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Graph showing growing research dollars at Boise State

Amy Moll, chair of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, received the largest single award in fiscal year 2005 — $1.6 million from an organization that is part of the U.S. Department of Defense. The grant funds Moll’s research to develop and test microchips that can be stacked vertically in what might be termed a “skyscraper model,” instead of spread out in a single layer, significantly reducing the size of the microelectronic package.

Boise State University received a record $24.2 million for research and sponsored projects for the

fiscal year that ended June 30 — the highest one-year total in the university’s history, Boise State officials announced today.

The total is a 23 percent increase over the $19.6 million tallied in fiscal year 2004. It is also more than double that received in fiscal year 1999, when Boise State received $10.9 million.

The university also set a new record for the total number of awards with 247 funded during fiscal year 2005. The awards include grants from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Federal Aviation Administration and many other federal, state and private agencies.

“Universities are measured in part by their ability to obtain externally sponsored research grants and programs,” said Boise State President Bob Kustra. “The influx of research dollars to Boise State further enhances our growing stature as a metropolitan research university and reflects the excellent work of our faculty and students.”

While Boise State remains a center for teaching and learning, strong research programs improve the university’s attractiveness to potential students and faculty, noted Boise State Provost Sona Andrews. “These awards strengthen our academic programs with additional resources and provide our students with hands-on opportunities to conduct research that integrates the theories and practices learned in the classroom with applications that make a difference in our daily lives,” Andrews said.

Added Jack Pelton, Boise State’s interim vice president of research administration: “The research being conducted in labs across campus helps keep the brightest students in state, trains a workforce for high-tech industries, fosters growth with the development of patents and products, and serves as a catalyst for economic development.”

The largest single award in fiscal year 2005 was $1.6 million from an organization that is part of the U.S. Department of Defense. The grant, “Advanced Processing Techniques for Fabrication of 3-D

Microstructures for Future Electronic Devices,” was awarded to Amy Moll, chair of the Materials Science and Engineering Department in the College of Engineering, and to three co-principal investigators, engineering professors Peter Mullner, Bill Knowlton and Megan Frary.

The grant funds Moll’s research to develop and test microchips that can be stacked vertically in what might be termed a “skyscraper model,” instead of spread out in a single layer. The innovation would increase functionality and reduce size, and has many applications for the microelectronics industry, including the development of sensors for detecting bioterrorism threats.

“This grant helps build the infrastructure for research programs in the Materials Science and Engineering Department and will play an important role in laying the groundwork for obtaining future grants,” Moll said. “It also provides valuable hands-on research experience for the large group of undergraduate and graduate engineering students who will work on the project.”

Other awards ranged from biomedical, microelectronics and nanotechnology research to studies involving alcohol on campus, the Idaho ground squirrel, improving mathematics teaching, monitoring earthquake swarms and developing multi-purpose sensors. The awards also supported programs such as the College Assistance Migrant Program and instruction and training for Idaho teachers. Here’s a sampling:

• Political Science professor Scott Yenor procured a $934,210 award from the U.S. Department of Education for “Teaching American History II.”

• Biology professors Steve Novak and Ian Robertson received a $30,864 from the Idaho National Guard for a study of slickspot peppergrass, a rare native plant species found in Idaho’s high desert.

• College of Health Sciences dean Jim Girvan received $245,294 from the Administration on Aging for the university’s Center for the Study of Aging.

• Chemistry professor Don Warner received $196,025 from the National Institutes of Health for “Evaluation of DNA cross-linking by Aziridinomitosenes.”

• Geosciences professor Shawn Benner received $11,750 from the Idaho Water Resources Research institute for a “Reconnaissance Study of Arsenic Distribution in the Shallow Aquifer of the Treasure Valley.”

• Physics professor Charles Hanna received $35,000 from the National Science Foundation for “Broken-Symmetry States of Confining Interacting Electronics.”

Boise State has seen significant growth in external funding for research and sponsored projects during the past two decades, noted Karen Henry, director of the Office of Research Administration at Boise State. In 1985, Boise State received $2.4 million in external funding for 49 awards.

“Not only are the number of awards increasing, especially for research, but we are also drawing on new funding sources and developing new interdisciplinary collaborations,” Henry said. “Our successes build upon each other to move our programs forward.”

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