Rutgers to receive $2.6 million for technology research
Archived article from Dec 1, 2000
By Harvey Trabb
Rutgers will receive more than $2.6 million from the state Commission on Higher Education (CHE) for seven multidisci-plinary projects targeting biomedical and high-technology research critical to key New Jersey industries.
The money represents Rutgers' share in $6.5 million in new funding awarded to six New Jersey universities to boost their capacity for research and help the state become a leader in the advancement of knowledge and a hub for high-technology industry. Rutgers will match the new state funds to support its projects.
"Higher education plays a critical role in preparing the high-tech workforce New Jersey business and industry will need to compete effectively in the world economy," said President Francis L. Lawrence in commenting on the CHE's action. "We welcome this important new state support for our efforts to create new knowledge and improve the quality of life for people everywhere."
Rutgers will use the capacity-building funds to recruit outstanding new faculty; purchase equipment such as advanced confocal microscopes, lasers, and DNA chip and micro readers; and launch innovative new research in areas with important commercial and health care applications.
"Each of the seven Rutgers projects that will receive this funding is centered on an accomplished research faculty group, and each area is central to the goals of our strategic plan," said Joseph J. Seneca, university vice president for academic affairs. "These projects have received significant university support to develop academic excellence, and each has profound implications for improving human well-being."
The Rutgers research areas include animal biotechnology, which has applications for medical research and endangered species; bioinformatics, which contributes directly to drug design; physics-based simulation technology for medical imaging and other biomedical uses; life sciences research in biomaterials used in implants and medical devices, human genetics and neuroscience; molecular and cellular pharmaceutical research related to absorption of drugs for combating disease; cellular and molecular biodynamics, which has implications for the study of aging in tissues and new drug design for repairing injuries; and hybrid materials, which has applications for information technology.
Seneca pointed out that the Rutgers faculty members involved in the projects currently hold more than $40 million in competitively awarded research funds.
The CHE also designated an additional $3.5 million in federal grant matching funds to further enhance the ability of the six institutions, which are the state's top recipients of external grant dollars, to compete for federal research grants. The total $10 million in state funding was included in Gov. Christie Whitman's $165 million New Jersey Jobs for the New Economy initiative.
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