Research and Innovation at NC State

The U.S. government selects NC State to conduct tests on the five full grades of cotton, to benefit manufacturers; this marks our first documented textiles research.Today, our Wilson College of Textiles is North America’s only college devoted to textiles — and is recognized as the No. 1 textiles institution in the world.

J.C. Richmond, a woman chemist, is awarded a grant from the Engineering Experiment Station (formerly known as the Engineering Research Station) to study whether cow’s and goat’s milk could help combat pellagra, a disease that ravaged the U.S. in the early 1900s. Richmond was tasked with verifying findings that indicated cow’s milk contains the Pellagra-preventing chemical nicotine acid.

NC State, Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill founded the Research Triangle Institute, now known as RTI International. RTI International remains an important research partner of all three universities to this day.

NC State’s Graduate School creates an Assistant Dean for Research position, a title which would eventually evolve into what’s now a vice chancellor.

Chancellor John T. Caldwell appoints Harold F. Robinson as the inaugural Dean for Research.

NC State receives its first ever NSF grant, for a “Science Development Program” to fund additional faculty positions and research equipment.

Professor Charles Manning and graduate student Lyn David Lineback receive the NASA Achievement Award for a ceramic materials research project.

Donald Bitzer, a professor of computer science and engineering, becomes NC State’s first member of the National Academy of Engineering and Clement L. Markert, a professor of biology, becomes NC State’s first member of the National Academy of Medicine.

Chancellor Bruce Poulton changes the “Dean for Research” title and names Frank Hart NC State’s first Vice Chancellor for Research — signaling a shift from an academic role to more of an administrative one.

Elizabeth C. Theil becomes the first woman to win the Alumni Research Award, which is now called the Outstanding Research Award and grants automatic acceptance into NC State’s Research Leadership Academy.

Research Building I, now known as the Poulton Innovation Center, becomes the first building to open on Centennial Campus.

Led by professor B. Jayant Baliga, NC State opens the Power Semiconductor Research Center. Baliga, who invented the insulated-gate bipolar transistor — now widely used in electronic devices worldwide — and the center’s research would be integral to NC State later becoming the headquarters of the PowerAmerica Institute, and in 2024, the leader of CLAWS.

Willard Bennett, a professor of physics, becomes NC State’s first inductee into the National Inventors Hall of Fame, for his Radio Frequency Mass Spectrometer.

The Textile Protection and Comfort Center conducts its first tests on Pyro-Man, a lifesize mannequin that can be used to replicate the conditions firefighters face.

Jerome J. Cuomo, a professor of materials science and engineering, becomes NC State’s first winner of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.

The Center for Marine Sciences and Technology (CMAST) opens, in Morehead City, North Carolina.

NC State launches the Proposal Development Unit (PDU). Part of the Office of Research and Innovation, the PDU has helped researchers submit over 800 proposals — and bring in more than $1 billion in sponsored research funding.

The College of Veterinary Medicine Research Building opens on Centennial Biomedical Campus. CVM researchers regularly collaborate with UNC-Chapel Hill and other universities with medical schools on comparative and translational research projects.

The Nonwovens Institute (NWI) opens, offering the world’s first accredited academic program for the interdisciplinary field of engineered fabrics.

Chancellor Randy Woodson establishes the Chancellor’s Innovation Fund (CIF), which has since led to the launch of nearly 40 NC State research-based startups.

NC State launches Springboard Innovation Hub — today home to much of ORI, the Office of Partnerships, the Office of Research Commercialization, the Small Business Technology Development Center (SBTDC) and more — in Research Building I (now known as the Poulton Innovation Center).

With the establishment of the Center for Advanced Self-Powered Systems of Integrated Sensors and Technologies (ASSIST), NC State becomes the only university to boast two National Science Foundation Engineering Research Centers. The FREEDM Systems Center, which opened in 2008, is NC State’s other active ERC.

David Aspnes, a professor of physics, becomes NC State’s first active faculty member to be inducted into the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) NAI Fellows Program.

President Barack Obama visits NC State to announce the opening of the PowerAmerica Institute. PowerAmerica is one of seven Manufacturing USA institutes NC State is part of.

Rodolphe Barrangou, a professor of food science, becomes NC State’s first winner of the Warren Alpert Foundation Prize, for his pioneering CRISPR research while working at Danisco.

The Office of Research and Innovation announces the winners of its Game-Changing Research Incentive Program (GRIP) — sponsored by NC State, RTI International, and the Kenan Institute of Engineering, Technology and Science — which awarded $2.3 million in seed funding to five collaborative, ground-breaking projects in nanotechnology, education, textiles, genetics and chemistry.

NC State’s annual research and development expenditures reach $500 million for the first time — a 39% growth since 2010, when Chancellor Woodson took the helm.

The Office of Research, Innovation and Economic Development is renamed the Office of Research and Innovation.

Results magazine goes digital.

The College of Design’s Coastal Dynamics Designs Lab (CDDL) partners with the city of Lumberton, North Carolina, to create plans for flood-resistant infrastructure — largely building off the work CDDL did, along with other researchers, to help revitalize the town of Princeton, in 2017.

NC State launches the Data Science Academy — building on our university’s longtime national leadership and expertise in data science, included the founding of SAS, one of the world’s largest data analytics companies; the Data Science Initiative; the world’s first master of science in analytics degree, offered by the Institute for Advanced Analytics; the Laboratory for Analytic Sciences; and dozens of other related initiatives.

Under Armour partners with NC State and opens its corporate innovation center on Centennial Campus.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation (NNF) launches its third major project with NC State — called the Biocatalyst Interactions with Gases (BIG) Collaboration — funded by $6.5 million and building on two prior NNF-funded projects.

NC State partners with FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies to advance innovation for its $3 billion Holly Springs campus, set to open in 2025, which will create more than 1,400 jobs.

The Department of Defense taps State to manage a Microelectronics Common Regional Innovation Hub, Commercial Leap Ahead for Widebandgap Semiconductors (CLAWS) Backed by nearly $40M in DoD funding, CLAWS builds off NC State’s decades of experience as a leader in semiconductor research.