Distinguished guests, university leaders, NURail CoE partners and students came together to celebrate the launch of the National University Rail Center of Excellence on Wednesday 29 May 2024. NURail CoE is the first academic rail research and education center of excellence to be supported by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Railroad Administration.
A $5 million grant will support this consortium of nine universities and their mission is to develop solutions that will lead to a safer, more efficient, sustainable, equitable, and reliable rail transportation system in the United States and advance U.S. DOT goals. NURail CoE will attract and educate a new and diverse generation of students in railway transportation engineering, provide them with the knowledge to implement these solutions, and inspire them to pursue rail careers. One of the main efforts across all consortium members will be the development of structured programs that introduce minority and women scholars to the different facets of rail transportation.
NURail CoE is led by RailTEC at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and includes the University of Illinois Chicago, University of Delaware, Kansas State University, Michigan Technological University, Morgan State University, Rutgers University, University of Texas at Austin, and Tuskegee University.
To read more about the consortium and their kickoff event, see the media coverage below.
https://grainger.illinois.edu/news/stories/NURail-launch
https://ipmnewsroom.org/217-today-the-sound-of-music-with-cicadas/
https://www.railwayage.com/regulatory/uiuc-launches-national-university-rail-center-of-excellence/