Grant funding breaks record at YSU

By Harold Gwin

Many of the funds received reflect projects and partnerships with private industry.

YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown State University faculty and staff brought in nearly $11.7 million in research and sponsored program grants in fiscal 2008-09, surpassing a record $6.8 million 2007-08 figure by 72 percent.

The number includes about $2.4 million in federal earmarks secured through U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Niles, D-17th, said Peter Kasvinsky, YSU associate provost for research and dean of graduate studies and research. The rest is the result of direct faculty-submission of funding applications, he said, noting that a total of 106 projects got funding.

There are other funds pending, but the count includes only that money for which YSU has signed contracts, he said.

The university has been experiencing a generally steady growth in external funding for campus programs and projects during the past 14 years. YSU received only $738,249 in such funding in 1995.

The university kicked in $206,200 last year in University Research Council grants and research assistant awards, primarily to provide funds for undergraduate and graduate student research.

The sudden jump in external funding can be attributed to a number of factors, said David C. Sweet, YSU president.

The creation of the College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, the state designation of YSU as an “urban research university,” the increasing participation in grant-seeking efforts by faculty and the success in securing those funds all contributed, he said.

The science, engineering and technology faculty are working together, and that group, along with others, will be the “drivers” in terms of grant volume as YSU transitions to an urban research university, Sweet said.

Many of the grants received reflect projects and partnerships with private industry, and, “That’s what we want to build on,” he said.

That, research and graduate programs are key components of an urban research university, he said.

There were some particularly large grants secured last year, so the level of growth may not be sustained annually, but it’s a trend the university and the community should be proud of, Sweet said.

“The activity of faculty has really taken off,” Kasvinsky said, He said the total external funding for projects was only in the $300,000 to $400,000 range when he came to YSU in 1993.

A grants office was established in 1994 to help with the process of securing that type of funding, he said.

The goal is to build a faculty that continually seeks that external money, Kasvinsky said.

The urban research university designation made last year will contribute to that end, he said, adding that the creation of the STEM college two years ago “has propelled applications significantly.”

Allen Hunter, YSU professor of chemistry and head of the university’s new National Defense Center of Excellence in Industrial Metrology and 3D Imaging, secured one of the larger grants, netting $1,313,250 from the U.S. Department of Defense for the center.

He said he’s already looking to extend that support by applying for $3 million in state funding.

Local companies M 7 Technologies and Zethus Software are partners in the center, Hunter said, pointing out that a joint project with Zethus involving the development of computer software that allows groups of computers to collaborate may become the first technological commercially licensed product coming out of a YSU partnership.

The university was much less interested in seeking industrial collaboration arrangements and providing graduate education, both of which relate to external funding for research, 20 years ago, Hunter said. That attitude has gradually changed, he said.

The grants tend to build upon each other, said Timothy Wagner, YSU chemistry professor and the holder of the largest grant last year — a $2,115,000 award from the Ohio Department of Development for equipment for the Center for Excellence in Advanced Materials Analysis.

Developing a track record with grants helps applicants secure future related funding because the applicants have shown success with projects supported by previous funding, he said.

Wagner actually secured two grants last year. The second was a $149,499 equipment grant from the National Science Foundation for research experience in the general chemistry lab curriculum.

Edward Orona, director of YSU’s Office of Grants and Sponsored Programs, said in a report to YSU’s Board of Trustees that last year’s awards “show a diverse portfolio in the areas categorized as research, education and service.” Improving investments in the academic and research infrastructure will enable the university to provide the technical and intellectual expertise needed to support community economic development activities, he said.

gwin@vindy.com