University of Nebraska President Ted Carter speaks during the State of the University address at Nebraska Innovation Campus on Feb. 14.
Four universities, led by the University of Nebraska, are joining forces in making the case that the new headquarters for the U.S. Space Command should be located in the Cornhusker State.
In an op-ed published Sunday in the Capital Gazette newspaper in Annapolis, Maryland, the coalition said Nebraska offers an unmatched quality of life and a strong support for the military and education.
The pitch from NU President Ted Carter; Mitch Daniels, president of Purdue University; Mark Hagerott, chancellor of the North Dakota University System, and Richard Myers, president of Kansas State University; aims to create a bigger value-added proposition.
Should the Space Command headquarters be located at Offutt Air Force Base in Bellevue, one of six finalists announced by the Air Force last month, the university partners have pledged to create a "Higher Education Space Research and Workforce Alliance."
"As presidents of four diverse Midwestern public universities — all founded with a mission to teach, do research and conduct outreach for the greater good — we're in close contact about our opportunities to collaborate in support of the space mission," their op-ed reads.
Carter said the partnership began to coalesce in the last three weeks in conversations and drafting of a white paper exploring the concept. They hope the op-ed piece is read by top officials at the Pentagon.
"We're moving fast," Carter told the Journal Star. "None of the other finalists can do anything we're doing here in terms of academic prowess."
If the Department of the Air Force chooses to locate its Space Command in Nebraska over finalists in New Mexico, Florida, Texas, Alabama and Colorado, the university leaders in the alliance said they stand ready to provide support in a number of ways.
First, the alliance envisions working with the Space Command to define its current and future workforce needs and to develop degree and certificate programs that provide a pathway to employment.
Carter said the universities in the alliance already have programs in engineering, cybersecurity, information technology and space law that might help fill roles in an expected civilian workforce of 600-800.
The alliance also would stand ready to support the combatant command with researchers in a wide array of fields, and would be prepared to hammer out technology-transfer agreements, if necessary, the op-ed states.
Space Command would also gain access to the Big Ten Academic Alliance and the National Strategic Research Institute, Nebraska's university-affiliated research center that recently renewed a $92 million contract with the U.S. Strategic Command, which is headquartered at Offutt.
NSRI has previously contracted with the Space Command for research, Carter added.
"We would eventually like to create a sister organization to NSRI," Carter said, "and Space Command has said they want one."
There is no time frame for when a decision on where to locate a headquarters for Space Command could come from Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett, but Carter and other officials anticipate it could be in a matter of weeks.
A review team spent time in Bellevue on Dec. 14, Rep. Jeff Fortenberry tweeted earlier this week. The Marine Corps Forces Space Command has already planted its flag at Offutt.
Carter said he and other members of the Higher Education Space Research and Workforce Alliance hope their idea can be "something of an X-factor" in the coming decision.
"We are excited for the opportunity, and it's been eye-opening to see how Nebraska and the Midwest has come together around this idea," he said.
HISTORIC UNL BUILDINGS:
University of Nebraska-Lincoln buildings; Architectural Hall
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Architectural Hall, seen here in July 1987 following a $4.38 million renovation, is the university's oldest building. It originally housed UNL's library and art gallery and served as headquarters for the Nebraska State Historical Society.
UNL CBA building
Louise Pound Hall previously housed the College of Business Administration. It opened in 1919 and was renovated in 2018.
UNL Temple Building
The Temple Building, at 12th and R streets, is home to the Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film. It was completed in 1908 and renovated in the 1970s.
UNL Morrill Hall
Morrill Hall, home to State Museum of Natural History on the UNL City Campus, was built for $350,000 and dedicated in 1927.
Cather Hall, Pound Hall
Pound (left) and Cather dormitories were known as the Twin Towers when they opened in 1963. Closed in recent years, the dorms were imploded in 2017.
Teachers College
When the new Teachers’ College Building was constructed at the very eastern edge of the University of Nebraska it also contained the old Temple High School, whose name was then changed to Teachers’ High School. Today the building is extant and connected to the Administration Building to its south across the street west from the Student Union.
Brace Laboratory
The extant physics building on the University of Nebraska campus opened in 1906 and was dedicated to Professor DeWitt Brace though he died the year before it opened.
Brace Hall
The original cast-iron “Physical Laboratory” sign at Brace Hall was uncovered by construction crews and incorporated into the renovation design by architects Leo A Daly.
University of Nebraska astronomical observatory
The the old University of Nebraska astronomical observatory is shown about 1910 when it was located just west of today’s physics building on the UNL campus; it was allowed $500 for construction by the Board of Regents. A few years later, a new observatory was built south of Brace Laboratory, first proposed to cost $12,500 and later estimated to be double that, still far from a vast amount.
UNL Architecture Hall
Construction on Architecture Hall, originally built as a library for $110,000, started in 1892. It was renovated for $4.3 million in the mid-1980s.
University of Nebraska-Lincoln buildings; Architectural Hall
Construction underway in January 1986 renovating and linking UNL's former law building (left) and Architectural Hall.
Cather Hall, Pound Hall
UNL demolish the Cather and Pound residence halls in 2017.
University of Nebraska-Lincoln buildings; Architectural Hall
Banners tream down through the atrium gathering place which unites UNL's Architecture Hall and Architecture Hall West, the former law college building, in this November 1987 photo.
Carter
Reach the writer at 402-473-7120 or cdunker@journalstar.com.
On Twitter @ChrisDunkerLJS
Chris Dunker
Education/statehouse reporter
Chris Dunker covers higher education, state government and the intersection of both.
