March 2003 the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) received a $5 million grant from the Ford Motor Company to conduct research on automotive safety. This grant was part of the settlement of the class action litigation,“Howard et al vs. Ford Motor Company”, dated October 25, 2001.
Professor Kennerly H. Digges, director of biomechanics and safety at the Federal Highway Administration/National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (FHWA/NHTSA) National Crash Analysis Center (NCAC) at The George Washington University, was selected to be an independent solicitor of and funder for the research in motor vehicle safety, and to be one of the peer reviewers for the research projects and reports. Neither of the private parties were to determine the allocation of funds or to have any influence on the content of resulting reports. Both parties recommended explicit attention to child safety.
Half of the $5 million award is used to fund research at the NCAC, located at GW’s Virginia Campus, within GW’s School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS). The remaining portion is subcontracted to other colleges and universities with established programs in safety research, with Professor Digges guiding the overall efforts.
Along with targeted efforts in child safety, the NCAC leads research activities in areas such as crash investigations; compatibility of large and small vehicles during impact; analysis of advanced airbag and safety belt systems; and more. Special emphasis is placed on directing funding toward segments of the automotive population with the greatest needs. While the general motoring public is the primary benefactor of the research, it also provides a foundation for numerous master’s and doctoral degrees at GW and other selected universities [1]