UConn-Storrs Centers and Institutes

The Storrs campus has approximately seventy active centers and institutes spanning the disciplinary spectrum from arts to engineering. Some of the research centers associated with the Office of the Vice Provost for Research and Graduate Education at UConn are:

Biotechnology/Bioservices Center: The University of Connecticut Biotechnology Center was established by the State as a Center of Excellence in 1986, and in 2003 was reorganized as the Biotechnology/Bioservices Center (BBC). The BBC is a multidisciplinary center under the administrative direction of Dr. Philip I. Marcus, Interim Director and Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology, with a mission to facilitate research productivity in the biological sciences and related disciplines. This mission is accomplished by providing specialized services and expertise through a number of core facilities. Facilities services are offered on a fee-for-service basis and provide equipment and technology otherwise prohibitively expensive for individual research laboratories. The dedicated specialized core facilities are supervised by faculty experts and operated by facility scientists who provide consultation and access to state-of-the-art equipment, reagents, and technologies. BBC facilities include: Analytical Ultracentrifugation, Animal Cell Culture, Bioinformatics, DNA Biotechnology, Fermentation and Bioprocessing, Flow Cytometry and Confocal Microscopy, Mass Spectroscopy, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Plant Biotechnology, Technical Services, and Transgenic Animal. Value of equipment under the aegis of the BBC approximates $5,119,000. The core facilities service virtually all departments on campus.

Booth Engineering Center for Advanced Technology: (BECAT) In 2002 Booth Research Center (BRC) merged with Advanced Technology Institute (ATI) to become Booth Engineering Center for Advanced Technology (BECAT.) The center was established in 1981 in response to the growing need for a centralized computing research and development facility within the School of Engineering. Named after its founder, Professor Taylor L. Booth, the research center provides the physical and intellectual environment necessary for the conduct of computer and communications oriented research in order to meet the Information Technology challenges of the future. BECAT provides expertise and services to such areas as high-performance computing and communications with applications to a wide variety of disciplines. The center provides opportunities for interdisciplinary research and educational programs among faculty and students, strengthens the capabilities of individuals and groups in the pursuit of government and industrial projects, and maintains an environment for research, development and continuing education that is responsive to the changing needs of society. The main BECAT facility is located on Level A of the Homer Babbidge Library, with approximately 14,650 square feet of laboratory and office space. In addition, there are several BECAT affiliated laboratories at other campus locations. The Center is under the direction of Dr. Sanguthevar Rajasekaran, Professor of Computer Science & Engineering. BECAT houses shared equipment including two SGI Altix supercomputers and a cluster of PCs. In FY 2005 thirty one BECAT faculty affiliates generated $4.5 million in research expenditures.

Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering: The Center is a catalyst for advancing basic and applied environmental sciences and engineering at the regional, national and international levels. The Center was established in 1987 and is directed by Michael R. Willig (Director) and John Clausen (Deputy Director). As a center of excellence, CESE is the focal point for multidisciplinary and synthetic research in environmental sciences and engineering at the University. Its primary mission is to advance interdisciplinary research, education and outreach in environmental science, engineering, policy, and sustainability. CESE includes affiliated faculty in three Colleges, and provides support for post-doctoral fellows and graduate students. The infrastructure at CESE is multifaceted, including a Business Office, Analytical Laboratories, and a staff of research scientists, managers, and technicians. The Analytical Laboratories hold certifications from Connecticut, New York, and the National Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Conference (NELAC). The Laboratories maintain state-of-the-art instrumentation that provides a wide range of analytical capabilities (nutrients, metals, and VOCs) for samples from water, tissue, soil, and air, and conduct field sampling for environmental projects.

Center for Health, Intervention, and Prevention: The Center for Health, Intervention, and Prevention (CHIP) is a multidisciplinary research center dedicated to the study of the dynamics of health risk behavior and processes of health behavioral change in individuals and targeted at-risk populations. Since its founding, CHIP researchers have launched major new health behavior change initiatives at the University of Connecticut, including new work in the areas of HIV prevention, medical adherence, diabetes management, cancer prevention, nutrition, pharmacology, substance abuse, health information technology, and other health domains. In the past year CHIP's work has become increasingly international in scope. CHIP investigtors now have projects planned, or underway, in South Africa, China, Russia, Vietnam, Thailand, Romania, and Nepal. CHIP serves as nexus for investigators at the University of Connecticut and other institutions as a means to stimulate collaborative partnerships for the development of major research initiatives in health behavior change. CHIP has created a multidisciplinary network of affiliate investigators at the University of Connecticut with expertise in health behavior change and intervention that spans several University of Connecticut campuses and represents nearly all Schools and Colleges within the UConn system. The network enables CHIP to assemble teams of investigators able to respond within short time frames to large-scale research funding opportunities as they arise. CHIP is headed by Professor Jeffrey D. Fisher, Ph.D. of the Department of Psychology, Social Psychology Division, at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, Connecticut.

Center for Public Health and Health Policy: The Center for Public Health and Health Policy, established in the Spring of 2004, is designed to enable collaboration across University campuses and to encourage partnerships with regional and state programs, particularly the Department of Public Health. The Center will integrate and consolidate the resources across University campuses, provide key additional resources, and establish doctoral training programs that support initiatives designed to expand outreach opportunities in selected areas of public health. The Center will also expand University partnerships with the State Department of Public Health and local health agencies throughout Connecticut to enhance public health practice and support workforce development.

Center for Regenerative Biology: The Center for Regenerative Biology (CRB) is a new initiative of the University of Connecticut that reports to the Office of the Vice Provost for Research and Graduate Education. Over the last several years, the University of Connecticut has generated a world reputation in the area of animal cloning and related reproductive bio-technologies. Animal cloning and its many ramifications such as stem cells and cell/tissue regeneration offer many unprecedented research and business opportunities in agriculture and bio-medicine. In January 2001 Professor X. Jerry Yang made a proposal to Chancellor John Petersen to found a center of excellence at UCONN in the area of regenerative biology and medicine. The ultimate objective of this new center is to investigate areas of basic science that might lead to the therapeutic production of new cell types, tissues or organs as potential replacements for diseased tissues commonly found in disorders such as diabetes, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy and many cancers.

Center for Survey Research and Analysis: UConn's Center for Survey Research and Analysis (CSRA) is a non-partisan, non-profit organization dedicated to the analysis of public opinion. CSRA is administered by Dr. Kenneth Dautrich, Associate Professor of Political Science, and has been conducting surveys since 1979 and is nationally and internationally recognized as a leader in the field of public opinion polling. The scope of CSRA projects range from national studies of public opinion to local community-based surveys. CSRA is dedicated to forming partnerships with clients and project staff work directly with clients to create effective research designs and collection methods for achieving clients' specific goals. The Center commands access to state-of-the-art polling equipment, such as telephone banks and computers.

Connecticut Sea Grant College Program: Located on UConn's Avery Point Campus and directed by Interim Director Sylvain De Guise, Associate Professor of Pathobiology, the Sea Grant Program is part of a national network of 30 such programs based at flagship universities in the country's coastal and Great Lakes states. The program's mission is to foster the conservation and wise use of our nation's marine and coastal resources through research, outreach, and education. Implemented as a partnership between UConn and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce, the program awards grants for marine research, provides marine extension services, and carries out a range of educational activities.

Institute of Materials Science: The mandate of the Institute of Materials Science (IMS), established in 1965 by the Connecticut General Assembly, is to maintain an outstanding advanced materials research center, provide superior graduate research education in the interdisciplinary fields of materials science and engineering at the University of Connecticut, and provide materials-related technical outreach to Connecticut's industries. The Institute, directed by Dr. Harris L. Marcus, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, operates and maintains extensive state-of-the-art instrumentation including a wide range of laboratories. Over 100 faculty members from twenty different departments including the UConn Health Center are affiliated with IMS, contributing to the Institute's interdisciplinary research programs. The primary disciplines represented are chemistry, physics, chemical engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, polymer science, pharmacy, molecular and cell biology, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, biomaterials, and biosciences. IMS supports over 100 graduate students in three primary fields of study, Materials Science and Engineering, Polymer Science and Materials Science. In addition, graduate students in affiliated departments use IMS facilities to perform materials-related research. Many undergraduate students operate in the IMS laboratories. The Institute also houses the IMS Associates Program, which assists Connecticut industries in their research and development efforts. The Associates Program provides many benefits for member companies, including short courses or other special training, access to facilities and faculty at UConn, and other resources that can assist in materials-related problem solving for industry. In FY04 IMS faculty affiliates garnered $7.8 million in sponsored program research support from state, federal and industrial sources.

Marine Sciences and Technology Center (MSTC): The Marine Sciences and Technology Center and the Department of Marine Sciences, both housed in a state-of-the-art facility at the Avery Point Campus, were joined into one administrative unit in 2001. Dr. Ann Bucklin, Professor of Marine Sciences, currently serves as Director of MSTC. The mission of MSTC is to foster and to provide infrastructure support for interdisciplinary research in the marine environment, carried out at the University of Connecticut. MSTC operates a fleet of small vessels and the 76-foot RV Connecticut, a seawater facility with environmental controls, walk-in environmental chambers and clean rooms, and electronics shop, and a fully equipped dive program that offers SCUBA certification. Faculty affiliated with MSTC generated approximately $ 3.3 million in extramural research funds during FY 02.

National Undersea Research Center: Established in 1983, UConn's NURC supports research in the North Atlantic and Great Lakes regions, and is one of six undersea centers established by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA's) Undersea Research Program (NURP) to provide the research community access to advanced underwater technologies. NURC is under the administrative direction of Ivar Babb, UConn Research Associate. NURC's mission is to advance understanding of the oceans and Great Lakes by providing researchers access to specialized underwater technologies, developing new ways to work underwater and promoting the underwater world. NURC supports research based upon a merit-based review process and provides underwater technologies and funding to conduct in situ research in its regions. NURC is part of the marine science enterprise at the University of Connecticut and partners with regional and state management agencies. NURC also contributes to the education and outreach mission of the University.

Roper Center for Public Opinion Research: Established in 1947, the Roper Center is the leading educational center in the field of public opinion. The Center exists to encourage the intelligent, responsible, and imaginative use of public opinion in addressing problems faced by Americans and citizens of other nations. Dr. David Weakliem, Professor of Sociology, serves as interim director for the Center. The Center maintains the world's largest archive of public opinion survey data, housing there are several thousand polls in the archives, taken in the US and many foreign countries over the last 70 years. Through programs of education, presentation, and advanced research, the Roper Center strives to improve the practice of survey research and the use of survey data in the U.S. and abroad. The Center’s core mission is preserving and providing broad access to the polling information it secures; training UConn faculty and students in survey research and public opinion; maintaining and enlarging a computer-based library of survey research and opinion data, promoting cross-national research on political and social issues, and promoting the informed use of survey data and public opinion information.