Spark

Research

Spark

2026 Research Review

Staying the course

Throughout my career as a marine acoustician, I’ve logged months at sea, in calm conditions and stormy ones, through swells that peak and trough. These experiences taught me the importance of staying the course: remaining focused on the goal ahead and pursuing it steadily.

Recently, “stay the course” has turned out to be a timely metaphor for university research. We’re riding the waves of federal funding changes and braving headwinds that face higher education with grit, tenacity, and creativity.

In the past year, for instance, UNH has advanced our corporate engagement: Our licensing agreements are at an all-time high, and we’ve grown the number of companies that co-locate on campus by a staggering 400% since 2022. And we’ve begun construction on a significant new building that will house the NOAA Center of Excellence for Great Lakes and Ocean Mapping, the John Olson Advanced Manufacturing Center, and industry partners eager for closer collaboration with our researchers, facilities, and students.

We’ve also stayed the course on our underlying mission to create research and knowledge that serves New Hampshire’s greatest needs: a healthy environment, a thriving population and economy, and a workforce ready to tackle future challenges.

I’m proud of the robust research ecosystem I stewarded as interim vice president for research and innovation, and I’m delighted to share a glimpse of that research and innovation in this issue of Spark.

By the time you read this, Ramy Rahimi will have stepped into the permanent role of vice president for research and innovation. I look forward to this upward trajectory continuing under his leadership.