USM Attracts Half Billion in Grants
and Contracts
Increase Brings Five-Year Total to
More than $2 Billion
The University System of Maryland’s
13 institutions attracted $500 million in grants and
contracts in Fiscal Year 1999, an increase of 6.8 percent
over the previous year. A report on the amount was
presented during the September 10 meeting of the USM
Board of Regents’ Committee on Advancement.
“I am pleased to report that the investment by the
citizens of Maryland in its University System continues
to return large dividends,” said USM Chancellor
Donald N. Langenberg. “This sizeable increase, to
the half billion dollar mark, is a direct consequence of
the outstanding faculty we have been able to attract, the
infrastructure improvements we have been able to afford,
and the competitive, entrepreneurial spirit that can be
found on each of our campuses.”
Each of the 13 USM institutions - 11 degree-granting, and
two devoted to research - attracted grants and contracts
from federal, state, and private sources. While there are
fluctuations from year to year, the System has shown a
steady overall increase during the past decade of seven
to 10 percent annually. The Fiscal Year 1990 total of
$210 million has now grown to $499 million in Fiscal Year
1999, an overall annual increase of 150 percent. USM
institutions have attracted more than $2 billion in
grants and contracts during the past five fiscal years.
Yonathan Zohar, director and professor at the University
of Maryland Biotechnology Institute’s Center of
Marine Biotechnology, said, "The University System's
help and commitment have been critical to our success in
obtaining over $5 million from several federal agencies
for basic and applied research on the Pfiesteria problem
in Maryland's waters. We appreciate their support and
expertise."
Highlights of the Fiscal Year 1999 report include:
- Federal funding agencies supplied nearly
two-thirds of the grants and contracts (64
percent), followed by state and local governments
(19 percent), and private sources (17 percent).
- Towson University had a modest one-year increase
in Fiscal Year ’99; over the past five years
it has grown from $2.3 million to $10.7 million,
an increase of 364 percent.
- The University of Maryland, College Park has
increased its grants and contracts by 30 percent
in the past two years, but showed a one-year drop
of one percent from Fiscal Year 1998 to ’99.
- The University of Maryland Center for
Environmental Sciences had a one-year increase of
54.5 percent, to $17.1 million.
- Coppin State College had a one-year increase of
more than $1 million, for a 129 percent jump over
the prior year’s total. This is accounted
for by a large grant from the Department of
Education.
- The University of Maryland Biotechnology
Institute increased grants and contracts by over
$3 million, or nearly 20 percent.
- The University of Maryland, Baltimore boosted
their funding by 13.5 percent for a total of $165
million.
- The University of Baltimore had a one-year
increase of 34 percent to a total of $5.8
million.
- The University of Maryland, Baltimore County
boosted their grants and contracts total to $51.2
million, a one-year increase of 7.5 percent.
- The University of Maryland Eastern Shore boosted
their total by nearly nine percent to a total of
$10.9 million.
- The leading federal sources of funding for grants
and contracts were HHS-NIH ($118 million), NASA
($51 million), Defense ($36 million), and NSF
($35 million).
- Federal agencies showing large percentage
increases in Fiscal Year 1999 included the Agency
for International Development (158 percent), Navy
(25 percent), EPA (50 percent) and NASA (25
percent).
- Grants and contracts with the State of Maryland
accounted for $86 million of the total, an
increase of 23 percent.
Contact:
Chris Hart
Phone: 301/445-2739
Pager: 301/507-2316
E-mail: chart@usmh.usmd.edu
