The College of Basic Sciences is “easily on pace” toward setting a record in grant money received in a year with a total of $7.6 million already in the bank for 2009, said Dean Kevin Carman. The college received 18 separate grants from the Federal Stimulus bill for 21 faculty members, provided through the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. All six departments of the college — biological sciences, chemistry, physics and astronomy, computer science, geology and mathematics — and the Museum of Natural Science, which is included in the college, received funding. “The grants span the full spectrum of our research,” Carman said. Carman said the total already received is less than what was actually secured, as many of the funds are multi-year grants.The largest grant this year was $1.8 million — half of the total to be received — for faculty in the chemistry and agriculture departments and the School of Coast and Environment to study the effects of combustion by-products.”In addition to supporting outstanding research, it is important to note that these federal funds directly stimulate the local and state economy by providing jobs and local businesses,” Carman said.Carman noted several more proposals are still under consideration, and his faculty plans to file more before the year’s end.- – – -Contact Katie Kennedy at [email protected]