Dear colleagues,

I would like to take this month’s newsletter to provide an update on the College finances. We have created a new webpage with college financial reports going back to 2019. At that webpage, you will find the financial report that I have just submitted to the Provost for this year. In this year’s report (PDF), you will find a description of how the College develops its internal budget for the departments, an overview of FY21’s revenues and expenses, our most recent year-end fund balances, a summary of the current finances of the college, and a look at the future.

First, the good news. Our Ecampus revenue has soared, averaging 27% growth per year for the past three years, and is projected to grow faster than the rest of campus for at least a few more years. Our research funding grew last year to $24.4M, an increase of 55% over the three-year average, led by the Physics Frontiers Center but with contributions from across the College. We continue to set aside significant funds for research support and development – this year more than $1M – to build on that momentum. Since the summer of 2017, we have raised $42.8M in philanthropy and the College endowment has grown to $48.5M, including OSU’s first endowment for scholarships for students with disabilities. The number of Science majors now exceeds 4,000 students for the first time ever. As a College, we have built a fund balance of more than $9M over the past few years (though much of that is committed to startups and other needs), and we entered FY22 with all departments in the black, the first time in at least five years. We are hiring a significant number of faculty this year. And we will have new and renovated buildings on the horizon!

Now the more challenging news. The part of our core education and general fund budget that does not come from Ecampus – essentially that part associated with on-campus instruction – continues to decline significantly. This is due to two factors. First, our on-campus student credit hours (SCH) continue a decline that began in 2015. This is due primarily to students – both our majors and others – arriving to OSU with more credits. Other factors include some majors requiring few science student credit hours (SCH) and a relatively flat on-campus enrollment. Second, the part of OSU’s budget that generates Science’s non-Ecampus budget has been shrinking. This is called the Academic Productivity Pool net of Ecampus, and it has shrunk by 24% over four years, and is projected to shrink again next year. There are two reasons for this shrinkage: OSU’s Corvallis-based net tuition revenue has declined 11.2% over the same time period, and campus “taxes” on the Academic Productivity Pool have increased (some of which benefits the College, such as funds set aside for building renovation and repair).

To mitigate these challenges, we need to work both externally and internally. Externally, we need to support OSU’s work to grow our on-campus enrollment and net tuition revenue. I will continue to voice my concerns over campus taxes on the Academic Productivity Pool to the Provost and Budget Office, and they are committed to looking at solutions. Internally, we need to look at new offerings in areas that will attract new students both to campus and Ecampus, continue to grow our Ecampus revenue in other ways, grow our extramural funding, grow our philanthropy, and continue to be frugal where possible.

Lastly, on a different note, I hope that you join me and the rest of the College at Monday’s Future of Science Thought Leadership Forum. I am looking forward to hearing from some of the most senior scientists in the country who are specifically attending to speak to our College. Register here.

Roy Haggerty
Dean, College of Science

Research Highlights

Biochemist Maca Franco and collaborators discovered a new class of drugs for people suffering from neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Lou Gehrig’s disease. Their findings were published recently in Redox Biology.

Biochemist Adrian (Fritz) Gombart and researchers from the University of Nebraska Medical Center have made a key advance against dangerous and costly surgical site infections, the type of infection most commonly associated with health care procedures. They found that adding an enzyme inhibitor to nanofiber-based wound dressings loaded with vitamin D resulted in cells better producing an antimicrobial peptide.

Biologists Felipe Barreto, Sarah Gravem and Ph.D. candidate Andrea Burton found that healthy-looking ochre sea stars have minimal genetic difference from those displaying symptoms of sea star wasting syndrome. Without genes promoting resistance to wasting syndrome, the iconic Pacific Ocean sea star’s ability to persist through future outbreaks is in greater doubt. Their findings were published in Molecular Ecology.

Research Funding

Congratulations to David Hendrix, associate professor of biochemistry and biophysics, on his recent award of $638K from the United States Department of Agriculture! Collaborating with OSU faculty in pharmacy and agriculture, his project will use genomic and bioinformatic tools to increase the viability of hop and hemp products for medical and commercial uses around the world.

Biochemist Maria Franco received $76K from the National Institutes of Health for a project entitled “Redox Signaling in Neurofibromatosis.”

Research Proposal Support

You can find funding opportunities on ECOS. To access a suite of tools and resources available to faculty, visit the College of Science Proposal Support webpage.

Congratulations to the award winners of the 2022 Combined College of Science Awards Ceremony. These awards celebrate the best of our College: distinguished contributions to science, commitment to service and inclusive excellence, and deep dedication to the success of our students. The accomplishments of this year’s nominees and awardees bring tremendous credit not only to the College of Science, but also to Oregon State University.

• Olaf Boedtker Award for Excellence in Academic Advising – Rachel Palmer, Integrative Biology
• Loyd F. Carter Award for Outstanding and Inspirational Teaching (Undergraduate) –  Kyriakos Stylianou, Chemistry
• Loyd F. Carter Award for Outstanding and Inspirational Teaching (Graduate) –  James Molyneux, Statistics
• Frederick H. Horne Award for Sustained Excellence in Teaching Science – Elizabeth Gire, Physics
• Milton Harris Award for Basic Research in Science – Davide Lazzati, Physics
• F.A. Gilfillan Award for Distinguished Scholarship – Heidi Schellman, Physics
• Dean’s Early Career Achievement Award – David Hendrix, Biochemistry and Biophysics
• Inclusive Excellence Award – Marilyn Mackiewicz, Chemistry
• Distinguished Service Award – David Maddison, Integrative Biology
• Champion of Science Dean’s Award – Malgo Peszynska, Mathematics
• Gladys Valley Award of Exemplary Administration Support – Cindy Kent, Integrative Biology and Tony Reyna, Biochemistry and Biophysics
• Outstanding Faculty Research Assistant Award – Stephanie Bollmann, Integrative Biology

Read more about the research and administration awardees and the teaching and advising awardees.

NANOGrav, led by astrophysicist Xavier Siemens, was featured in Wonderful Engineering for their recent findings that indicate a possible breakthrough in the detection of gravitational waves (GWs) by examining “red noise” created by there merger of two supermassive black holes. While Siemens said the red noise itself is not yet a detection of GWs, “it’s reassuring.”

Marine ecologist Francis Chan’s work to identify where and when hypoxia events would happen along the Pacific Northwest coast was featured in an article by OSU alumna Julia Rosen in Hakai Magazine.

STEM jobs are growing two times faster than all other occupations. The Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) interviewed mathematician Vrushali Bokil in an online SIAM Careers Fair to discuss careers in mathematics, data science and other STEM fields.

YInMn blue and chemist Mas Subramanian were featured in a national TV program in Italy on the color blue. The producers hope to produce an international version in the near future that will be featured across Europe and likely picked up by PBS in the United States.

University Distinguished Professor Emeritus Andy Blaustein and Barbara Han, disease ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecology and Ph.D. alumna of the Department of Integrative Biology, wrote an article published in The New York Times entitled “If you haven’t thought about coronavirus in animals, you should,” published on February 22.

From advances in clean energy technologies to unlocking new solutions in human health, the College of Science is at the heart of a flourishing ecosystem of entrepreneurship and high-impact innovation. Our faculty are constantly discovering new ways to help make a healthier, more sustainable planet. Read more about some of the most recent innovations.

Honors chemistry senior Alice Lulich graduates this year as a published researcher. She has worked in May Nyman’s lab since her first year at Oregon State, studying metal organic frameworks. She hopes to earn her Ph.D. in the future and work as a researcher for a national lab, contributing to sustainable energy solutions.

For those that have been unable to participate in the College of Science’s strategic planning engagement sessions, we still want to hear from you! Fill out this anonymous survey to provide your thoughts on how the College is doing and what you think we should focus on over the next five years. The survey is open to all College of Science community members, even if you have already provided input at one or more engagement sessions.

The College of Science’s new Diversity, Equity, Access and Inclusion site has launched! This page provides facts about the college, resources for faculty, staff and students, as well as the latest on the College’s progress toward the goals listed in our diversity action plan.

Booster reminder

All faculty and staff are required to upload proof of vaccination and obtain COVID-19 booster shots as part of OSU’s vaccination program.

Future of Science – Thought Leadership Forum

Monday, March 7, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. (various sessions)
Memorial Union Ballroom and virtual via Zoom

As part of our our mission to advance science and prepare global leaders, The Future of Science – Thought Leadership Forum will engage College of Science faculty, staff and students to help plan for the next four years. Keynote speakers will share their visions for the future of science and will challenge COS to engage in this new future through outreach, research and education. RSVP today!

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International Women’s Day: Change Makers in Science talk and panel discussion

Tuesday, March 8, 12:30 – 3 p.m. (lunch included for COS members)
Memorial Union Ballroom and virtual via Zoom

Join us for International Women’s Day for a talk from eminent physicist Laura Greene, chief scientist and the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory. Following the keynote speech, there will be a panel discussion on negotiation skills aimed at beginning scientists featuring College of Science faculty members Sally Hacker, Marilyn Mackiewicz, Afua Nyarko and Rebecca Vega-Thurber and moderated by Vrushali Bokil. RSVP today!

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Jerri Bartholomew art exhibition: Abstracted – Where science meets art and music

Opening Reception: Wednesday, March 9, 4 – 5:30 p.m.
The Little Gallery, Kidder Hall Room 210

Microbiology Jerri Bartholomew’s art will be featured in The Little Gallery in Kidder Hall starting March 7 through April 8. Join for the opening reception on March 9. In Jerri Bartholomew’s upcoming at exhibit, actual scientific articles are abstracted to varying degrees and in different ways – using paper collage, glass and music.