The 海角直播 Research Foundation has established an institute to assist in securing large collaborative research projects and enhance the university鈥檚 interdisciplinary work and growing partnerships.
The UCF Applied Research Institute will help the university coordinate multidisciplinary responses to major projects and strengthen research across campus.
By doing so, university leaders say the new institute will help bridge the technology 鈥渧alley of death鈥� 鈥� the chasm that often occurs between basic research and innovation. For example, large government projects are fundamentally complex and require multiple types of technology from multiple disciplines.
鈥淎s UCF鈥檚 research program matures and we identify areas of distinctive impact and unique strengths, this new applied research institute will play a critical role in helping our faculty pursue interdisciplinary projects focused on tackling today鈥檚 biggest scientific and societal challenges,鈥� said UCF Provost and Executive Vice President Dale Whittaker.
The institute will create a centralized location where faculty members can team together to apply for grants, and where students can find resources, training and research opportunities in areas where funding is available.
Randall Shumaker, director of UCF鈥檚 Institute for Simulation and Training, has been appointed interim director for the new Applied Research Institute.
鈥淎s a former senior civilian leader for the U.S. Navy, I see the immense value of providing a university-applied research organization to support industry and national security needs,鈥� Shumaker said. 鈥淲e are already in discussions with partners that we will work with to transition UCF鈥檚 basic research into new concepts and applications.鈥�
Many other large universities have developed applied research institutes to pursue government contracts and large research efforts, such as the 海角直播 of Illinois, Johns Hopkins 海角直播 and Georgia Institute of Technology. These institutes are largely federally funded, employ primarily 12-month research faculty and pursue contracts versus grants.
UCF鈥檚 institute will initially focus on areas that align with Florida鈥檚 economic development needs, such as photonics, modeling and simulation, engineering and biomedicine.聽
Shumaker said he is looking for a permanent location for the institute, which will operate out of his office at IST for the interim period. The institute will support itself with revenue from new projects.