Gov. Beshear Announces EPSCOR Funding

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Oct. 27, 2008) – Gov. Steve Beshear today announced two major federal grants totaling over $14 million to fund high-tech research at Kentucky universities and efforts to increase Advanced Placement education in high schools.

           

Gov. Beshear announced the grants – from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Education (USDoE) – on the University of Kentucky campus Monday morning.

 

“These grants further my administration’s goal of focusing on quality education for our children,” said Gov. Beshear. “We must broaden opportunities for students to stretch their minds and provide the necessary tools for them to learn, conduct research and develop innovative concepts that will, ultimately, improve Kentucky’s ability to compete in a 21st century economy.”  

 

The NSF grant, which totals $12.5 million over five years, will fund university research in three key technological areas: biotechnology, nanotechnology and cyber-technologies.

 

Several universities will be involved in the research efforts. The major recipients are the University of Kentucky and University of Louisville. Other institutions involved include Kentucky State University, Northern Kentucky University, Eastern Kentucky University, Centre College, Berea College and Morehead State University.

 

The five-year award made through Kentucky’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) is expected to be matched with an additional $5 million from the commonwealth over the life of the grant.         

 

Kentucky joined the EPSCoR Program, an initiative of the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation (KSTC), in 1986 and today is one of its most successful members. Kentucky’s program supports 178 active research projects with budgets totaling over $139 million. In terms of federal academic research and development dollars secured, Kentucky ranks in the top five out of the 25 states eligible to compete for funding and is recognized for more than doubling its share of federal research funds since the program’s inception.

 

The additional federal grant was received from the U.S. Department of Education Advanced Placement Incentive Program, which awarded $2.1 million to the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE).

 

This grant will help AdvanceKentucky expand the number of Kentucky high schools implementing a proven program to dramatically increase students enrolled in rigorous math, science and English Advanced Placement (AP) courses and achieve college readiness by success on these AP exams. This grant includes $200,000 to KDE in the first year to help expand an instructional priority for AP courses in Chinese, designated as a critical foreign language.

 

AdvanceKentucky is an initiative of the KSTC and is Kentucky’s affiliate of the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) under an existing $13.2 million six-year award that began in fall 2007. NSMI is the source of private matching funds for this federal grant.

 

In addition to grants from NMSI and KDE/USDoE, other funders for AdvanceKentucky include the Appalachian Regional Commission, KSTC and cost-sharing from participating schools and other partners. Early start-up was provided by KDE, the Council on Postsecondary Education and the Partnership for Successful Schools.