Strength in Numbers: A Record Year for Grants at St. John's

With more than $12.6 million in research and academic grants awarded to faculty and administrators, fiscal year 2013 was an especially rewarding one for St. John’s University.

“We are very proud of the faculty, administrators and students who worked so diligently to secure these grants,” said Robert A. Mangione, Ed.D., R.Ph., Provost. “Their great success clearly demonstrates our University’s strong commitment to conducting important, cutting-edge research. We are also very grateful for the efforts of the outstanding team in the Office of Grants and Sponsored Research (OGSR) for the many ways that they assist our researchers with their grant-related activities.”

In all, 89 competitive grants were awarded to University faculty and administrators, with a 17 percent increase in dollars awarded over fiscal year 2012.

Faculty and administrators from St. John’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences were awarded 29 grants worth more than $3.6 million, including two highly competitive grants from the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) prestigious Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA). Ales Vancura, Ph.D., secured $377,003 in AREA grant funding for his research, “Intermediary Metabolism, Histone Acetylation, and Transcriptional Regulation.” AREA also awarded $495,000 to Ivana Vancurova, Ph.D., for her research, “Interleukin-8 Regulation by Proteasome and Nuclear IkB in Cancer and Inflammation.”

Dianella Howarth, Ph.D., secured a grant from NSF’s Division of Environmental Biology Core Program worth $225,000 for her proposed research, “Phylogenetics and Floral Symmetry Development of the Core Goodeniaceae.” Grants secured by St. John’s College represent a 70 percent increase in funds over last year.

The School of Education secured the biggest percentage of grants for the University, accounting for 45.3 percent of all grant activity.

"FY2013 proved to be a banner year for sponsored research activity at St. John’s University,” said Jared Littman, Director of the Office of Grants and Sponsored Research. “Our most sincere congratulations go out to our esteemed researchers and grant seekers. Their success in securing grant funding complements the University’s commitment to academic excellence and the pursuit of wisdom."

Littman added that the University submitted 128 grant proposals in FY2013 – another record for the University.

Home page photo (from l. to r.): Chanel Orkopoulos, Grants Assistant; Adrianna Berlingerio, Administrative Assistant; Monisha Makhijani, Grants Specialist; Jared Littman, Director; Clare M. Byrne, Grants Analyst; Marie Nitopi, Ed.D., IRB Coordinator and Women in Science Coordinator; Christopher Egan, Assistant Director