Within the past 6 months, the number of grants that were submitted for an award have tripled, and it is expected that the number of grant submissions and awards will triple again in the next few months. This represents an outstanding effort by the Faculty and Staff who contributed to these endeavors. The reality for research funding in the future is that new sources must be sought not only to supplement existing funding but also to allow new areas of research to be explored. It can no longer be assumed that critical funding for research will only come from government sources. To attract new sources, investigations must be versatile dynamics that are constantly invigorated by innovation, good science, and dedicated investigators.
Clinical practice is no longer able to generate sufficient funds to support laboratory research.
Philanthropy is an alternative source, but it can lack the focus necessary to be of benefit to science. We will need to look farther afield than the government sector and current foundations that have somewhat erratically supported investigational efforts if we are to continue to support our commitment to essential research. New collaborative efforts are needed, which are mutually beneficial to our fields of endeavor, in order to seek more private funding from nontraditional sources. These collaborations will not only serve to strengthen future proposals and applications for funding but they will also allow each collaborator to go beyond the point that they would have had they worked alone. The ultimate result will be greater scientific efforts and superior education of our young scientists.