In a push to reinforce national security and revitalize technical education, President Donald Trump and the Department of War announced over $80 million in targeted federal investments for top American mining and metallurgy institutions.
Unveiled during a Washington roundtable bringing together top mining executives and university leaders, the initiative is designed to rebuild the nation’s critical mineral supply chains, expand pilot-scale processing capabilities and train a new generation of geologists, metallurgists and mining engineers.
Distributed through the Department of War’s Office of the Under Secretary for Acquisition and Sustainment, the funds focus on establishing innovation hubs and industry-integrated academic programs.
Under the proposed funding allocations, the Colorado School of Mines is reportedly set to receive $32.7 million to launch a Critical Minerals Innovation and Commercialization Hub for material qualification and technology scaling.
Additionally, the South Dakota School of Mines will receive $25 million to helm the Critical Minerals Merit Scholars Consortium, an integrated workforce partnership alongside Missouri S&T University and the University of Kentucky.
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