Monthly Research Profile: May
New Nanotechnology Research Center at ND

Notre Dame will be the lead player in the consortium, which also includes Purdue University, the University of Illinois, Penn State University, the University of Michigan, Argonne National Laboratory, the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory.

Conventional microelectronic technology has relied on shrinking transistors to produce increasingly smaller, faster and cheaper devices ranging from cell phones and personal music devices to laptop computers. MIND's mission will be to explore and develop advanced devices, circuits and nanosystems with performance capabilities beyond current devices.

Source: News and Information

ND Working with Lilly Endowment to Prevent Brain Drain in Indiana

In 2003 the educational division of the Lilly Endowment wrestled with the brutal statistic that while Indiana universities produce post-secondary graduates at a rate higher than the national average, the retention of those individuals within the state after graduation was below the national average - known as the "brain drain".

In December 2003, Notre Dame's proposal was accepted and the university was awarded a four-year, $1 million grant, which became the Indiana Careers @ Notre Dame (INC@ND) program. Principal Investigators Lee Svete, Director of the Career Center and Chuck Crowell, Department of Psychology; Director of the Computer Applications Program envisioned that the funding would be used to:

- aid graduating students who begin their full-time career in Indiana with financial resourcesto assist them

- provide summer internship stipends to encourage students to experience Indiana outside of Notre Dame

- engage with Notre Dame alumni in Indiana to help source and promote quality jobs

- cultivate new career opportunities for interns and graduates through employer development and provide personalized career search assistance

- collaborate with other Indiana colleges and universities to provide an even wider source of career opportunities

- connect with state and local government and community organizations

The program has supported more than 130 students with more than $300,000 to support their Indiana internships, many of whom would have never been able to accept the opportunity without the availability of the funding from this program. Additionally, by the end of the year, they will have 52 graduates selected to receive the post-graduate funding, each will receive $9,000, a total of $468,000 cumulatively through the award program. As of May 2007, only two recipients have left the state, resulting in a healthy 96% percent retention rate from those graduates taking full-time positions in Indiana.

"Based on student responses, we believe that we have enhanced the image and perspective of quality opportunities in Indiana. Approximately 50 percent of the recipients are not from the state, and we believe that we have not only affected the 'brain drain' but have impacted the state with 'brain gain'! The program has clearly made a difference," said LoriAnn Edinborough, Program Director, INC@ND.

Source: Ideas with Impact