Iowa State received less external funding this year compared to last year. However, Vice President of Research and Economic Development Sharron Quisenberry said the decrease will not negatively affect Iowa State. 

“Our programs our very solid, so [the decrease] is not going to impact negatively,” she said.  

External funding is the money the university gets in order to sponsor projects. This money comes from grants, agreements and gifts. The largest portion of the total amount of external funding goes to research.

For the 2011 fiscal year, Iowa State received $342.3 million in external funding. In 2010, Iowa State received $388.2 million.

The university receives the majority of its sponsorship from federal agencies. In the past year, a federal stimulus act provided a large amount of money. In the process of external funding, there are also private corporations that fund the university.

“One of the reasons we’re successful [in gaining sponsorships] is because we’re competitive with our peers and other people,” said Warren Madden, vice president of business and finance at Iowa State. “Projects undertaken at Iowa State are appropriate and will be relevant to what their interests are.”

Many sponsors are interested in Iowa State’s work on biodegradable fuels and animal diseases. They are interested in supporting these areas because their money could mean a major breakthrough.

Sponsors donate to Iowa State because it’s a smart investment, Madden said.

“We have high-quality people and successful graduates and undergraduates that work on these projects,” said Madden. “We’re a very competitive institution at receiving sponsored support.

In the past couple years, Iowa State has exceeded $300 million in external funding. This represents only a quarter of Iowa State’s total funding.

“Getting over $300 million in the past couple years has just been fantastic,” said Quisenberry. 

Iowa State’s external funding hit a record high last year. Quisenberry strongly believes that high was reached because of the quality of the programs Iowa State offers.

“It’s because of the quality of projects that were submitted by the faculty — they’re very competitive, and everyone goes after them,” said Quisenberry. “And it was the quality of proposals that were submitted by our faculty.”

External funding is essential to Iowa State. If the university were unable to obtain the money it does from external funding, it wouldn’t be able to do the research it does. This would have its impact on students because it wouldn’t build the next generation, so to speak, of students that will make efforts to solve problems in the United States.

One reason posited for this year’s apparent decrease in external funding is the economic stimulus package that was passed last year. The stimulus pumped large amounts of money into certain projects. It caused a one-time influx of funds for those projects, which won’t recur in the current fiscal year. 

Another posited reason is the government’s attempt to balance the budget, which may necesitate certain cuts.

Quisenberry is confident that the small decrease in external funding will have little to no effect on its programs and relationships with other corporations. She said that Iowa State’s programs are still strong and growing every year.

“We’re going to come back next year and have similar if not increased funding,” she said.