URI_Research_Magazine_2010-2011_Melissa-McCarthy

multi- and interdisciplinary research

$20 Million Grant Reveals Small State Rich in Brain Power

Jennifer Specker

In her career as a professor and researcher at the University of Rhode Island (URI) Graduate School of Oceanography, Jennifer Specker has studied such topics as the early development of flounder and how to anesthetize fish so they can be transported safely, a question of significant economic importance to the aquaculture and seafood industries. But these days, at the request of the university’s Vice President for Research and Economic Development, Peter Alfonso, Specker has taken on a new administrative role: She is serving as the associate project director of the new $20 million Rhode Island National Science Foundation (NSF) EPSCoR Cooperative Agreement that was awarded to URI in 2010 to promote research at nine institutions of higher education in the state. EPSCoR stands for Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research. Congress has authorized seven federal departments and agencies to fund these programs to assist states that have historically received a small proportion of federal R&D funding. At first, Rhode Island wasn’t eligible for these programs, but U.S. Senator Jack Reed helped to correct that omission, enabling Rhode Island to receive its first NSF EPSCoR grant in 2006. The new 2010 five-year $20 million Rhode Island NSF EPSCoR grant is the largest single grant award in URI’s history. Alfonso, the project director, points to the projects funded by this grant as an ultimate example of multi- and interdisciplinary collaborations across the state. It will enhance research infrastructure throughout the state, making Rhode Island more competitive in life science research and development. The five-year grant will also provide training and jobs for hundreds of students, lab technicians and others, with one of its goals insuring equal opportunities in science education for all Rhode

Island students. Persuaded that the Rhode Island NSF EPSCoR project is vital to the state’s economic growth, which is in turn dependent on workforce development, the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation is matching the $20 million grant with $4 million over five years. Christine Smith, executive director of Rhode Island’s Science and Technology Advisory Council, works closely with Rhode Island NSF EPSCoR to insure that its goals conform to those planned by the state. Indeed, in addition to the amount of the NSF grant, the fact that it brings together nine colleges and universities involved in collaborative, interdisciplinary research and research training makes it particularly noteworthy. URI is leading the grant, working with a network that includes Brown University, Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), Bryant University, the Community College of Rhode Island, Providence College, Rhode Island College, Roger Williams University and Salve Regina University. The original 2006 grant helped to establish three shared research facilities: the genomics and marine life science centers located at URI and the proteomics center at Brown University. It was also used to establish the Rhode Island EPSCoR Academy, which is dedicated to enhancing science education for students and teachers throughout the state, thereby promoting Rhode Island’s workforce development. In addition to creating the EPSCoR Academy and shared research facilities, the federal funds have been used to complete the Marine Life Science Center at URI’s Narragansett Bay Campus, where investigators are researching the effects of environmental change on an array of organisms. According to Specker, the first Rhode Island NSF EPSCoR grant created a platform to launch the work envisioned

The University of Rhode Island 10