NDSCS Receives Nanotechnology and Telepharmacy Funding
Officials at the North Dakota State College of Science received word Monday that Congress has earmarked $400,000 for two NDSCS initiatives.
North Dakota’s congressional delegation — Rep. Earl Pomeroy and Sens. Byron Dorgan and Kent Conrad — notified NDSCS that the funding includes $200,000 toward the development of a nanoscience technician curriculum and another $200,000 to expand a training program for telepharmacy technicians.
The appropriations are included in a bill that Congress is sending to President George W. Bush for his signature.
Monday’s announcements validate the importance of these initiatives to the college and to the Red River Valley, according to Dr. Sharon Hart, president of NDSCS.
“These ideas gained momentum after a number of people at NDSCS developed strong plans and our business and industry partners supported our initiatives,” Hart said. “These ideas will become reality only because Senator Dorgan, Senator Conrad and Representative Pomeroy understand the vital link between higher education and North Dakota’s future, and they actively supported the college’s proposals. This funding will help NDSCS prepare students for technology-based jobs that are new to our state and vital to North Dakota’s future.”
Both ideas support the Red River Valley Research Corridor, an initiative spearheaded by Dorgan, to connect North Dakota colleges, universities and businesses with government contracts for high-technology research, training and manufacturing.
NDSCS will apply $200,000 toward the development of a nanoscience technician curriculum, according to Harvey Link, vice president for institutional advancement and government relations. The proposed academic option will build upon the college’s existing strengths with a new core curriculum specific to the nanoscience industry, he said.
“The market for nanoscience technology is expected to reach $1 trillion by the year 2010,” Link said. “Many of the 2 million workers needed to support this market will be technicians, and NDSCS is uniquely qualified to provide the multidisciplinary educational and training programs for the nanoscience technology industry. We at NDSCS look forward to cooperating with other governmental, educational and research entities in positioning North Dakota as a viable participant in this emerging industry.”
The $200,000 appropriation for telepharmacy technician training follows an initial $200,000 NDSCS received last year to establish the curriculum. North Dakota’s growing telepharmacy network — a visible success story from the Red River Valley Research Corridor and the North Dakota State University College of Pharmacy — allows residents of smaller communities to obtain prescription medications through a local technician who works with an off-site pharmacist via video teleconferencing.
“The telepharmacy technician funding shows the commitment that the state’s congressional delegation has to rural North Dakota,” Link said. “Residents in rural areas depend upon access to health-care professionals, including licensed pharmacists. NDSCS’s telepharmacy technicians will become an integral part of the equation.”
Three years ago, NDSCS administrators, faculty and staff developed a strategic plan that included three primary goals. The federal appropriations are part of the college’s effort in developing new revenue-generating processes for priority needs, Hart said.
“We at NDSCS devoted additional energies and resources toward finding new revenue streams during the past year, and we are proud of our steps in the right direction,” she said. “This week’s good news from our congressional delegation confirms our decision to seek new funding sources.”
NDSCS is a two-year, comprehensive, residential college in Wahpeton. The State College of Science offers degrees, certificates and diplomas in over 80 academic options in traditional career and technical studies and in the liberal arts. Approximately 97 percent of graduates from its technical programs find jobs in their chosen fields.
Unlike most two-year colleges, NDSCS offers a university atmosphere for its students, complete with residence halls, 35 affiliated clubs and organizations, music groups, theater productions, intercollegiate athletics, intramural athletics and numerous social activities.
NDSCS celebrated its centennial last year. The college opened in 1903 as the North Dakota Academy of Science.
North Dakota State College of Science online: ndscs.edu