Aligarh, Nov 11 (IANS): The Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) Monday signed an agreement with the Ohio State University (OSU) for setting up a joint centre here for education and research in science and technology.

An eight-member delegation from the OSU in Columbus, led by Vice Provost William Brustein met AMU Vice Chancellor Lt. Gen. (retd.) Zameer Uddin Shah and other university officials.

According to the agreement, a joint OSU-AMU Centre of Excellence in STEM Education and Research will be established at AMU. STEM fields comprise science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

The centre will have digitally-equipped classrooms with computers and internet connectivity. Each classroom will have a large, centrally-located and computer-connected projection high-definition TV.

Internet connectivity will enable lectures to be webcast in real time to distant locations for students in other colleges and schools. Pre-recorded online lectures from OSU and other major universities will be used.

Classes will be conducted by OSU and AMU instructors and by people selected as new faculty under the STEM-ER project.

Both the institutions will develop a novel two-year STEM-ER programme for Indian graduate students to train them in teaching STEM subjects to undergraduate students and conduct state-of-the-art research.

AMU and OSU will award dual degrees to the selected students.

The centre of excellence will also initiate inter-disciplinary collaborative projects in advance research and innovation and formulise a comprehensive Indian-US inter-university consortium of leading universities from both countries.

The agreement was signed by AMU Pro-Vice Chancellor Brig. S. Ahmad Ali and Registrar Gr. Cap. Shahrukh Shamshad and William I. Brustein, OSU vice provost for global strategies and international affairs and Geoffrey S. Chatas, senior vice president of business and finance.