It has been said that the cure for AIDS/HIV, COVID-19, Alzheimer’s, heart disease, cancer, and other ailments will come from a college graduate. The data for these discoveries will come from our collective research. The next energy source, such as a new battery or system to capture energy from the Earth may even come from a student today — soon to graduate, at a place as simple as HSU. That is what makes academic research so important.

At a university, there are many sources of funding; and each carries with it a direct set of guidelines. Certainly, there are the two obvious sources of funding: state funding as well as tuition and fees. There are also other alternative sources, some that come from auxiliaries or other enterprises, such as the bookstore. There is another, one that we closely follow as a campus and use as a strength to acknowledge our faculty and staff. I am referring to a university’s external grant and research funding.

At Humboldt, it’s no exaggeration to say we punch above our weight when it comes to research. We have been focused on growing our overall level of grant support for many years, led by extraordinary faculty and staff across campus. Their expertise and hard work, with the support of our team in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs Foundation, has meant expanded hands-on research opportunities for our students.

Simply put, undergraduate students working with faculty on grant activities is not only an incredible opportunity for faculty, but one for students. Both benefit greatly from the opportunity — as does society. For faculty, it strengthens their academic profile (often referred to as scholarship) which is then used later by other scholars for their research. It is also for individual advancement in stature, rank, and pay. For students, it is most importantly a learned skill and now an attribute that could be used in their future work. There is little question it is also a major resume item that enables students to potentially work in one’s respective field.

HSU is a teaching-focused institution. HSU is also very proud of our “learning by doing” philosophy, often referred to as “hands-on learning.” Fully 95% of HSU’s graduates have some hands-on learning experiences during their time as a student. This makes them more marketable and ready for the workforce. This set of opportunities is a major component of being a polytechnic. It is a foundation, or area of emphasis, that as a campus we already have and take great pride in.

Undergraduate research is what we call a “high impact practice.” It has benefits for our students like increased likelihood to complete college, increased chance of going to graduate school, improved analytic skills, improved public speaking skills. It has been shown to be especially good for retention and opening up career paths for traditionally underrepresented students. Among institutions of our type, we are  No. 8 in the country and No. 1 in the CSU in graduating STEM majors who go on to complete their doctorate degree.

The last few years have seen especially dramatic growth in research funding at Humboldt. Last year, there were 301 new grant proposals, requesting $84 million, which is an all-time record. There were 183 new awards totaling $30 million. The campus has 520 current active projects with a total award value of $96 million. Humboldt State ranks sixth in our annual average of awards among the 23 campuses in the California State University system. The other five campuses, for general information, are San Diego, San Jose, Fresno, San Francisco, and San Bernardino.

And this just in: During the first six months of the current fiscal year, we have received more than 100 new awards totaling $26.2 million.

What makes this especially unique is that we do not have an abundance of graduate students. While HSU does have graduate programs and is trying to grow them, our efforts are primarily with undergraduate students.

And all of this has been with the polytechnic designation still pending. Imagine the greater opportunities with the designation, lab enhancements, a new science building, and new research facilities.

Funding for research can be found in many places. At HSU, there are many managed by perennial grant-funding stars including the Schatz Energy Research Center, our Small Business Development Center that serves 36 counties, and the California Center for Rural Policy. There are others, large and small, managed by different centers or by individual faculty members.

• Our stem cell research program, led by professor Amy Sprowles, recently secured $3.6 million for student internships. It will fund a diverse group of 10 undergraduate and graduate students each year for the next five years.

• A $250,000 grant from the USDA will fund ¡Échale Ganas!, a program to support hands-on learning for Latino/a students in science, technology, engineering, and math. It is led by professors Matt Johnson and Rafael Cuevas-Uribe in collaboration with Fernando Paz of our El Centro Académico Cultural.

• A $950,000 grant will support 60 paid students and hundreds of students total to research colonizing microbes on carnivorous plants. The project is led by professor Catalina Cuellar-Gempeler.

There are many, many more.

As we look ahead, Humboldt will build upon our research strengths and will increase our ability to support the work of researchers, while offering amazing experiences to students. The knowledge gained will help other scholars and lead to societal improvements.

Be well.

Dr. Tom Jackson Jr. is the president of Humboldt State University.