Funding

In 2006, responding to the federal restrictions on the creation of new stem cell lines for research, the Connecticut General Assembly passed legislation that was signed into law by Gov. M. Jodi Rell, authorizing the use of public funds to finance human stem cell research. The law commits $100 million over a period from 2007 to 2017 to support this highly promising area of bioscience research.

In taking this remarkable and forward-thinking action, Connecticut joined California, New Jersey, Maryland and Illinois as the only states to have passed legislation, by 2006, to use public funds for embryonic stem cell research. Connecticut, however, has set a new standard by becoming the first state to actually implement a structured, ongoing research grant program of this type.

In order to ensure that the funds are distributed fairly and also to maximize the likelihood of productive return on the investment, the law also established a competitive process for awarding research grants. An impartial Stem Cell Research Advisory Committee, chaired by the Connecticut Commissioner of Public Health, was appointed to distribute the funds based on the scientific, legal and ethical integrity of the research being done.

The first allocation of funds - totaling nearly $20 million - was disbursed on November 21, 2006. Fifteen of the 21 research proposals funded were awarded to UConn faculty. Collectively, they amounted to nearly $12 million, or about 60 percent of the total disbursal for 2007. The funding supports the work of 23 investigators at the Storrs and UConn Health Center campuses, who are engaged in a wide range of research projects designed to unlock the secrets of stem cells and turn them into effective treatments for a host of diseases and disorders as quickly as possible.

 “ These awards recognize the expertise of University of Connecticut faculty in a field of great promise to medical research and great potential to contribute to our state’s economic growth. Connecticut’s decision to support embryonic stem cell research has been highly significant nationally, and we are pleased that UConn is a fully engaged partner. UConn is playing a leadership role not only in the scientific aspects of stem cell research, as reflected by these awards, but in dealing with the ethical and philosophical issues, as well. We look forward to continuing active engagement in this field in the years to come.”  

- Philip E. Austin, President,
University of Connecticut