EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — UTEP will be hiring nearly 70 new Ph.Ds through a new research program that is using state “seed funding” and is designed to be self-perpetuating, UTEP announced Friday, Aug. 23.
The Regents’ Research Excellence Program will allow UTEP to recruit 69 new researchers to “advance discovery in multiple fields,” the university announced.
UTEP President Heather Wilson announced the annual $12 million research allocation at the University’s Convocation Ceremony.
In year one of the program, UTEP has begun hiring 69 research-focused faculty and staff positions, including 22 tenured faculty, 29 research faculty, and 18 postdoctoral researchers.
Areas of research focus include: advanced manufacturing; cancer therapeutics; artificial intelligence; intelligence and national security; quantum computing; water scarcity; rehabilitation engineering; and Hispanic student success.
“UTEP has never had this kind of support from the State of Texas for research,” Wilson said. “It’s a game changer and I am grateful to the Board of Regents and the State of Texas for their trust in us as one of the leading universities in the state. We will use these funds wisely and build on this.”
The new program provides funding for the University to hire senior, fully tenured research faculty who are prominent in their fields, UTEP said.
In addition to the tenured faculty and postdocs, these funds will almost double the number of research faculty at UTEP, the university said.
“Research faculty are expected to build externally funded research portfolios over two to five years to support themselves. As they support themselves, state funds freed up are then used to hire more research faculty, who then build their own research support. In that way, these funds become perennial support for research growth,” UTEP said in its news release.
“This funding is going to propel UTEP forward for years to come,” Wilson said. “As the new hires earn grants to support their salaries and research, we will be able to take the state seed funding and hire more research faculty.”
The additional funding comes after yet another year of record research expenditures — $145.7 million — in FY23, the university said.
“We often measure research in terms of dollars spent, but I am even more proud of the impact of the work our faculty and researchers are having,” Wilson said.
In other UTEP news, the master plan was approved by the Board of Regents earlier this week and will guide UTEP’s building plan through 2034. The plan includes a number of “major changes” intended to improve student life on campus, make better use of existing space and address deferred maintenance in campus buildings, the university said.
“Next to our people, our facilities are the most important assets that we have,” Wilson said. “It’s important to plan for future expansion so the University can continue to thrive.”
The following major renovations are included in the 10-year plan: a new residence for first-year students; the replacement of El Paso Natural Gas Conference Center with a student success building; and, if students vote in favor of it, the demolishing and rebuilding of Union West to better accommodate student life, recreation, and organizations and rehabilitation of Union East. The plan also calls for additional parking.
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