News Release
____________________________________________________________
May 4, 2006
Micron Technology Foundation Donates $5 Million to Support
New Engineering Ph.D. Program at Boise State University
The Micron Technology Foundation will award $5 million to Boise State
University to support its new Ph.D. program in electrical and computer
engineering (ECE), Micron and Boise State officials announced today.
The $5 million donation from the Micron Technology Foundation, a private,
non-profit charitable organization formed in 1999 by Micron Technology Inc.,
will fund new faculty and staff positions in the College of Engineering,
stipends for ECE doctoral students, lab renovations, new instrumentation and
other program costs, university officials said.
“With the increasing demand for qualified, skilled and talented engineers in
our state and country, Micron is pleased to support Boise State’s thriving
College of Engineering and its new doctoral program,” said Steve Appleton,
Micron’s chairman, CEO and president. “To be competitive on a global basis
it is vital for business and community leaders to support educational
systems that continue to raise the bar in education and promote curriculum
rich in math, science, technology and engineering.”
The gift includes $3 million to be awarded over the next four years. The
remaining $2 million is a challenge grant that will be matched dollar for
dollar for donations made to Boise State University for the ECE doctoral
program.
“This is tremendous news for Boise State, and we are very grateful to the
Micron Technology Foundation for its vision and generosity,” said Boise
State President Bob Kustra. “This gift will enhance our efforts to build a
very strong program that will help meet the growing needs of high-tech
industries in the state and the region, and provide new opportunities for
research and collaboration.”
In December, the State Board of Education unanimously approved a Ph.D.
program in electrical and computer engineering at Boise State, and the
program began admitting its first students this semester. Eight doctoral
students have been admitted to the Ph.D. program for the fall 2006 semester,
and university officials plan to grow this number to about 50 students
during a six-year implementation phase.
“The College of Engineering has already enrolled some outstanding students
in its new Ph.D. program, and this generous gift from the Micron Technology
Foundation will support the college’s efforts to hire talented faculty and
attract the best and brightest students,” said Boise State Provost Sona
Andrews.
Research will also be enhanced because the university will have the
resources to hire clusters of researchers working in a particular area
instead of a single researcher, said Cheryl Schrader, dean of the College of
Engineering. “Collaborations that will increase our competitiveness for
federal research grants will begin immediately,” Schrader said. “We’ll be
able to build momentum very quickly.”
The new Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering is a research-intensive
degree, and doctoral students will work with faculty on funded projects in
areas such as sensors, advanced integrated circuitry, image processing,
memory materials and robotics, said R. Jacob Baker, chair of the Department
of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The projects are funded by the
Department of Defense, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department
of Energy and other agencies.
The research has many practical applications and could lead to everything
from smaller portable music players, such as an iPod®, to ATMs that use
fingerprint scans to identify users, to the development of new materials for
storing digital information, Baker said.
“Undergraduate and master’s students will have new opportunities to work
with doctoral students and faculty on cutting-edge research,” Baker said.
“We are very excited about the possibilities.”
Micron Technology has been a major supporter and benefactor of the
engineering programs at Boise State. In 1996, Micron Technology offered a $6
million challenge to construct new engineering buildings if the university
could obtain matching funds from other donors within three years; Boise
State exceeded that match in less than two years. In January 2000, the
Micron Engineering Center was dedicated as part of a $12.5 million
three-building complex to house engineering programs. Micron Technology was
also among seven companies that donated equipment and supplies in 2000 to
develop the Idaho Microfabrication Laboratory.
In 2003, the Micron Technology Foundation donated $2 million to start a
materials science and engineering undergraduate program at Boise State to
complement the related interdisciplinary graduate program. Implemented in
fall 2004, the undergraduate program has grown to 40 majors, and the first
students will graduate this May. In addition, researchers affiliated with
the Department of Materials Science and Engineering have accrued $5 million
in research grants — a fivefold return on Micron’s investment, since just
over $1 million of the $2 million gift has been spent so far, Schrader
noted.
In 2004, Micron Technology donated lab equipment used to investigate new
engineering materials. In 2005, the Micron Technology Foundation donated
$320,000 to initiate development of the doctoral program in electrical and
computer engineering. The company and its foundation also provide
scholarships for outstanding students and have made other monetary, outreach
and equipment donations over the years.
The College of Engineering at Boise State will mark its 10th anniversary in
July with a yearlong celebration, “Engineering 10.0.” Many events are
planned during the year, including a back-to-school barbecue, alumni
reunions and guest lectures. The college enrolls more than 1,400 students in
its graduate and undergraduate programs. Its researchers have $16.8 million
in active externally funded research grants, a 50 percent increase over the
past year. In 2004, 68 percent of the engineering graduates from Boise State
obtained employment in Idaho industries, according to statistics gathered by
the college. More about the college is at
http://coen.boisestate.edu.
The Micron Technology Foundation, a private, non-profit organization
established in 1999 with a gift from Micron Technology, Inc., is engaged in
funding educational efforts and charitable activities. To learn more about
the Micron Technology Foundation, visit its web site at
www.micron.com/foundation.
Micron Technology Inc. is one of the world’s leading providers of advanced
semiconductor solutions. Through its worldwide operations, Micron
manufactures and markets DRAMs, NAND flash memory, CMOS image sensors, other
semiconductor components, and memory modules for use in leading-edge
computing, consumer, networking, and mobile products. Micron’s common stock
is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the MU symbol. To learn more
about Micron Technology Inc., visit
www.micron.com.
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BSU contact: Cheryl Schrader, College of Engineering, (208) 426-1153,
schrader@boisestate.edu,
and Jake Baker, College of Engineering, (208) 426-5715,
jbaker@boisestate.edu
BSU media contact: Janelle Brown, University Communications, (208)
426-1790, jbrown2@boisestate.edu
Micron media contact: Jill Thompson, Media Relations, (208) 368-5749,
jtthompson@micron.com
All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Boise State University is the largest institution of higher education in
Idaho with about 18,600 students and 2,200 faculty and staff. More than 190
undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and technical degrees are offered within
eight colleges. A metropolitan university located in the capital city, Boise
State is committed to life-enhancing research, teaching excellence and
public service.
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Last reviewed on Wednesday, January 03, 2007