What is the Howard Hughes Medical Institute?
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute is a "medical research organization," not a foundation. It carries out biomedical research at 72 sites nationwide with a staff that includes leading research scientists in genetics, immunology, cell biology, neuroscience, and structural biology. In addition, through its complementary grants program, HHMI has awarded more than $700 million over the past decade to enhance science education at all levels within the United States and support the research of outstanding researchers abroad. The Institute's endowment currently exceeds $11 billion, with an annual operating budget of more than $500 million.
Is the Institute primarily a grants-making institution?
No, it's not. The Institute spends more than three-quarters of its budget on the research of its own scientists and their staffs. It spends less than a quarter of its budget on its grants program. However, this still amounts to more than $90 million in grants annually, focused primarily on science education. This is the largest privately supported education initiative in U.S. history.
What are the Institute's main grants programs?
The largest program, the one under which $91.1 million is being awarded, is helping colleges and universities to strengthen the quality of college-level education in the biological sciences nationwide. A second program provides fellowships for outstanding graduate students, medical students, and physicians to pursue research training in the biological sciences. A third initiative is helping science museums, medical schools, and other institutions to undertake innovative science education programs for youngsters. In addition to these undergraduate, graduate, and precollege programs, HHMI has awarded more than $100 million in recent years to support research activities at medical schools and selected institutions nationwide. Its Holiday Lectures on Science broadcast and other public education efforts reach large audiences. Internationally, HHMI awards grants to support the research of outstanding biomedical scientists in selected countries outside the United States.
What does HHMI hope to accomplish with its grants in the United States?
As a medical research organization, HHMI seeks to help train the next generation of biomedical scientists. It also works to enhance the understanding of science among young Americans who must compete in a high-tech workplace and cope with a host of social and political issues that involve biology. A special concern is to bring about greater participation in science among those who traditionally have not been well represented. In addition, through many of its grants, HHMI is helping to strengthen the nation's biomedical research enterprise.
Is this $91.1 million series of grants something new?
It's not new, but it is the largest set of awards ever made through HHMI's grants programs. This is the eighth round of grants in the undergraduate program since 1988.
Do all of the grants go to research universities?
This year's grants are going to research and other doctorate-granting institutions, which have been the focus of three previous rounds of grants under the program. The other four rounds of grants have targeted public and private liberal arts colleges, master's (comprehensive) and other institutions, including historically black campuses and women's colleges.
How large are the grants and when do the universities receive the money?
The grant awards range from $1.2 million to $2.2 million. HHMI will make annual payments during the four years of the grants.
How will the awardees spend the $91.1 million?
They will allocate the money for four broad purposes:
•Student research and broadening access to science
•Faculty development
•Curriculum, equipment, and laboratory development
•Precollege and outreach
How were the awardees selected?
Proposals were invited from 205 research and doctorate-granting universities. The 191 proposals received were reviewed by a panel of distinguished scientists and educators to provide guidance to HHMI's staff, which submitted a recommended list of awards to the Institute's' Trustees for their approval.
Do the awardees from the different schools ever get together?
Yes. Every year the Institute hosts a conference at which program directors from several dozen colleges and universities get together with other HHMI grantees to share experiences and trade ideas. The sessions are spirited, bringing together many of the country's most innovative and dedicated professors of biology and related disciplines. This year's meeting is October 21-23, 1998, at the HHMI conference center in Chevy Chase. Its theme is "The Accelerated Science Curriculum." Reporters are welcome to attend.
For more information on HHMI's Undergraduate Biological Sciences Education Program, visit its Web site at http://www.hhmi.org/grants/undergraduate/ and HHMI's online publication Beyond Bio 101: The Transformation of Undergraduate Biology Education at http://www.hhmi.org/BeyondBio101/.
Reporters should contact HHMI's David Jarmul at phone: 301/215-8857; fax: 301/215-8867; email: jarmuld@hhmi.org. Other inquiries should be directed to the program staff at 301/215-8872.
