STEM Café: How Do Federal Grants Drive Innovation?

Speakers: Dara Little, Associate Vice President for Research, NIU Division of Research and Innovation Partnerships

Nicholas Pohlman, Ph.D., Professor of Mechanical Engineering

Federal research grants are in the news lately, caught up in public battles over ideology and academic freedom. But what exactly are these federal grants? What kinds of research do they fund? And how do they help drive innovation?

Find out at the next NIU STEM Café with Dara Little, NIU Associate Vice President for Research in the Division of Research and Innovation Partnerships and Dr. Nick Pohlman, Professor of Mechanical Engineering. Little has over 25 years of experience working with federal research grants and is also the president of one of the largest research management organizations in the world, the Society of Research Administrators International. Pohlman's research contributed to landmark findings at the U.S. Department of Energy's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory that made headlines worldwide.

The speakers will take the audience behind the scenes of the grant application process, exploring eligibility criteria, proposal writing, budget planning and all the rules and regulations that govern federal grants. They'll also share examples of some of the federally funded research projects taking place at NIU and their real world impacts.

“I think people will be surprised to learn how much work goes into competing for a federal research grant,” Little says. “It often takes investigators years to secure their first federal grant. We’d like to help people understand why these grants are so important and so competitive, as well as all the work that goes on behind the scenes to make sure we’re good stewards of grant funds.”