William & Mary to be U.S. hub for AUKUS submarine pact

William & Mary is stepping into a new role as the nation’s academic hub focusing on the development of nuclear-powered submarines between the U.S., the United Kingdom and Australia.

The Williamsburg university will be the U.S. academic base for nuclear submarine technology, with counterparts in Sheffield, England, and Adelaide, Australia, as part of AUKUS, a trilateral security alliance formed in 2021 among the three countries.

Newport News-based shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries, parent of Newport News Shipbuilding, is also involved in AUKUS, having been awarded in March a contract from the Australian government to develop and run a new pilot program that will build a submarine supply chain between the U.S. and Australia.

The AUKUS agreement, established under former President Joe Biden, calls for the U.S. and the U.K. to share nuclear propulsion technology with Australia, whose Navy is set to acquire at least eight nuclear-powered submarines, including three to five Virginia-class submarines in the 2030s.

Early in President Donald Trump’s second term, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he would continue the nation’s involvement in AUKUS, but in August, the DOD changed course, announcing it would review AUKUS by this fall.

Lawmakers from both parties have urged the White House to continue the partnership, and the Japanese news outlet Nikkei Asia reported Nov. 8 that the Pentagon is likely to conclude its review in December with an endorsement of the pact.

W&M‘s new role in AUKUS was first referenced publicly Oct. 29 by the Hampton Roads Alliance as part of its regional “Playbook” strategy to grow the area’s economy. According to the alliance, the AUKUS Center of Excellence at W&M is envisioned as a hub that helps the U.S., U.K. and Australia tackle shared challenges in building and sustaining nuclear-powered submarines.

“William & Mary’s designation as the U.S. academic home for the AUKUS initiative underscores the vital role of higher education in advancing innovation and security,” William & Mary Provost Peggy Agouris said in a statement. “This Center of Excellence brings together dedicated expertise to address complex global challenges and prepare the next generation of leaders who will shape the future of maritime defense and technology.”

W&M’s Whole of Government Center of Excellence, which serves as a national security hub for the campus and the broader defense community, will lead the initiative.

Kathryn Floyd, director of the university’s Whole of Government Center of Excellence, said in an interview the new center will be a research and development hub for emerging technologies and supply chains. A lot of the specifics are still in motion, she added, noting that the U.K., Australia and U.S. officials will be determining over the next year what W&M’s center will do.

Floyd said that the broad parameters of the center will include connecting private investment with defense industry needs, exchanging expertise and best practices to advance submarine production, workforce training, supplier growth and innovation.

The center will also help streamline approval processes for submarine components and key technologies, thereby accelerating production, and it may also play a role in building a workforce pipeline, particularly in identifying gaps and connecting regional partners, she added.

Many of the W&M center’s programs and partnerships and some of its day-to-day functions are still being defined, Floyd said. “I think we’re going to see who has what, where are the gaps and what needs to be built in that space.”

Other W&M partners include its military and veteran affairs team, the university’s vice provost for research, the Reves Center for International Studies, the College of Arts & Sciences’ public policy program, the Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and the W&M School of Computing, Data Sciences and Physics, among others.

“William & Mary, with its global reputation for excellence and deep ties to international partners, is the perfect home for the U.S. AUKUS Center of Excellence,” Hampton Roads Alliance President and CEO Doug Smith said in a statement. “Hampton Roads is at the forefront of shaping global security, and this partnership brings together the intellectual power and connections of one of the world’s great universities with the industrial strength of America’s military metro.”