Dr. Ivonne Santiago: UTEP Partnership to Advance Electric Transportation and Sustainability

Posted on September 8, 2020

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded its Engineering Research Center (ERC) grant to a consortium of universities led by Utah State University, to develop an international research center dedicated to advancing sustainable, electrified transportation. Students and faculty from the UTEP College of Engineering will spearhead the operation and management of the ASPIRE (Advancing Sustainability through Powered Infrastructure for Roadway Electrification) ERC. A crucial member and Co-PI of the UTEP ASPIRE team is NOAA-CESSRST’s very own Dr. Ivonne Santiago.

The center will focus on developing new infrastructure that facilitates widespread adoption of electric vehicles and will develop charging solutions that provide power to all classes of vehicles, both while parked and in-motion. The ASPIRE ERC seeks to transform the transportation and electric utility industries. The consortium hopes to achieve both meaningful and long-lasting impacts on society including sustainable job growth, improved air quality, reduced cost of transportation, and growth in renewable domestic energy production. This program will specifically target recruitment and retention of Hispanic and female participants to increase the strength and talent of the workforce and to close the gaps between local college age population demographics and engineering graduates.

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