Tricycle, a Las Vegas, Nev. marketing, public relations and interactive media corporation has awarded Clovis’ Center for Advanced Research & Technology a $25,000 grant for Web application software services and development.

The Center for Advanced Research & Technology is a comprehensive education program that combines academics with technical, design, process, entrepreneurial and critical thinking skills. Eleventh and twelfth grade students from Clovis and Fresno unified school districts attend half-day sessions at the center.

The center provides research and technology facilities where students design and complete projects in collaboration with partners from the local, national and international business community.

Grant cycles begin approximately every six to nine months and are open to non-profits and community groups.

The Center for Advanced Research & Development competed with about 400 other applicants for a Tricycle grant. Tricycle staff, which have an office in Fresno, were impressed by the application and software idea put forth by the center.

“It seemed the most exciting,” said Eric Tienken, co-founder of Tricycle.

The center wants to develop a software program called Augmented Reality. Using a hand-held device and the software program, the user could point the device at a library and it would show information about the library, its hours of operation and possibly photos of facilities inside.

It would be much like bringing up a website.

Or the user could point the device at a restaurant, and a menu, prices and hours of business would pop up.