SB 1, sponsored by Senate President Robert Stivers, creates a fund to back research consortiums - collaborations between the state’s public universities allowing them to combine resources and expertise. The bill stipulates that funds would be divided into five accounts, one for each research consortium. To be eligible for the funds, consortiums would submit applications which would be evaluated and selected by the Council on Postsecondary Education. Chosen projects would then receive funding for five years to kickstart their research and seek larger grants.
Stivers says his bill enables universities to utilize their strongest programs collaboratively.
“We have Eastern, who has one of the few accredited FAA programs for a flight school. Could you see them and Morehead maybe working together on aerospace and aviation in some research project that they would bring?" mused Stivers. "Or, as I spoke with Dr. Capilouto, maybe there’s another collaborative between Northern and UK with Alzheimer’s research - one of the number one leading areas where people are looking to put research dollars in.”
The bill also mandates the selection of the Kentucky Spinal Cord and Head Injury Research Trust, a partnership between UK and UofL, as one of the initial five research consortiums.