State and federal legislators and administrators have joined University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign leaders on multiple occasions since the Illinois Fermentation and Agriculture Biomanufacturing Tech Hub (iFAB) was announced as a finalist — and then a recipient — of $51 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA). 

Yesterday, Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski and State Senator Paul Faraci joined College of ACES Dean Germán Bollero and other dignitaries at the Integrated Bioprocessing Research Laboratory (IBRL) for a press conference to celebrate the investment cementing iFAB’s future as the heart of biomanufacturing in the U.S. But none of the pomp and circumstance would have been possible without the diligent behind-the-scenes work of the ACES Office of Research (OR).

Beth Conerty, iFAB regional innovation officer and associate director of business development at IBRL, said the iFAB Tech Hub funding request was quite complicated, with seven component projects and overarching Hub material that all required separate submission to the EDA. In addition, the application portal was new and challenging, rife with potential glitches that could waylay their submission. 

“The ACES OR stepped in to assist in budget organization, SPA interactions, and ensuring all of the required documentation was prepared, signed, and uploaded to the submission portal. The OR also helped manage the technical details and emailed directly with the Tech Hubs program to navigate any issues,” Conerty said. “The level of detail and timeliness from the OR staff ensured that we submitted the highest quality application ahead of the EDA's deadline.” 

The success of iFAB is just one example of how the OR contributes to the ACES research enterprise on a daily basis. The team, led by new Associate Dean for Research Rodney Johnson, nimbly manages land-grant capacity funds; facilitates extramural and internal seed funding for interdisciplinary research projects; provides opportunities for faculty and student education; serves as a hub for data management; and oversees centers and facilities on campus and across the state. 

Johnson, who led the Department of Animal Sciences as head for six years and director of the Division of Nutritional Sciences for nine, took the helm in June, replacing retired interim associate dean Alex Winter-Nelson. 

“I see this role as a great opportunity to support faculty and staff in ACES and, in doing so, grow and support a dynamic research portfolio to address state, national, and global issues related to food and agriculture, families and communities, energy, and the environment,” Johnson said. “One of my goals is to understand if there are barriers faculty perceive to submitting grants for extramural funding. I want to remove those barriers and make grant submission a seamless process.” 

Most of the team Johnson inherited is relatively new, but they’ve found their rhythm. 

“The team we've assembled in the last couple of years has come into its own by continually learning, improving, and optimizing the service we provide to the college,” said Amanda Lombardo, director of strategic research planning. “We have kept things running during the transition, but with Rod coming in as the new associate dean for research, we are excited to build on the foundation we have been laying.”

That foundation has led to some major wins in the last year, not least of which was the designation of iFAB as an EDA Tech Hub, qualifying the project to receive millions from the federal government in addition to $680 million from industrial partners. The OR also helped secure several multimillion-dollar grants from the USDA, the National Institutes of Health, and other federal sources for projects focused on farmer mental health, infant nutrition, and more. 

In addition to supporting proposals for extramural funding, the OR — specifically Assistant Director of Research Administration Chris Lugardo — manages funds earmarked for land grant institutions in the form of USDA capacity funds. Some of these monies are funneled into the competitive ACES Future Interdisciplinary Research Explorations (FIRE) award program, which provides seed funding for interdisciplinary teams approaching problems through creativity and collaboration. 

Interdisciplinarity is not restricted to FIRE grants in the ACES OR. Far from it. 

“For large and complex proposals, we'll sometimes realize there's an expertise missing from the team. So we will help identify and bring in folks from across the college, campus, or external organizations,” Lombardo said. “We can help with that matchmaking.” 

Angela McDiarmid, business and financial coordinator, added, “It’s very exciting to see the diversity of projects coming through our office because of that interdisciplinary focus. It makes the potential impacts of those projects so much greater.”

For Johnson’s part, he plans to prioritize interdisciplinarity, too.

“Through connections with other associate deans for research in the North-Central region, we have opportunities to help shape federal priorities as they relate to research,” he said. “Having a seat at the table and being able to influence federal priorities in a way that's going to be beneficial to our faculty and our college is really exciting. Interdisciplinary research is a big piece of that.”

Although research funding is a major focus of the OR, it’s not all they do. 

For years, Director of Research Education Programming Barb Godlew and Associate Director of Information Technology Josh Henry have been running the ACES Research Academy, a program for new faculty in ACES, Applied Health Sciences, Veterinary Medicine, and the School of Social Work to learn the ins and outs of grant writing, publications, time management, leadership, and more. To date, the program has helped more than 180 early-career faculty navigate the road to tenure and enhance their abilities as principal investigators.

In addition to his role with the ACES Research Academy, Henry facilitates the development of digital tools and resources to streamline the research development process. For example, he helped create the Grantworthy Description Database and proposal assistance and cost share intake forms. He also creates strategies for data management and curation for data generated from sponsored research.

When the OR hired Associate Director of STEM Program Implementation Britt Carlson in 2023, it demonstrated a renewed commitment to diversity. Carlson is developing new pathways into STEM primarily for underrepresented undergraduates coming into ACES and fostering connections with minority-serving institutions for meaningful and mutually beneficial research collaborations. 

The OR also oversees the Division of Nutritional Sciences, the Plant Care Facility, other ACES buildings and facilities, and research safety.

“I believe there is an opportunity to further highlight the diverse services provided by the Office of Research and how significantly these contributions advance our mission within the broader ACES community,” Bollero said. “Truly, the ACES OR is a leader across campus and beyond. We’re incredibly fortunate that these talented professionals are here to facilitate research innovation across the college.”