According to an annual report from the Office of the Vice President of Research, research spending at the University for the 2001 fiscal year reached an all-time high of $592 million, showing a $42 million increase from the previous fiscal year.

The University spent $98 million of its own funds for research last year, which was a mere 16.6 percent of the University"s total research spending.

Interim University President B. Joseph White said that a strong research enterprise is vital to our society.

"The breadth and depth of research at the University of Michigan, and its impact on our mission to educate leaders and innovators demonstrate our commitment to the state, the nation and the world," White said in a written statement.

Despite economic recession, prospects for research grants in the 2002 fiscal year are likely to surpass last year"s total of $641 million. During the first half of the current fiscal year, the report states that research awards totaled $442 million, which is $179 million more than the amount received during the corresponding first half of fiscal year 2001.

"Research expenditures represent a critical measure of the University"s ability to carry out its mission of education, intellectual discovery, addressing the needs of society and contributing to economic growth," said Vice President for Research Fawwaz Ulaby who presented the report to the Board of Regents Jan. 17.

In terms of research expenditures from external sources, the Medical School leads the University with $207 million in the 2001 fiscal year. The College of Engineering followed second, expending $98 million for research use.

The report attributes the University"s success in obtaining research grants to its commitment to interdisciplinary studies and its high level of responsiveness to federal initiatives.

Although the majority of research costs revolve around programs in the life sciences, the largest percent growth in expenditures have been in social science programs, according to the report. More recently developed research programs in the School of Public Health and School of Education have experienced expenditure increases by 16.5 percent and 30.5 percent respectively since 1996. Expenditure growth in Medical School research programs increased by 9.2 percent.

Eric Dey, associate dean for research in the School of Education, said that the increase in social science research can be attributed to a greater interest in multidisciplinary studies.

"I think the expansion of research expenditures reflects two major developments," Dey said. "First, the School (of Education"s) research agenda has expanded to more consistently include projects with a national scope, in addition to working directly with local, state and regional partners on educational improvement. Second, the faculty of the school has been actively developing multidisciplinary partnerships with other campus units."

Dey added that School of Education researchers often partner with researchers from the College of Engineering, School of Information and the School of Public Health.

Nancy Bartlett, an archivist at the Bentley Historical Library, shares the same view in the effects of cross-disciplinary research.

"Approaches in research have become increasingly diverse, so there"s been more interest in using our services," Bartlett said, citing that researchers from a variety of liberal arts and life science institutions use the archives to suit their research purposes.

The library, which maintains the University"s archives, is one of several of the University"s cultural organizations part of the Public Goods Council. The Public Goods Council was recently awarded an $860,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to support postdoctoral fellowships focusing on the use of the University"s research collections.