Future economy revolves around research institutions

Whether in Washington, D.C., or Jefferson City, these are dynamic times for research and how it will steer America’s economy in the years ahead. As happens periodically in history, there is more to the issue than funding alone. The ethics and value-laden implications of research also are in question. Climate change, regenerative medicine and energy — many of the most looming questions of our day — hang in the balance as we debate from whom and how we’ll seek answers from research.

Though perhaps unintentional, the overall result has been a growing skepticism about the value of research. An unusually cold day doesn’t pass without grumbling overheard about global warming. In Missouri, one of the most unfortunate outcomes has been doubt about the life sciences. There has been no better unifying theme than the term “life sciences,” which has enjoyed bipartisan support and captured the hopes of urban and rural Missourians alike for nearly 20 years. Now is the time to reaffirm our goals. Four fundamental steps are necessary to keep momentum going for the University of Missouri and the state as key players in the new economy.

Step 1: We must raise awareness and create a greater understanding of the pivotal role of the university in the state’s future economy. The wage-earning potential of our future work force is directly tied to college degrees. The vast majority of the nation’s new ideas and basic research that fuels the economy start at the nation’s research universities.

Missouri’s future will depend on the strength of places such as the University of Missouri and Washington University, as well as the major nonprofit research centers such as the Danforth Plant Science Center and the Stowers Institute.

Step 2: We need to recognize the need to keep our research programs globally competitive. The ability to retain and recruit outstanding, world-class faculty is an absolute necessity. In turn, the faculty requires first-class equipment and facilities able to do cutting-edge research. The record-setting pace of research growth at the University of Missouri largely has been built on growing our market share of the federal grants.

As the growth of federal research funding has slowed, we need to maintain our market share. We also need to focus on increasing grants/contracts from industry, where we lag behind our peers. The benefits from industry funding can extend beyond the money alone — they can lead to establishing relationships that bring talent, spinoffs and community investment into the state.

Step 3: We must commit our research to results through technology transfer. Like most other major research universities across the country, technology transfer is taking on a more important role in response to the new economy. Reflecting back on the past 20 years, our goals from 1987 to 1999 were to minimize administrative costs and reduce risk to the university. From 1999 to 2006 the university sought blockbuster technologies, and did so with Zegerid, a heartburn drug invented by Dr. Jeff Phillips of the MU School of Medicine that has already returned more than $10 million to the university. Today, the university continues to focus on cost-effective administration, risk management and blockbuster technologies, while at the same time emphasizing a commitment to move as many technologies to market as possible. The university is focusing on deal flow between the institution and the private sector to maximize impact on the entrepreneurial activity necessary for success in the new economy.

Step 4: Deliberately develop new economy clusters and partnerships. Just as teaching and research require dedicated and unique facilities, so too does successful economic development. In addition to classrooms that maximize learning and laboratories that stimulate discovery, we aim to have incubators and research parks adjacent to each campus. These deepen the partnership between the university and the private sector and physically jump-start cluster development. Further, we need to earn the trust of angel investors, venture capital and business investments in university ideas and creativity. We have many across the state, and country, that have a keen interest and affinity for Missouri and we need to give them further ways to invest in our ideas and economy.

Healthy skepticism and thoughtful questions are always good. Let’s hope we can look back on the long debates and funding challenges of today and see how they made our effort better, smarter and stronger, as well as laid the groundwork for Missouri’s role in the new economy.