CU sets new systemwide record with $1.7 billion in sponsored research funding and gifts

Faculty across the University of Colorado system this year attracted $1.7 billion in sponsored research funding and gifts supporting research, a new record total in CU history.

In achieving the collective record, each of the four CU campuses also attained new records for sponsored research funding and gifts supporting research.

The systemwide figure reached in the 2023-24 fiscal year is 7% higher than the previous year’s total. This marks the eighth consecutive year CU has topped the $1 billion mark.

The investment in research endeavors at CU’s four campuses powers life-changing discoveries across Colorado, the nation and the world.

“Our extraordinary faculty are changing life as we know it and creating new possibilities for our future. The importance of their research is reflected in part by the level of funding they continue to attract each year,” said CU President Todd Saliman. “This latest milestone speaks to the real-world impact of the discoveries and innovations the CU community is generating.”

The overall total is fueled by $1.5 billion in research awards, an 8% increase over the previous year. Most is awarded by federal agencies, which accounted for $942.8 million. Top federal sponsors of CU research include Health and Human Services (in particular, the National Institutes of Health), NASA, the Department of Commerce, the National Science Foundation and the Department of Defense.

Non-federal awards totaled $579.7 million. Gifts toward research via the CU Foundation totaled $180.8 million.

Following are the 2023-24 totals in sponsored research funding and gifts supporting research at each of the four CU campuses, as well as examples of the ways the university advances knowledge, inspires innovation, fosters creativity and improves the quality of life for Coloradans:

• University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus: $910 million. Last year, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded $62 million over a seven-year period to the Colorado Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CCTSI) to help advance groundbreaking discoveries that can directly impact patient care. These grants will fuel biomedical research and scientific training programs across the state, while empowering CU Anschutz to improve outcomes for patients facing long COVID, type II diabetes and a wide range of other diseases. Over the coming years, the CCTSI will leverage these funds to advance clinical and translational research, promote collaborative team science, and ensure our state is poised to respond to the public health emergencies of the future. In addition, the awards will support CCTSI’s ongoing work to address health inequities and disparities statewide.

• University of Colorado Boulder: $742.2 million. As a key university partner in the Colorado-Wyoming Climate Resilience Engine (CO-WY Engine), CU Boulder is enabling data analysis, monitoring technologies and predictive analytics to develop trustworthy decision support systems; mitigating environmental and economic degradation; and advancing climate solutions that result in regional community resiliency and economic vitality. The university is also contributing to the creation of new startup companies and playing a role in leadership and governance of the CO-WY Engine. The prestigious National Science Foundation award totals up to $160 million over 10 years and positions the CO-WY Engine at the forefront of the nation’s environmental and climate technology initiatives. The inclusion of the CO-WY Engine in this national effort highlights the region’s capacity to transform into a thriving hub of innovation, technology and economic growth.

• University of Colorado Denver: $31.7 million. Colorado has a tragic history of gun violence, particularly mass violence, which prompted the passage of several laws to address the problem. Among the laws passed was a 2020 “red flag law,” which authorized the use of civil protection orders called extreme risk protection orders (ERPOs). The National Institute of Justice awarded a $1.5 million dollar grant to Sheila Huss, Ph.D., assistant teaching professor of Criminal Justice, and her team to study the effectiveness of ERPOs at the macro and micro levels. The grant funds a five-year project that assesses whether ERPOs effectively prevent suicides, homicides and incidents of mass violence. Additionally, the project examines various aspects of the ERPO process for petitioners and respondents to determine what parts of the implementation are effective and where the barriers are.

• University of Colorado Colorado Springs: $19.3 million. Michele Okun, Ph.D., BioFrontiers research professor and director of the Sleep and Biobehavioral Health Research Laboratory, recently landed the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program Lifestyle and Behavioral Health Interventions Research Award. The award comes with a $3.8 million grant for the study “Improving Maternal Mental Health in Military-Affiliated Pregnant Women: Effectiveness of a Smart Bassinet,” a multi-institutional collaborative effort. Okun and the research team plan to investigate the effectiveness of smart bassinets in improving sleep patterns in infants, and, subsequently, the sleep and mental health of the birthing parent. Perinatal sleep health has been a focus of Okun’s for some time, and it’s been a longstanding goal of hers to secure funding for in-depth research into her specializations.

Sponsored research funding from federal, state, international and foundation entities targets specific projects to advance research in laboratories and in the field. Research funding also helps pay for research-related capital improvements, scientific equipment, travel and salaries for research and support staff and student assistantships. CU cannot divert this funding to non-research-related expenses.

A significant amount of sponsored research funding is directed to programs and researchers with unique expertise, such as biotechnology and aerospace, which stimulates industry.