Higher Education Policy Commission awards grants for research proposal preparation

The West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission today announced it has awarded eight mini-grants of up to $4,500 each to researchers at Bluefield State College, Marshall University, University of Charleston, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine, West Virginia University (WVU) and WVU Institute of Technology.

The mini-grants, which were awarded through a competitive application process, are intended to assist faculty members with the preparation of research or research equipment proposals for submission to external funding agencies or foundations. This year’s grant recipients will be applying for funding opportunities from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Energy and the American Chemical Society.

According to Dr. Paul L. Hill, vice chancellor for science and research, the mini-grants help researchers develop stronger, more-competitive proposals for funding their work. He added that the resulting proposals are often ultimately funded for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

“One of the commission’s goals is to increase West Virginia's competitive research infrastructure,” said Hill. “As we’ve seen through this program, a relatively modest investment of state funds can lead to large awards from federal or private sources.”

The grant recipients are Dr. Brian Antonsen of Marshall University; Dr. Tesfaye Belay of Bluefield State College; Dr. Rana Jisr of West Virginia University Institute of Technology; Dr. Laura McCunn of Marshall University; Dr. Xiaoping Sun of the University of Charleston; Dr. Wendy Trzyna of Marshall University; Dr. Jason Wells of the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine; and Dr. Kimberly Williams of West Virginia University.

Research funding successful
RCG program creates companies; patents issued


This article originally appeared in the March 9, 2008, edition of The Times West Virginian (Fairmont).


By Jessica Legge
The Times West Virginian

FAIRMONT — The original projects funded through the Research Challenge Grant program turned out to be more successful than the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission’s Division of Science and Research initially anticipated.

The RCG program was essentially made available to professors at West Virginia University and Marshall University who could create scientific research projects with an economic impact and eventually attract their own external funding.

“The Research Challenge Grant program was designed by the Legislature originally to provide a level of research funding to projects that showed a lot of promise for growth,” Dr. Paul Hill, vice chancellor for Science and Research, said.

The West Virginia Legislature stipulated that participants could receive seed funding for up to five years and should be self-sufficient by the end of that time frame. The goal was for grant recipients to initiate a start-up company or sell a commercial application, he said.

The state legislature started the program in 2002. The Research Challenge Fund was created in 2004 to give the Higher Education Policy Commission the authority to support projects through a permanent fund from video lottery proceeds. Hill said the first set of projects reached their five-year mark by July 1, 2007, with the last funding coming from the FY07 budget.

“We can make long-term commitments to these researchers over a number of years,” he said. “Providing long-term funds is exactly what you need for those types of projects.”

Hill said the RCG program funded a total of six projects — four at WVU and two at Marshall — on a variety of research topics. The research efforts were related to subjects such as global positioning, biometrics, plastics, cancer and DNA sensors.

In five instances, companies grew out of the projects. The projects also resulted in 10 patent applications and five patents that were issued.

“We were quite pleased and surprised at the pace at which some of these companies have grown,” Hill said.

He said researchers could initially request a maximum of $500,000 a year. Then they had to continually wean themselves from the state’s support and look for ways to bring in additional funding. Each project received an average of $1.2 million for the entire five years. The state invested a total of $8.4 million in the six projects, and the researchers attracted more than $20 million in external funding.

“Once we seeded the projects, they were able to (bring in) federal grants,” Hill said. “That’s what we were hoping for. We’re trying to position people in West Virginia really to capture the other opportunities out there.”

Over the past few months since the projects expired, the Division of Science and Research conducted a full evaluation of the effectiveness of the RCG program, he said. The division presented the findings, compiled from annual reviews of the individual projects, to the Higher Education Policy Commission at its January meeting. Persons can access the report of five-year outcomes from the first round of Research Challenge Grants online at http://www.wvresearch.org/.

In May 2007, Science and Research issued five new projects for the next five years. Hill said the division will track the new projects, which are in some very exciting areas of research, and see if they experience a similar rate of success.

“This program is so important because it provides an opportunity to diversify the state’s economy,” he said. “It’s providing opportunities to create new types of jobs in West Virginia. The fund is so important in stimulating these new ideas in thinking.”

Through participation in the grant program, the GeoVirtual Laboratory within the WVU Department of Geology and Geography was able to develop cutting-edge geovisualization software. The WVU Office of Technology Transfer has licensed this software, which “uses serious video gaming technology to render massive amounts of geographic information systems data,” to a commercial company called Datacaster.

“The Research Challenge Grant was crucial to develop the technology, and it has provided fantastic opportunities to develop cutting-edge technologies in the research lab,” said Vic Baker, who is co-director of the GeoVirtual Laboratory with Trevor Harris.

Over five years, the project was awarded roughly $2 million of grant money. Baker believes that five years isn’t long enough to define a research agenda, and additional state involvement and funding is needed for WVU’s research and development efforts. “We’re grateful to the Research Challenge Grant,” he said. “We would like to see programs like the Research Challenge Grant continued, except for longer periods.”

Report shows significant return on state’s Research Challenge Fund investment

The West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, Division of Science and Research (DSR), has released a report that shows the state’s $8.4 million investment in a program intended to support the creation of research centers and foster economic development and work force advancement has resulted in a substantial return on investment.

The report summarizes the results of the first six scientific research projects funded through the Research Challenge Grant (RCG) program and concludes that over five years, these projects at West Virginia University (WVU) and Marshall University (MU) leveraged external funding of more than $20 million, and resulted in five startup companies with five-year projected revenues of $124 million, 10 patent applications and five patents. In addition, two university research centers with industry partners were formed and one production facility is under development.

"We could not be more pleased that the Research Challenge Grant program has had such a positive and significant impact," said Dr. Paul L. Hill, HEPC vice chancellor for science and research. "We were able exceed our initial expectations for this program, sponsoring innovative research at our two research institutions and greatly improving their ability to be competitive for federal funding on the national level."

Hill added that two of the startup companies—Protea Biosciences LLC in Morgantown and Vandalia Research Inc. in Huntington—estimate they will be hiring 295 additional employees in the next five years.

"These are exactly the type of high-tech, high-paying jobs we need to create in West Virginia," he said. "The state’s investment in this program is clearly beginning to show that research can lead to a brighter economic future for West Virginia."

The RCG program was begun by the West Virginia Legislature in 2002 and is funded through video lottery proceeds at the state’s racetracks. The fund is administered by the DSR.

A second round of RCG awards, made in May 2007, is funding projects ranging from the development of a world-class center for astrophysics at WVU to cardiovascular and cancer research at MU. The research grants can be renewed for up to five years and all projects must be self-supporting at the end of the grant period. Each grant is worth $1-2 million over the five-year period.


Read the entire report here.

The case for building intellectual capital

This article originally appeared in the March 2, 2008, issue of the Sunday Gazette-Mail.


By Paul L. Hill, Ph.D.


There's a lot of talk these days about intellectual capital as the currency of the 21st century. But what is intellectual capital and why do we need it?

The simple answer is that intellectual capital is the result of the creation of knowledge and innovation. It manifests itself in patents, commercial licenses and new products.

Today, science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills are driving global advancement of the knowledge economy over the industrial economy of the last century. If the United States is to compete successfully in this new world economy, we must improve the scientific and technological expertise of our workforce. We must build intellectual capital.

While it is critical to compete on a global level, West Virginia has a vital role to play and much to gain from building intellectual capital right here at home. And it is important to remember that intellectual capital is not something we can buy--we must create it.

A recent analysis, "The 2007 State New Economy Index," released by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, ranked West Virginia 50th in the country in creation and retention of high value-added, high-wage jobs.

So it is no coincidence that we often find our state at or near the bottom of national rankings in everything from education level to health to average income. We simply do not have enough research and development activity in West Virginia. Studies show that communities that have built intellectual capital with more science, technology and engineering professionals in the population benefit from more job creation and company startups, better wages, higher levels of education, positive health-care statistics, and so on.

With time and investment, West Virginia's status in these national rankings could be dramatically improved by focusing our efforts on knowledge creation and innovation. By building intellectual capital.

We can all recognize the buzzing economies around major research hubs across the country and envy the high-paying jobs created as a result. But in a state like West Virginia, how do we stimulate more intellectual capital to serve as the basis of our new economy? Who is positioned to conduct a volume of research that will stimulate new business opportunities?

Answer: The state's research universities. In fact, this is the overwhelming trend nationwide, but West Virginia must advance research infrastructure and resources at West Virginia University and Marshall University for this to be possible.

West Virginia currently invests approximately $4.3 million annually in academic research through the state's Research Challenge Fund, and provided an additional $10 million this year for the Eminent Scholars Recruitment and Enhancement program. The surrounding states invest significantly more - Pennsylvania ($99.1 million), Kentucky ($52.5 million), Ohio ($109.4 million), Maryland ($60.8 million) and Virginia ($85.4 million).

That is not to say that the fledgling Research Challenge Fund has not had an impact. Over five years, these state grants have supported six major research projects that have, in turn, generated more than a dozen patent applications and patents, several commercial licenses and five startup companies that are already beginning to commercialize intellectual property.

These projects have further leveraged an additional $18.2 million in the form of corporate and federal grants and $2.3 million in venture capital. Business projections by two of the startup companies--Protea Biosciences, LLC, and Vandalia Research, Inc.--exceed $124 million in annual sales and 295 additional employees in five years. In addition, two university research centers with industry partners have been formed and one production facility is being built. These are significant accomplishments of which to be proud, but they are just a start.

Our state's leaders are aware that much more remains to be done if we are to be successful at reinventing our future and creating high-wage knowledge economy jobs here in the Mountain State.

Calling it necessary for West Virginia to stimulate world-class research and development and to reap the related benefits of high-tech, high-wage industries, Gov. Joe Manchin recently proposed a $50 million trust fund for the state's two research universities--West Virginia University and Marshall University. The first program of its kind in West Virginia, this "Bucks for Brains" trust fund would be patterned after successful endowments in other states that match state dollars with private donations to strengthen universities' most-promising research departments--ultimately leading to business spin-offs, new patents and job creation.

The governor's proposal has met with wide praise and support from across the state. West Virginians are beginning to recognize the value of building intellectual capital. With strong leadership and a long-term commitment, West Virginia can, and will, invest major new resources in research infrastructure as a foundation for economic diversification and expansion. We cannot afford to miss this opportunity.


Hill is the vice chancellor for science and research at the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission.

Lab 304: Outlook introduces science segment highlighting state achievements

West Virginia Public Broadcasting introduced a new segment to its weekly news and public affairs television program "Outlook" this week during the Thursday show. "Lab 304" is an on-going series of stories focusing on activities of West Virginians exploring the vast world of math and science.

"Outlook" airs on West Virginia PBS each Thursday at 9 p.m. and repeats the following Sunday at 6 p.m. There is also a broadcast Sunday at 10 p.m. on West Virginia PBS Cable, available via Suddenlink and Time Warner cable systems in limited areas.

On this week’s premiere of "Lab 304" viewers learned about the challenges of replacing the azimuth track on the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope. Scientists from around the world use this telescope to study virtually all types of astronomical objects, from planets and comets in our own Solar System to quasars and galaxies billions of light-years away. The azimuth track is used to calculate distance.

Throughout the refurbishing project, West Virginia Public Broadcasting cameras were granted access in, on and around the 420-foot structure--capturing unique images of how the telescope is constructed and used.

Some of this footage was recently featured on the PBS program "Wired Science."

"Lab 304" video clips are available online on YouTube and the WVEPSCoR website.

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory operates the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope and several other telescopes.

Support for "Lab 304" is provided by West Virginia Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research.

Eureka

Intellectual capital

Charleston Gazette
2/7/08


AMONG appeals for state money before the Legislature this year is a plan pitched by Gov. Joe Manchin to use $50 million to endow competitive research at West Virginia and Marshall universities. This plan has great potential.

Modeled after a program in Kentucky called "Bucks for Brains," Manchin's plan is named "Bucks for Jobs," but the goal is the same. The state would invest $50 million and divide the interest between WVU and Marshall. WVU would get 70 percent of the earnings and Marshall would get 30 percent, a ratio that reflects existing research at the schools. The schools would have to raise equal amounts in private donations to get the money.

While the principal remains invested to generate more money, the schools would use the earnings to hire research scientists and build and equip their labs. The researchers would then be in a better position to compete for federal and private research grants, drawing more money and staff into Morgantown and Huntington.

This plan is good for West Virginia in a number of ways. First, it will attract smart professionals and their families, who will buy houses, attend schools and pay taxes. Second, it will generate the kinds of jobs that state residents currently move away to find: high-tech careers, many in the knowledge economy. At the same time, research opportunities will further enliven campus life for graduate and undergraduate students. Because these are new positions dedicated to research with funding attached, it will not pull existing faculty from important teaching duties, as other efforts to bolster research have done.

The goal of this research investment is to generate patents and private spinoff companies to manufacture new products.

There's already biomedical research going on at WVU and Marshall. This effort would help it advance even further. Other fields include biotechnology, nanotechnology, biometrics, material science, engineering and environmental studies.

Paul Hill, vice chancellor for science and research at the state Higher Education Policy Commission, says the money would be spent in fields where the schools are already strong, and where there is potential for an economic payoff.

In a decade or two, this investment could add millions to West Virginia's economy. More of the state could enjoy the kind of boom that Morgantown has been seeing for years, largely driven by research efforts.

This could be the smartest $50 million the Legislature spends.

WVU researcher selected to demonstrate biometric recognition technology at NSF open house

Dr. Arun A. Ross, an assistant professor in West Virginia University’s Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering in the College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, has been selected to demonstrate his research at a National Science Foundation (NSF) open house next week.

Ross and two of his students will travel to Washington, D.C., to demonstrate biometric recognition technology being developed at WVU. The open house will showcase the work of more than 30 NSF-supported scientists, engineers and educators from across the nation.

The NSF chose to feature West Virginia from among the 27 states and territories that participate in its Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). The NSF-funded EPSCoR initiative is intended to develop the research base in states that have historically received the least federal research and development funding.

"We are pleased and proud the NSF selected West Virginia’s EPSCoR program from all those in the country to highlight at this event," said Dr. Paul L. Hill, West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission vice chancellor for science and research. "It’s a real vote of confidence in our program and the groundbreaking biometrics research being done right here in West Virginia."

Biometrics technology uses physical and behavioral traits such as fingerprints, face, voice and hand geometry to establish the identity of an individual. The field is rapidly growing with applications ranging from accessing computers and paying for groceries to being permitted to cross a border.

WVU is known worldwide for its identification technology research. The university offers the nation’s only undergraduate degree in biometric systems, along with dual undergraduate offerings in biometric systems and computer engineering, and in biometric systems and electrical engineering. Ross works at the WVU-based Center for Information Technology (CITeR), the first comprehensive academic center for biometrics in the country.

Ross joined WVU in 2003 as part of the West Virginia EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement initiative to recruit faculty and improve the state’s research infrastructure. Last year, he received the NSF’s prestigious CAREER Award, which supports the early career development activities of teacher-scholars who most effectively integrate research and education within the context of the mission of their organization.

The open house will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 4, at the NSF headquarters in Arlington, Va. The event is free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Ginny Painter at (304) 558-4128, ext. 6, or ginny.painter@wvresearch.org.

Caption: Dr. Arun Ross, standing at left, explains the intricacies of the human thumbprint while demonstrating the biometric technology he and his colleagues hope to improve upon at the WVU-based Center for Information Technology Research (CITeR). Photo by Chris Southard.

Governor presents grants during Undergraduate Research Day

Click here for the Undergraduate Research Day photo gallery

Gov. Joe Manchin today presented grants to help advance scientific research at West Virginia colleges and universities. The grants, which totaled nearly $500,000, were funded through the state’s Research Challenge Fund (RCF), the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts (E&A), and the West Virginia IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (WV-INBRE).

The grants were awarded in conjunction with Undergraduate Research Day, an annual event at the State Capitol intended to highlight research projects conducted by college and university students from around the state.

Presenting the grants, Manchin noted that scientific research and today’s student researchers are the keys to West Virginia’s future.

“We can look around the Capitol rotunda today at all these young researchers and see the faces of tomorrow’s leaders,” Manchin said. “We need their curiosity, intelligence and innovative spirit now and in the future if we are to succeed in today’s global, knowledge-driven economy.”

He added that the $50 million “Bucks for Brains” program he proposed in the State of the State address earlier this month would not only help attract leading scientists and investigators to West Virginia, but would help the state retain the “best and brightest” of its own promising graduates in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math.

The West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC) administers the RCF, as well as grants for research from E&A and the National Science Foundation (NSF).

Dr. Paul L. Hill, HEPC vice chancellor for science and research, said, “Since its inception five years ago, Undergraduate Research Day has gotten bigger and better—an encouraging sign as we strive to ensure West Virginia becomes a national leader in science, research, innovation and education.

“The interest and participation in this event illustrates the breadth and depth of young research talent across our state. Initiatives like ‘Bucks for Brains’ are vital if we are to compete successfully for federal and private research dollars.”

Grants presented by the governor today included Instrumentation Grants to fund scientific equipment for advanced undergraduate laboratories; Innovation Grants for creative improvements in scientific equipment and facilities, curriculum, classroom instruction or delivery; International Innovation Grants to support development of an international component in science, technology, engineering or mathematics programs; and Summer/Semester Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) stipends. The governor and Dr. Gary Rankin of Marshall University also presented WV-INBRE pilot grants to faculty at undergraduate institutions to help start biomedical research projects. A complete list of all today’s grant recipients is attached.

Sponsors of the Undergraduate Research Day events included the HEPC’s West Virginia Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, the Council on Undergraduate Research, the NASA West Virginia Space Grant Consortium and WV-INBRE.

To learn more about scientific research in West Virginia or the state’s Vision 2015 strategic plan for science and technology, call (304) 558-4128 or visit http://www.wvresearch.org/.


Awards

Instrumentation Grants
Alderson-Broaddus College, $20,000, Dr. David Aylmer
Concord University, $20,000, Dr. Joseph Allen
Glenville State College, $19,800, Dr. David O’Dell
West Virginia Wesleyan College, $19,721, Dr. Sherie Edenborn
West Virginia Wesleyan College, $19,958, Dr. Albert Popson

Innovation Grants
WVU Institute of Technology, $34,974, Dr. Hasan El-Rifai
West Virginia Wesleyan College, $39,754, Dr. Kim Bjorgo-Thorne

International Innovation Grant
Marshall University, $39,945, Dr. Eric Blough

Summer/Semester Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) Stipends
Marshall University, $69,000, Dr. John Maher
West Liberty State College, $34,000, Dr. Melinda Kreisberg
West Virginia University, $75,000, Dr. Keith Garbutt
WVU Institute of Technology, $25,000, Dr. Stephen Brown
West Virginia Wesleyan College, $16,600, Dr. Jeanne Sullivan

WV-INBRE Pilot Grants
Bethany College, $5,000, Dr. Daniel Phillips
Bluefield State College, $15,000, Dr. Tesfaye Belay
Concord University, $10,000, Dr. David Chambers
Concord University, $15,000, Dr. Darrell Crick
University of Charleston, $10,000, Dr. Nina Koldzic-Zivanovic
University of Charleston, $10,000, Dr. Rebecca Myers
University of Charleston, $10,000, Dr. Dean Reardon
West Virginia Wesleyan College, $5,000, Dr. Luke Huggins

Undergraduate Research Day to be held Jan. 31

The fifth Undergraduate Research Day at the West Virginia State Capitol will be held on Thursday, Jan. 31. The annual event, which is intended to highlight research projects conducted by college and university undergraduate students from around the state, will feature displays in the Upper Rotunda and outside the House and Senate chambers from 8:45 a.m. to noon.

Governor Joe Manchin III will present research grant awards to faculty from 11 institutions at a ceremony at 12:30 p.m. in the Governor's Reception Room.

Undergraduate Research Day events are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Ginny Painter.

Sponsors of the Undergraduate Research Day events include the West Virginia Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (WVEPSCoR), the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR), the NASA West Virginia Space Grant Consortium and the West Virginia IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence.

NSF to Host Regional Grants Conference in April 2008

The University of Rhode Island will host a National Science Foundation (NSF) Regional Grants Conference on April 7-8, 2008, in Providence, R.I. Optional FastLane/Grants.gov sessions will be held on April 6.

The conference is important for new faculty, researchers and administrators who want to gain insight into a wide range of current issues at NSF, including the state of current funding; new and current policies and procedures; and pertinent administrative issues. Program officers representing each NSF directorate will be on hand to provide up-to-date information about specific funding opportunities and to answer questions.

Highlights will include:

New programs and initiatives
Future directions and strategies for national science policy
Proposal preparation
NSF's merit review process
Cross-disciplinary and special interest programs
Conflict of interest policies
Breakout sessions by discipline
FastLane/Grants.gov workshops

For information about conference registration and lodging, please visit the conference website.

Questions about conference registration should be directed to nsf_regional@nsf.gov or (703) 465-5736.

For additional information regarding program content, contact the Policy Office, Division of Institution and Award Support, at policy@nsf.gov or (703) 292-8243.