New England College Enters STEM Research Collaboration as Part of $8 Million National Science Foundation Grant

The College will partner with 16 other institutions of higher education to strengthen STEM research in New Hampshire and use subaward to fund student research.

Higher education STEM teams from New Hampshire, Maine and South Dakota have been awarded $8 million each from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Collaborations for Optimizing Research Ecosystems Research Infrastructure Improvement Program (E-CORE RII). This funding will advance each State’s research and development competitiveness and promote scientific progress nationwide.

In the Granite State, this grant will fund New Hampshire Long-term Investment to Fuel Transformative research (NH-LIFT). This four-year cooperative agreement establishes the collaboration among New England College, lead institution UNH and other institutions around the State. NH-LIFT will empower students to do research that aligns with their interests, allow academic and industry researchers to broaden their pursuits through external funding and accessible research infrastructure, and enable the State to develop and retain a skilled workforce.

“This NSF-funded NH-LIFT grant will significantly contribute to developing research infrastructure in New Hampshire,” stated Dr. James Newcomb, Professor of Biology and Health Science and Co-Director of the Center for Undergraduate Science Research at New England College and Co-Principal Investigator on NH-LIFT. “New England College looks forward to working with other participating institutions around the State and providing increased opportunities for our students to engage in transformative scientific research.”

Dr. James Newcomb, Professor of Biology and Health Science and Co-Director of the Center for Undergraduate Science Research at New England College and Co-Principal Investigator on NH-LIFT, works alongside a student in the College’s Summer Undergraduate Research Program.

New England College’s faculty and student researchers will partner with Antioch University New England, Colby-Sawyer College, Community College System of New Hampshire, Dartmouth College, Franklin Pierce University, Keene State College, Plymouth State University, Rivier University, and Saint Anselm College over the next four years. As a subaward recipient, New England College will receive $40,000 each year of the grant. Most of these funds will support the College’s Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) and allow the College to hire more student researchers and fund non-biomedical research.

SURP students work alongside NEC’s faculty, gain experience that makes that more competitive if they apply for other research opportunities and can combine their SURP experiences with their required research theses. SURP students have gone on to become lab technicians, chiropractors, doctors of physical therapy, medical doctors, veterinarians, nurses and PhDs.

“At New England College, we have a saying: ‘Live what you learn.’ This simple phrase sums up our approach to higher education, which is to provide our students with opportunities to put their learning into action. This NSF grant does just that,” explained Dr. Wayne F. Lesperance Jr., President of New England College. “NEC is extremely fortunate to have Dr. Newcomb leading our research program and guiding our student researchers. I look forward to seeing all they accomplish over the next four years of NH-LIFT.”

Interviews are available by request.
CONTACT:
Josh McElveen
603-540-7031
josh@mcelveenstrategies.com

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