million over four years.

SPARK-ND, funded by NSF under its EPSCoR Collaborations for Optimizing Research Ecosystems Research Infrastructure Improvement (E-CORE RII) program, aims to build a sustainable science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) research and education ecosystem in North Dakota. Led by North Dakota State University, 10 colleges and universities in North Dakota will collaborate to expand STEM research capacity in the state, connect research communities, build STEM research literacy in rural populations and strengthen the STEM community at the five tribal colleges and universities in North Dakota.

Some of the planned activities for SPARK-ND include:

– outreach to rural schools, including opportunities for high school and undergraduate students to participate in scientific research.

– engagement with primarily undergraduate institutions and TCUs to recruit and retain STEM students.

– development of multi-institutional research teams across the state using networking events, workshops and funding opportunities.

Colleges and universities participating in SPARK-ND are Cankdeska Cikana Community College, Fort Totten; Mayville State University, Minot State University, Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College, New Town; North Dakota State University, Fargo; Sitting Bull College, Fort Yates; Turtle Mountain College, Belcourt; United Tribes Technical College, Bismarck; University of North Dakota, Grand Forks; and Valley City State University.