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Noelle Toumey Reetz
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Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development
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ATLANTA—Georgia State University’s research expenditures exceeded $200 million for the second consecutive year in fiscal year 2018, the National Science Foundation reports in the latest Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Survey. In fiscal year 2018, the university's annual research expenditures totaled $201.2 million.
The university ranks 114th out of 646 universities in the U.S. for research expenditures, and 78th out of 408 public universities.
“We are proud of the university’s dedication to research and our faculty’s dedication to tackling today’s most pressing, complex issues,” said Michael Eriksen, interim vice president for research and economic development. “Topping $200 million in expenditures for the second straight year is a demonstration of that commitment.”
Over the past decade (from fiscal year 2009 to fiscal year 2018), research expenditures at Georgia State have shot up by more than 153 percent. That is the third-largest increase in research expenditures among those institutions with more than $100 million in expenditures in fiscal year 2018, making Georgia State one of the fastest-growing research institutions in the nation. For the past three years, the university has been the highest-ranked institution without an engineering, medical or agricultural school.
In fiscal year 2019, Georgia State received $128.1 million in external research funding, an increase over the fiscal year 2018 total of $122.7 million. The total includes $32.8 million from the National Institutes of Health, $11.3 million from the U.S. Department of Education and $4.9 million from the National Science Foundation. The year’s major awards included:
- A five-year, $9.25 million from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to Cynthia Nau Cornelissen (Institute for Biomedical Sciences) to develop new vaccines for preventing gonococcal infection and disease.
- $1 million from Arnold Ventures to researchers in the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies to create the Georgia Child and Family Policy Lab, a new research lab focused on improving lifelong well-being for Georgia’s children and families.
- A five-year, $5 million grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to Richard Plemper (Institute for Biomedical Sciences) to develop an antiviral drug to treat influenza virus infections. Baozhong Wong (Institute for Biomedical Sciences) also received a five-year, $3.86 million grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to develop a universal flu vaccine using a microneedle patch that will protect against any strain of the influenza virus.
- A five-year, $3.75 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to a team of researchers in the School of Public Health to establish a Prevention Research Center that will focus on the health and health disparities of refugees and migrants.
- A five-year, $4 million to Vince Calhoun (College of Arts & Sciences) from the National Institute of Mental Health to develop new models that use brain imaging and genomic data to better predict mental health disorders.
- A five-year, $3.37 million grant to Candace Kemp (College of Arts & Sciences) from the National Institute on Aging to research the best ways to help assisted-living residents with dementia be optimally engaged in life.
- A six-year, $3 million grant to Christine Thomas and Natalie King (College of Education & Human Development) from the National Science Foundation to address the shortage of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers in urban schools, especially Black and Latinx men.
The university expects to break ground this spring on the third phase of the Science Park complex, which will house advanced laboratories and enhance Georgia State’s reputation as a national leader in biomedical research.