Research Funding Up 10.9 Percent: USM Attracts More Than $1 Billion in External Grants, Contracts in FY 2007
ADELPHI, Md. (March 13, 2008) - The University System of Maryland's (USM) 13
institutions received more than $1 billion in external funding for research,
education, and service in FY 2007, system officials announced today. Private,
federal, and state grants and contracts to the system's institutions totaled $1.08
billion, up 10.9 percent from FY 2006--an all-time high for USM.
"Maintaining the strength of
our public universities provides a tremendous return on investment to the
state," said USM Chancellor William E. Kirwan. "Not only do we continue to draw
funds for research to our region, we stimulate invention and entrepreneurship,
provide a skilled workforce, and give Maryland the edge in the global knowledge economy. Without
world-class universities, labs, and faculty, we could not have drawn the amount
of research funding that we have seen during the last several years."
External funding through
private (corporations and foundations) and public grants and contracts supports
a variety of endeavors by the system's faculty and students, including
scientific and medical research, academic scholarship, commissioned studies, and
public service projects.
During FY 2007, increases in external
funding were seen at Coppin State University (up 10.1 percent); Towson
University (up 10.1 percent); University of Baltimore (up 5.2 percent); University
of Maryland, Baltimore (up 8.1 percent); University of Maryland, Baltimore
County (up 4.6 percent); University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute (up
30.7 percent); University of Maryland, College Park (up 16.5 percent); and
University of Maryland University College (up 11.7 percent).
The system's research-focused
universities and centers--the University of Maryland, Baltimore; University of Maryland,
Baltimore County; University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute; University of
Maryland, College Park; and University of Maryland Center for Environmental
Science--accounted for more than $955 million of the total research funding
received in FY 2007.
During the past six years,
the amount of external research funding that USM receives annually has risen 38
percent, from $783.7 million in FY 2001 to $1.08 billion in FY 2007.
Contact: John Buettner
Phone: 301.445.2719
Email: jbuettner@usmd.edu
