Kansas University ranked higher than ever among public universities in federal research funding in the most recent edition of an annual survey, KU announced Tuesday.
KU's federally funded research rose to a record $162.7 million in the 2011 fiscal year, or roughly the 2010-11 academic year. That's the most recent data reported by the survey, which is conducted by the National Science Foundation and lags behind by one fiscal year.
That ranked 75th overall in the country and 39th among public institutions, making it the first time KU has ranked in the top 40.
That figure includes research on KU's Lawrence campus and at the KU Medical Center. It ranks second among Big 12 universities, behind the University of Texas at Austin and affiliated medical institutions.
Steve Warren, KU's vice chancellor for research and graduate studies, said in a release that KU researchers could be proud of the ranking but also expressed fears that the federal budget sequester and possible state funding cuts could damage KU's research capabilities in the future.
Comments
tomatogrower 11 months ago
What! Brownback hasn't turned down this federal money? There are always strings attached, like accountability.
elliottaw 11 months ago
if he keeps cutting funding the schools will just keep increasing the % that they take of the grants, right now about 30% of the grant (varies from department to department) goes directly to the school and not for what the grant was intended to fund
TalkSense 11 months ago
elliottaw doesn't understand how grants work. An award covers both the direct cost of the research project and the indirect cost to the university of providing the infrastructure and services that make research possible. The percentage is negotiated with the federal government for a set period of years. This percentage has nothing to do with state funding of universities, i.e., KU can't simply increase the percentage it receives to compensate for a loss of funding somewhere else. It's also important to note that KU uses the indirect cost reimbursement to invest in additional research capacity on campus.
elliottaw 11 months ago
They can and have changed the % from years past, it used to be a lot lower, and other schools have it as low as 10% and some as high as 50%. If you don't think that the percentage is t tied to how much the school is getting in funding elsewhere you are fooling yourself. I now people right now who are being told they need to get X amount of money in grants because their are staff positions that they need funding for, staff positions that at no time will they rely on or use in any way for research.
boltzmann 11 months ago
The University cannot unilaterally change its overhead percentage. This is a negotiated number with federal agencies and is tied to how and how much the university spends on research infrastructure.
elliottaw 11 months ago
For Federal grants yes, for private grants it can and does
yourworstnightmare 11 months ago
This is due in large part to the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (Obama's stimulus) as well as the scientific welfare money Kansas receives from federal agencies as one of the bottom 25 states in federal research funding.
It will be interesting to see where this ranking goes in the coming years.
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