Dedicated to exploring new and innovative energy solutions, San Antonio Water System (SAWS) announced today it has joined the Energy Research Alliance of San Antonio, established in June by The University of Texas at San Antonio, Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) and CPS Energy. The four organizations will collaborate to define and implement new and alternative strategies for the development of energy technology.
United in a common interest to explore new and innovative energy solutions, The University of Texas at San Antonio, Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) and CPS Energy have signed a memorandum of understanding to form the Energy Research Alliance of San Antonio.
Although UTSA, SwRI and CPS Energy have a long-standing tradition of collaboration in a variety of areas, the memo is the first formal agreement on the topic of energy among the three organizations. Specifically, it calls for the trio to:
“The energy issues we face are exceedingly complex, and their solutions require a broad spectrum of research skills,” said Robert Gracy, UTSA vice president for research. “At UTSA, we are particularly pleased with the partnership because it brings together the full range of research capabilities of all three organizations. This synergy will undoubtedly provide energy solutions that each individual component could not accomplish by working on its own.”
“We welcome the opportunity for Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) to join with UTSA and CPS Energy in this important area,” said Danny Deffenbaugh, vice president of the Mechanical Engineering Division at SwRI. “This collaborative effort will address one of the most critical challenges we face today: providing energy to support our way of life, while minimizing climate change,” Deffenbaugh said.
Cris Eugster, executive vice president and chief sustainability officer of CPS Energy said, “San Antonio has the opportunity to be a leader in clean energy technologies and their practical applications, and the Energy Research Alliance of San ANtonio will be a key catalyst in this endeavor.”
The five-year agreement was formally executed by James Casey, director of the Office of Contracts and Industrial Agreements at UTSA; Walter Downing, executive vice president of SwRI; and CPS Energy’s Eugster.
No additional funding is required to begin this initiative.
(via UTSA Today)
Want to learn about information assurance and security? You might want to consider The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). The university has received the elite National Center of Academic Excellence in Research (CAE-R) designation from the National Security Administration (NSA) and the Department of Homeland Security for five years through 2014.
“This designation is not a college designation, but a designation for the entire university,” said Glen Dietrich, chair of the Information Assurance Department in UTSA’s College of Business. “It takes into account faculty, programs, research and funding from the College of Business, the College of Engineering, the College of Sciences and our Center for Infrastructure Assurance and Security.”
The CAE and CAE-R programs are jointly sponsored by the NSA and DHS to reduce vulernabipity in the U.S. information infrastructure by promoting higher education and research in information assurance and by supporting a growing number of professionals with information assurance expertise. Specifically, the CAE-R program in information assurance aims to increase the understanding of robust technologies, policies and practices that will enable the U.S. to effectively prevent or respond to a catastrophic cyber event.
UTSA, an emerging research institution with a strong focus in security, first applied for CAE designation in 2001. It received that designation in 2002, making it the only CAE-designated university in Texas. Since then, six other universities and colleges in Texas have joined suit, earning their CAE designations, and one other, UT Dallas, has received the prestigious CAE-R designation.
Considerations for the CAE-R designation include:
(by: Christi Fish)
The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) today jointly announced they have joined the Government-University-Industry Research Roundtable (GUIRR), an elite sub-unit of the National Academies , the nation’s advisers in science, engineering and medicine.
GUIRR provides a platform for leaders in science and technology from academia, government and business to discuss and take action on national and international scientific matters. This includes such topics as university-industry partnerships, scientific training in academia, the relationship between academia, government and business, and the effects of globalization on U.S. research. Through roundtable meetings and working groups, GUIRR’s university and industry partners provide guidance and suggest possible solutions to streamline policies and procedures unique to the government-university-industry interface. This counsel, often documented in advisory reports, is distributed to key national leaders, including the President’s staff.
“UTSA aspires to become a top research university, and our membership in GUIRR demonstrates this commitment,” said Robert Gracy, vice president for research at UTSA. “UTSA’s partnership with Southwest Research Institute to join GUIRR will not only strengthen the relationship between our respective institutions, it will allow our institutions to contribute to the development of national policies that will facilitate science and technology research collaborations in the future.”
“As a contract research and development organization serving multiple industries and government clients, SwRI strives to apply scientific discoveries and new technologies in innovative ways,” said Walter Downing, executive vice president of Southwest Research Institute. “Teaming with UTSA as GUIRR university-industry partners gives us a unique opportunity to participate in, learn from and contribute to the leading research collaborations in the nation.”
James Casey, director of UTSA’s Office of Contracts and Industrial Agreements, was instrumental in encouraging both UTSA and SwRI to join GUIRR. Casey, an active participant in GUIRR and a co-chair of its International Research Collaboration working group notes, “Both UTSA and Southwest Research Institute are very deserving of membership in GUIRR. Both have a clear commitment to advancing society through research, and both will serve as active participants in GUIRR’s collaborative process.”
GUIRR’s member roster reads like a who’s who of research, offering both UTSA and SwRI access to top research universities, industry leaders and federal officials. UTSA and SwRI are GUIRR’s 17th university-industry pair. They join The University of Texas at Austin, previously GUIRR’s only member from Texas, as well as:
To learn more about GUIRR, please visit GUIRR’s Web site.
The $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), allocates billions of dollars to the NIH, NSF, NIST, DOE and state governments for new construction, renovation, and modernization of the nation’s research facilities. These funds will be distributed to research institutions across the country over the next 18 months.
Funding proposals will be due in the coming months. The Research Facilities 2009 conference, on April 20-21 in San Antonio, Texas provides a unique opportunity to gain critical knowledge of the components needed for a successful project - research program focus, renovation and construction strategies, sustainability features, green technologies, core facility features, equipment, and instrumentation.
The Research Facilities 2009 conference is an annual gathering of the nation’s top research institutions - research program leaders, facility group leaders, capital planners, and project directors - who link up to benchmark plans and programs, monitor the successes of others, and shape actionable new research facility plans for their institutions.
The Research Facilities 2009 conference will feature speakers from some of the world’s most renowned research institutions: Battelle Memorial Research Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The National Institutes of Health, The University of Texas at San Antonio, Wyeth Research, Yale University, McGill University, DOE-National Renewable Energy Lab, and many more. Attendees will take away the most up-to-date renovation, new construction, and modernization strategies for research facilities; construction cost forecasts; LEED project strategies & carbon-neutral research facility strategies; new plans for alternative energy research labs; leading-edge reports on core facilities, equipment, and instrumentation; and research facility productivity features.
Conference attendees will also have an opportunity to tour The Texas Research Park - Barshop Institute for Longevity & Aging and The Institute for Biotechnology (IBT); The Greehey Children’s Cancer Research Institute; The Southwest Research Institute (SwRI); and The University of Texas at San Antonio Biotechnology, Sciences and Engineering Buildings I & II.
For more information about the Research Facilities 2009 conference on April 20-21 in San Antonio, Texas, go to http://www.TradelineInc.com/Research2009 .
(via PRWeb)
The Office of the Vice President of Research (VPR) is offering $242,000 to faculty to fund proposals that will establish new and innovative, collaborative and multidisciplinary research programs in one or more of the university’s five strategic areas of excellence: health, security, energy and the environment, human and social development, and sustainability. Proposals for UTSA’s 2010/2011 Collaborative Research Seed Grant Program (CRSGP) and Tenure-track Research Award Competition (TRAC) are due at 5 p.m. on March 16, 2009 in the Office of Assistant Vice President for Research (MS 4.03.55).
Faculty should note that all funds awarded through the CRSGP and TRAC programs must be used exclusively for research activities and may not be used for non-research or administrative costs. In addition, funding must be expended by August 31, 2010.
Collaborative Research Seed Grant Program (up to $110,000 available):
Two proposal categories:
Judging (105 total points):
Tenure-track Research Award Competition (six awards, $22,000 per award):
About the TRAC Program:
The TRAC program encourages UTSA’s junior faculty to pursue research in their areas of interest. Proposals must include a completed application, budget, five page narrative and the PI’s curriculum vitae.
Judging (100 total points):
CRSGP and TRAC funding decisions will be made during the spring semester. Funds for both programs will be distributed on September 1, 2009.
To learn more about UTSA’s 2010/2011 CRSGP and TRAC programs or to access each program’s application and budget forms, visit http://vpr.utsa.edu
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