{"id":175542,"date":"2026-02-22T16:20:22","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T16:20:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/175542\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T16:20:22","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T16:20:22","slug":"a-timeline-of-how-el-paso-won-2-major-grants-then-struggled-to-save-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/175542\/","title":{"rendered":"A timeline of how El Paso won 2 major grants, then struggled to save them"},"content":{"rendered":"

A timeline of events regarding two major grants awarded to coalitions led by the University of Texas at El Paso that were intended to expand aerospace manufacturing in El Paso. Read the El Paso Matters investigation of how El Paso won, then lost, a potential $160 million economic development grant.<\/a><\/p>\n

Jan. 11, 2017 \u2013 Then-UTEP President Diana Natalicio signs an interlocal agreement with El Paso County to use up to 9,600 acres near the Fabens Airport for research space that will grow the region\u2019s economic opportunities. The agreement will begin April 1 and terminate March 31, 2027.\u00a0<\/p>\n

May 2018 \u2013 Natalicio names UTEP Professor Ahsan Choudhuri associate vice president of the university\u2019s NASA MIRO Center for Space Exploration and Technology Research, now known as the Aerospace Center, which he founded in October 2009.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Aug. 15, 2019 \u2013 Heather Wilson becomes UTEP president.<\/p>\n

March 10, 2022 \u2013 Wilson sends a letter to the U.S. Department of Commerce expressing strong support for the Build Back Better Regional Challenge proposal, praising the leadership of principal investigator Choudhuri and co-PI Ryan Wicker.<\/p>\n

July 29, 2022 \u2013 Susie Byrd, the then director of economic development and workforce excellence at the Aerospace Center, emails Wilson with a number of requests for the Build Back Better Regional Challenge, but it includes a request to support the Aerospace Center\u2019s upcoming grant submission to the NSF Research Innovation Engine program.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sept. 2, 2022 \u2013 The U.S. Economic Development Administration awards a $40 million Build Back Better Regional Challenge grant to the UTEP-led coalition, one of 21 awarded.<\/p>\n

Jan. 18, 2023 \u2013 UTEP submits its grant proposal for a National Science Foundation Regional Innovation Engine grant. The proposal involves 18 partners from West Texas and Southern New Mexico.<\/p>\n

Jan. 29, 2024 \u2013 The NSF awards one of 10 Regional Innovation Engine grants, worth up to $160 million through 2034 depending on performance metrics, to the UTEP-led Paso del Norte Defense and Aerospace Innovation Engine. The initial $15 million investment is for two years through February 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Feb. 2, 2024 \u2013 Ahmed Itani, UTEP vice president for research, sends Wicker and Choudhuri a memo stating ways the university plans to be active in the governance, oversight and accountability of the NSF grant. The next day, Wicker sends an email that criticizes the university\u2019s lack of administrative support. Choudhuri, who had been traveling, did the same on Feb. 5. Both say that Itani\u2019s suggestions are UTEP\u2019s way to force them to leave.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Feb. 22, 2024 \u2013 The NSF encourages Regional Innovation Engine recipients to celebrate with launch events.<\/p>\n

April 18, 2024 \u2013 Almost 20 people, including staffers from the White House and the offices of Rep. Veronica Escobar and Wilson, had a Zoom meeting at 10 a.m. EST (8 a.m. MST) to discuss plans for the May 3 launch event. The White House wanted Escobar\u2019s team to lead the event planning, while the UTEP team wanted the university to take the lead.<\/p>\n

April 18, 2024 \u2013 Choudhuri emails Itani at 9:34 a.m., suggesting the NSF grant be transferred to El Paso Makes, a nonprofit economic development initiative that Choudhuri helped found to transform West Texas into a hub for advanced manufacturing, particularly in defense and aerospace. Ten minutes later, Wicker sends Itani an email that also recommends the grant be sent to El Paso Makes due to UTEP\u2019s lack of support. In his response at 3:12 p.m., Itani said he would schedule a meeting to hear their plan.<\/p>\n

April 20, 2024 \u2013 Choudhuri said he received a call from a high-ranking NSF representative asking if Wilson supported the grant. Escobar said that she received a call from someone connected to the federal government who implied that Wilson was not supportive of the grant. Choudhuri and Escobar would not reveal who the callers were.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

April 22, 2024 \u2013 UTEP\u2019s Office of Accounting and Consulting Services requests a meeting with Choudhuri as part of its review of the NSF proposal. Choudhuri, who was out of town, contacts Itani to tell him that he considers this request another effort to oust him. Wicker, who also is traveling, asks Itani to find out why the audit office wants to meet. Itani says that it is part of a standard review and asks both men to participate. The auditor requests additional information April 26 about the Tech 1 Campus in Fabens, and asks for responses by May 1.<\/p>\n

April 25, 2024 \u2013 The NSF alerts UTEP to suspend work on the UTEP-led Innovation Engine grant pending review, without announcing reasons publicly.<\/p>\n

May 1, 2024 \u2013 Choudhuri responds to the internal auditor\u2019s April 26 questions with a detailed 28-page report.<\/p>\n

May 6, 2024 \u2013 UTEP announces the grant\u2019s suspension. Additionally, Wilson writes a memo to Choudhuri that the audit uncovered inaccurate resource claims and did not provide adequate corrective actions. She relieves him from the Aerospace Center director position and removes his associate vice president title.<\/p>\n

May 8 \u2013 Elected leaders send Wilson a letter condemning her decision to demote Choudhuri. The University of Texas System chancellor and board chair release a joint statement May 9 in support of Wilson and her decisions in this matter.<\/p>\n

June 20, 2024 \u2013 UTEP appoints Shery Welsh as the executive director of the Aerospace Center. She will begin July 15.\u00a0<\/p>\n

July 29, 2024 \u2013 Jack Chessa, chair of the UTEP Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, sends a memo to UTEP College of Engineering Dean Kenith Meissner II with faculty concerns that stem from the aftermath of the decision to demote Choudhuri. Meissner responds Aug. 2, stating that he had to follow UTEP and University of Texas System rules, but does not provide specific rules at the time.<\/p>\n

Aug. 12, 2024 \u2013 Byrd emails UTEP leadership warning that a lack of timely action has put BBB funds at risk, urging decisive steps before Choudhuri\u2019s departure.<\/p>\n

Nov. 6, 2024 \u2013 Chessa resigns as chair, a position he has held since 2018, because he could not support or work with Welsh.<\/p>\n

Nov. 8, 2024 \u2013 Wicker retires after months of considering how he could stay at UTEP and produce at the high level expected at the W.M. Keck Center for 3D Innovation.<\/p>\n

June 18, 2025 \u2013 The Economic Development Administration, an arm of the U.S. Department of Commerce, notifies the city of El Paso that construction has not yet begun on BBB-funded projects, putting the project at risk.<\/p>\n

Aug. 12, 2025 \u2013 The NSF cancels the Innovation Engine grant after reallocating most of the initial $15 million intended for the project\u2019s first two years. Escobar releases her own statement Aug. 15 where she blames Wilson for the decisions that eventually killed the grant.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Oct. 14, 2025 \u2013 The El Paso City Council votes to become co-lead on the BBB grant after negotiations with UTEP, citing UTEP\u2019s insufficient staffing capacity.<\/p>\n

Dec. 12, 2025 \u2013 Choudhuri retires after 25 years at UTEP.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Feb. 4, 2026 \u2013 The NSF\u2019s Office of Inspector General notifies Choudhuri that it had completed its investigation and did not substantiate the allegations of falsification.<\/p>\n

Related<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Avatar\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDaniel Perez covers higher education for El Paso Matters, in partnership with Open Campus. He has written on military and higher education issues in El Paso for more than 30 years.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMore by Daniel Perez\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A timeline of events regarding two major grants awarded to coalitions led by the University of Texas at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":175543,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[138,140,139,729],"class_list":["post-175542","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-el-paso","tag-el-paso","tag-el-paso-headlines","tag-el-paso-news","tag-utep-aerospace"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175542","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=175542"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175542\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/175543"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=175542"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=175542"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=175542"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}