Bucks for Brains
State program matches money for top researchers
How can you fast-track research and scholarship? By matching private donations with state funds. That’s the beauty of Kentucky’s “Bucks for Brains” program. Since its inception, UofL has matched all $115 million allocated, resulting in an economic impact of more than $316 million.
The program, formally known as the Research Challenge Trust Fund, was created in 1997 by the Kentucky legislature. It was designed to create new jobs, generate new economic activity and provide new opportunities for Kentucky citizens.
Bucks for Brains uses state funds to match private donations, effectively doubling the impact of private investment supporting research in strategically defined areas and planting the seeds for a better future.
To qualify for Bucks for Brains matching funds, gifts from private donors typically have been between $500,000 and $2 million. These gifts, combined with the state matches, create endowments used to recruit and retain world-renowned faculty. In return, these scholars are creating economic opportunity, enhancing the education of our students and drawing international attention to the university with significant breakthroughs, including numerous medical discoveries that will lead to a better quality of life for people everywhere.
What are Bucks for Brains faculty working on?
·Finding new treatments for spinal cord injury
·Developing more new cancer drugs than any other research center in the country
·Inventing new devices to treat heart disease
·Helping local companies improve their effectiveness in competitive markets
·Developing cost effective ways to get products to consumers
·Providing expertise in emerging fields like bioengineering, nanotechnology and proteomics
·Monitoring new developments in leadership, property law and health policy
