This report highlights many successes in research, scholarship and creative activity by University of Nebraska–Lincoln faculty during the fiscal year running July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.

Published annually by the Office of Research and Innovation, this report lists investigators, project titles and funding sources on major grants and sponsored awards received during the year, including early career awards; fellowships and other recognitions and honors bestowed on our faculty; books, chapters and journal articles published by faculty; performances, exhibitions, creative literature and other examples of creative activity; patents, licensing agreements and National Science Foundation I-Corps teams; and conference presentations. In recognition of the important role faculty have in the undergraduate experience at Nebraska, this report notes the students and mentors participating in the Undergraduate Creative Activities and Research Experience (UCARE) and the First-Year Research Experience (FYRE) programs.

Information is compiled through NuRamp, the university’s electronic research administration system, and self-reporting mechanisms.

As the state’s land-grant, Carnegie R1 institution and only member of the Big Ten Academic Alliance, Nebraska has a unique role in advancing knowledge and transforming lives. A few measurements of progress made this year:

• Over the past decade, total research expenditures across UNL, the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the system’s Office of the President have increased 53%. Total combined expenditures reached $617 million in fiscal year 2023.
• UNL’s total sponsored research awards have grown 58% over the past 10 years, with 1,100 principal investigators receiving sponsored awards annually.
• Nine Nebraska researchers earned National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Program awards in 2024 – a new university record.
• Husker researchers are earning highly prestigious external honors and recognitions in their fields, many of which are recognized by the National Research Council.
• The number of faculty books, publications and creative works continues to climb. Nebraska scholars published 265 books and 20,185 peer-reviewed articles between 2019 and 2023. These works were cited 550,000 times during that period, according to Academic Analytics data.
• For the seventh consecutive year, the University of Nebraska system is ranked among the world’s top 100 academic institutions receiving U.S. patents, rising five spots to No. 73.
• Nebraska’s annual industry-sponsored research expenditures total $22.8 million, and licensing revenue amounts to $6.4 million. NUtech Ventures, the university’s technology commercialization affiliate, oversees patents and licensing, while providing support structures for university inventors.

Our mission is to support discovery, creativity and innovation that advances Nebraska, the nation and the world. Nebraska’s world-class faculty drives everything that we do. Thank you for your many efforts to advance your disciplines, this university and the state. I am pleased to present this record of accomplishments.

Jennifer Mize Nelson

Interim Vice Chancellor for
Research and Innovation