Investment in Carolina鈥檚 research enterprise grew in FY24, with significant increases in funding from private organizations and federal agencies.
The numbers are in and research at Carolina continues to grow. This is the fifth year in a row that research awards have topped $1 billion, facilitating research projects and experiments for external sponsors like federal agencies, industry partners, and nonprofit organizations.
鈥淭hese new award totals are a testament to the dedication of our researchers who push the boundaries of knowledge in their fields,鈥� said Interim Chancellor Lee H. Roberts. 鈥淚鈥檓 thrilled to see our continued excellence in the health sciences recognized with new funding, and equally encouraged to see recognition of our burgeoning efforts in clean technology, data science and other cutting-edge research. The work reflected by this milestone is changing lives across our state, country and world.鈥�
Research at 黑料网-Chapel Hill employs over 10,700 North Carolinians in research projects that span all 100 counties. As most research funding comes from outside of the state, it represents new revenue for North Carolina鈥檚 gross state product, and spending on research supports over 3,200 businesses across the state.
At a crucial moment for our state, Carolina received a rapid increase in federal funding during the pandemic to tackle the many public health issues caused by COVID-19. While much of that funding has waned, sponsorships and grants in other areas of impactful research have put the University on a strong upward trajectory.
鈥淚f you take a deep look at the big awards the University attracted this year, it鈥檚 obvious that the secret to our success lies in our interdisciplinary, collaborative approach to finding solutions that benefit society,鈥� said Vice Chancellor for Research Penny Gordon-Larsen. 鈥淚鈥檓 pleased to see this approach pay off with federal funding for projects addressing cognitive and women鈥檚 health and others that will harness enabling technologies in data and applied science. Additionally, new private funding will allow us to expand our global reach.鈥�
Funding Breakdown
Funding from federal sources accounted for about 65% of all research awards for FY24, with grants from education and research institutes (9.3%), North Carolina government (8.5%), business and industry (6%), and foundations (5.6%) rounding out the rest of Carolina鈥檚 funding figures.
Top federal sponsors of research at Carolina include:
- National Institutes of Health (NIH): $592 million
- Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS): $60 million
- National Science Foundation (NSF): $40 million
- Department of Education (DOED): $23 million
- Department of Defense (DOD): $21 million
- S. Agency for International Development (USAID): $17 million
Federally Funded Projects
Notable federally funded projects include:
- $49,263,974 from the NIH National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to the Renaissance Computing Institute for the NHLBI Data Stage Coordinating Center with聽聽as principal investigator (PI). This effort began under聽, dean of the School of Data Science and Society.
- $19,381,451 from the NIH Office of the Director to the Department of Genetics within the School of Medicine for the Center for Linkage and Acquisition of Data with聽Melissa Haendel聽as PI.
- $6,815,660 from the Department of Energy to the Department of Chemistry within the College of Arts and Sciences for the Center for Hybrid Approaches to Solar Energy for Liquid Fuels with聽听补苍诲听聽as CO-PIs.
- $5,921,635 from the NSF to the Graduate School for the聽.
- $8,847,366 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to the Department of Epidemiology within the Gillings School of Global Public Health for the Atlantic Coast Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics and Analytics with聽聽as PI.
- $5,000,000 from the Department of Agriculture to the Department of Maternal and Child Health within Gillings for a project that recognizes and addresses maternal warning signs for morbidity during pregnancy and the postpartum period with聽聽as PI.
Privately Funded Projects
The University also received an influx of donations from private organizations to support global research. The Bloomberg Family Foundation awarded $19 million to the Carolina Population Center for the聽, which works to reduce diet-related disparities and create a more healthful food system and food environment by working with partners around the world.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation awarded $5.45 million to the聽Division of Global Women鈥檚 Health聽within the School of Medicine, a group of clinicians, researchers, and public health professionals working to improve the health of women in impoverished countries.
Centers and Institutes
Carolina鈥檚 centers and institutes garnered significant funding for projects, including the renewal of funding ($8.9 million) for the聽聽within the School of Medicine. The聽聽was funded by the NIH National Institute on Aging for two studies ($6.2 million and $5.1 million) focused on Alzheimer鈥檚 disease and dementia.
In addition, the聽聽received $7 million from the NIH National Cancer Institute, the聽聽received $5.2 million from the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for the Collaboratory of AIDS Researchers for Eradication, and the聽聽received $5.4 million from the Department of Education for the Early Childhood Systems Technical Assistance Center.
鈥淥ur researchers are enabled by their FY24 awards to make game-changing breakthroughs that improve the health and well-being of people and our planet while providing an economic boom to the state of North Carolina,鈥� adds Gordon-Larsen.
The most common measurements of research activity in universities are research awards and research expenditures. Awards represent new research grants and contracts a university receives over the course of a fiscal year. They are an important forward-looking measure of the health of a research institution because they often represent multi-year projects that will continue into future years. Research expenditures are an after-the-fact measure of actual research spending that occurred in prior years. Expenditures often take a year or more to be calculated and published nationally.
For more information on research awards, expenditures, and historical trends, visit the聽聽on the 黑料网 Research website.
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