Clemson research tops $141 million

CLEMSON - Clemson University today announced external funding of university research projects for 2006-07 totaled $141.4 million, once again the highest in the university's history and moving closer to the goal of $150 million by 2008.

"This total of $141,366,747 reflects outstanding achievement by faculty and staff across the university," Clemson Vice President for Research and Economic Development Chris Przirembel said. "We are in excellent position to reach our goal in the coming year. Goals exist not just as benchmarks but for the quality they represent. Thus, the goal of $150 million is not just a number; it's a commitment to excellence and to the involvement of our outstanding researchers in solving the world's problems."

The College of Engineering and Science leads the university in sponsored research, but Przirembel said there is an increase in research activity - and thus in external funding for research - across all five colleges and other funded areas.

Clemson is focusing its research efforts in eight critical emphasis areas that match the university's strengths and South Carolina's economic activity. According to Przirembel, external funding in 2007 reflected the University's decision to focus on these strengths and foster research collaboration across the campus.

"It is evident from the funding these areas received that the various funding agencies understand and appreciate Clemson's strengths in these strategic areas. Only nine percent of the total external funding was not allocated to one of these emphasis areas," he said. "The majority of funding was allocated to five emphasis areas -- Advanced Materials, Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences, Sustainable Environment, Information and Communication Technology, and Automotive and Transportation Technology. Family and Community Living, General Education, and Leadership and Entrepreneurship received less funding, but these areas are of great importance to the University's mission, and we expect to see them grow as well.

"As a land-grant university, Clemson has always considered each of its missions of teaching, research and public service to be essential to the university's success and to the success of its graduates. As we see funded research grow, we can be assured that the research activity that Clemson faculty, staff and students perform is making a difference in the lives of many people," Przirembel said.  For example:

• In the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities, Dennis Bausman, faculty member in the department of construction science and management, is leading YouthBuild Upstate, a program funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and local partners that enables at-risk youth to complete their high school education while learning construction skills and, at the same time, engages them in community service projects such as Habitat for Humanity and other programs to benefit their community.

• In the College of Engineering and Science, bioengineering professor Xuejun Wen is using a grant from the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke to discover ways to repair spinal cord nerves and ease the disability and pain experienced by 200,000 Americans.

• In the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences, genetics and biochemistry faculty member William Marcotte is investigating how to produce synthetic spider silk that could be used to repair the human body, supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health. The team project involves researchers in various Clemson departments -- genetics, biochemistry, bioengineering and materials science. Marcotte's part is to investigate how to insert a spider's silk-making genes into plants. He considers tobacco a good candidate for carrying the spider genes, which may be good news for growers who could benefit from a new use for their crops.

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