IU grants total more than half a billion dollars

Indiana University received more than half a billion dollars in research grants and awards during the 2007-2008 fiscal year, breaking previous records for the school and marking a 21 percent jump over last year.
IU President Michael McRobbie has made improving research a priority, saying scientific research creates high-paying jobs and economic growth in the state. He has told lawmakers that the school will need an additional 5 million square feet of research space to reach its full potential.
The increase in awarded research money shows that faculty and researchers are on board with McRobbie’s goal, said IU spokesman Larry MacIntyre.
“We are actually responding to one of his priorities,” he said. “This is one of his biggest areas of concerns.”
In the most recent fiscal year, IU brought in $525 million in research grants and awards. About 63 percent of the 4,329 research proposals submitted received funding. The figures cover all of IU’s campuses.
In the 2006-2007 fiscal year, 59 percent of the school’s 4,051 research grant proposals received funding, MacIntyre said.
McRobbie said the latest numbers are especially remarkable because competition for federal research money is increasing.
“These results reflect extremely favorably on the quality of our faculty’s research and the importance of the work they are undertaking,” McRobbie said in a statement.
More than half of the total awards came from federal sources, including nearly $153 million from the National Institutes of Health and $28 million from the National Science Foundation.