SU becomes first HBCU to enter a Mentor-Protege agreement with Boeing

FILE – In this Jan. 25, 2011, file photo, is the Boeing Company logo on the property in El Segundo, Calif. Safety regulators issued an emergency order on Thursday, July 23, 2020, directing airlines to inspect and if necessary replace a critical engine part on popular Boeing 737 jets after four reports of engines shutting down during flights. The Federal Aviation Administration said its order affected about 2,000 twin-engine passenger jets in the United States. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File)

Posted: Sep 15, 2020 / 05:15 AM AST

Updated: Sep 15, 2020 / 03:42 AM AST

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BATON ROUGE, La (BRPROUD) – Southern University and A&M College has signed an 18-month agreement with Boeing to work on NASA’s Space Launch System program.

This program partners large companies with eligible small businesses and minority-serving institutions to help enhance their abilities to potentially compete for larger and complex contracts, and will give Southern students opportunities to showcase their engineering skills on the ‘world’s most powerful rocket’.

Southern University is the first HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) to partner with Boeing. With this program, Boeing will provide business and technical support to Southern to help them secure NASA contracts and subcontracts.

In 2019, Boeing subcontracted approximately $5.3 billion to small and diverse businesses.

“We are honored to be the first HBCU [Historically Black Colleges and Universities] to enter into a Mentor-Protege agreement with Boeing,” said Ray L. Belton, president of the Southern University System and chancellor of Southern University and A&M College.

The NASA Space Launch System (SLS) is said to be the most powerful rocket in the world, and will be launching NASA’s Artemis missions to the moon, Mars, and beyond.

“We are also excited about supporting the Artemis program and its goal of landing the first woman and the next man on the moon in 2024,” said Belton.

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