by John
A. Koropchak
Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Dean One of the greatest pleasures of serving as a university’s chief advocate for research is seeing research, scholarship, and creative work in the arts flourish on campus. Research grants awarded to SIUC totaled more than $28 million in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2002—a 10 percent increase over FY01. Grants for all types of activities, including training and public service, totaled more than $61 million, a 13 percent increase. That growth speaks to the quality and dedication of our faculty and students. The work they do, with or without grant support, to expand knowledge and human expression is important and diverse. In the sciences, for example, it’s hard to imagine two more disparate research areas than the evolution of land plants and the physics of carbon nanotubes. Yet both of these projects have implications for the environment and human health. Other work speaks to other human needs. For example, a new book by Elisabeth Reichert gives U.S. social workers and social work students a much more extensive grounding in the principles, history, and guiding documents of human rights than they have had previously. Poet Allison Joseph, whose fourth book has just come out, is gaining nationwide attention as a writer of rare insight into society, family, and self. Undergraduate Brenda McCollum is already starting to make a name for herself with her luminous watercolor paintings. And a documentary produced by graduate student James Saldana about Albanian refugees from Kosovo was named a finalist in the 2002 Angelus Awards Student Film Festival, which recognizes stellar films that explore the human condition. Those are just a few examples of the kaleidoscope of activities taking place outside the classroom at SIUC. Each issue of Perspectives seeks to give our readers a glimpse of that diversity. We hope you enjoy the view.
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