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Established in 1995 by the University of Nebraska Board of Regents, the Mid-America Transportation Center (MATC) first won the United States Department of Transportation Region VII University Transportation Center (UTC) competition in 1995 followed by success in 2006, 2011, 2016, and 2023. Region VII is composed of Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. The UTC program is a federal program for transportation research and education improvement in the United States and to strengthen the country's competitiveness in the global transportation industry. The 2023 Region VII UTC consortium consists of nine universities within the region: University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Iowa, University of Kansas, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Nebraska Indian Community College, and the University of Missouri-St. Louis. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln serves as the lead institution of the consortium.

The 2016 MATC UTC’s research priority is promoting safety with an emphasis on reducing the number of incidents involving hazardous material transport, mitigating the negative effects of crashes, and improving emergency response to unexpected events. The implementation of MATC research increases the safety of surface transportation system users and workers in Region VII and across the United States.

MATC’s education priority includes increasing the number of students in STEM education and transportation-related careers. To achieve this objective, MATC has implemented the Roads, Rails, and Racecars After-School Program, the Sovereign Native Youth STEM Leadership Academy, the Scholars Program, and the Intern Program.