Syracuse University has partnered with Benefunder, an online platform that connects researchers across the country with donors looking to contribute to their research.

Sara Wason, executive director of foundation relations at SU, said Benefunder reached out to faculty members to inquire whether or not they were interested. Professors from various areas will represent SU on Benefunder, including people from aerospace engineering, psychology, biomedical engineering, the arts and neuroscience, she said.

SU signed a “master agreement” with Benefunder, Wason added, which allows for 20 professors to connect with possible donors through the platform.

The way Benefunder works is donors go to the website, search for their preferred research area and connect with a researcher through the organization, which distributes the donation to the researcher. Wason added that the minimum donation is $25,000.

“At SU, we’re really trying to look at some more creative ways of how we get research funded because research is so important to our mission,” Wason said.

With federal funding remaining stagnant in recent years, SU had to explore different avenues to fund research and at some significant levels.

This gives SU a chance to reach beyond alumni who may not be interested in certain areas of research, Wason added. With Benefunder, donors in the general public can connect with researchers studying some of the world’s biggest problems, no matter which school or institution they work for, she added.

Wason said Chancellor Kent Syverud is hoping to increase undergraduate research and research opportunities for all students, and that this is one way SU plans on achieving those goals.

“This certainly is in line with the new Academic Strategic Plan and one more way we can help increase our impact in research,” Wason said.

SU joins Rutgers University, the University of California, San Diego and the International Computer Science Institute on Benefunder, Wason said. Benefunder currently features over 600 researchers from across the country, she added.

One example of Benefunder reaching out directly to SU is when the organization contacted Susan Parks, an assistant professor of biology, about possibly participating in its new platform. Parks had won the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, which is how Benefunder found her, she said.

She said she thinks Benefunder is a great way for professors and researchers to involve students with side projects that don’t often receive federal funding.

Her lab studies acoustic signaling, she said. Parks mentioned that her work primarily focuses on humpback whales and how communication impacts their aquatic environment, and this research earned her the presidential award.

Parks emphasized that the university has given itself an opportunity to enhance its status as a major research institution through Benefunder, in addition to the opportunity it has provided for the participating researchers.

Published on April 20, 2015 at 10:11 pm

Contact Danny: dmantoot@syr.edu