The Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative (BRIC), the

cornerstone facility within the larger Central Texas Technology and

Research Park, is coming to life! During January of 2013, Baylor’s electrical

engineering department, the Center for Astrophysics, Space Physics, and

Engineering Research (CASPER), the Center for Spatial Research (CSR) and

LAUNCH, the innovative business accelerator all moved into outstanding

research space in the BRIC. By May, additional space will be completed,

providing labs for Baylor’s first National Academy member, Dr. Marlan O.

Scully, and our new dean of engineering, Dr. Dennis O’Neal.

The BRIC’s first industrial partner moves in during August as

engineers from L-3 Communications take up residence, joining the

Baylor faculty with which they have been collaborating on composite

research over the past three years. At the same time, the Baylor Advanced

Research Institute (BARI) will continue to build and expand such research

partnerships with national and international universities, industries,

businesses, entrepreneurs and federal, state and local entities.

These developments are only the beginning. In the months ahead,

the BRIC will facilitate new initiatives in workforce training through

Texas State Technical College Waco, expand its community impact

through state-of-the-art meeting and symposium space, and provide

K-12 students exciting discovery experiences ranging from ‘research-on-

display’ tours of active laboratories to interactions with museum-quality

exhibits throughout the building.

Soon, the renovated and repurposed General Tire & Rubber

Company building, constructed during World War II and source of 1,400

manufacturing jobs for the Waco community, will once again be a hub for

economic activity as Baylor students, faculty, and partners perform cutting-

edge research in emerging technologies, discovering and developing

solutions for the pressing issues of our time.

To learn more about the BRIC or Baylor research please visit our

websites at www.baylor.edu/BRIC or www.baylor.edu/research.

Also if you’re going to be in the area, please stop by and take a tour.

We’d love to show you around.

Baylor research making a difference — as always, the best is

yet to come!

THIS MOST RECENT EDITION OF

RESEARCH BRINGS ExCITING NEWS.

Centers

& Institutes

by BLAKE THOMAS

University

Research

by BLAKE THOMAS

Working Together to Build

a Thriving Community

by JENNIFER KUNARD

BRIC: A Bridge to the Future By STACy TILLILIE

Workforce Development & Training by GARy STOKES

The Right

Formula

by GARy STOKES

Research

Excellence

by JENNIFER KUNARD

Dr. Truell Hyde

Vice Provost for Research

Executive Vice President and Provost : Elizabeth Davis

Vice Provost for Research : Truell Hyde

Project Editor : Blake Thomas

Design : PolleiDesignWorks.com

Writers : Jennifer Kunard, Gary Stokes,

Blake Thomas, Stacy Tillilie

Photography : Joe Griffin, Matthew Minard, Robert Rogers

Editorial Office : Baylor Research

One Bear Place #97310

Waco, TX 76798-7310

phone 254.710.3763 | fax 254.710.7309

www.baylor.edu/research

Baylor Research is published annually

by the Baylor University Office of the Vice

Provost for Research to provide alumni,

faculty, staff, supporters and friends with a

sampling of the many research and scholarly

activities conducted at Baylor.

This issue was published in April 2013.

For additional information about projects reported in

this issue, contact Truell Hyde, Vice Provost for Research.

Send address changes to the editorial office.

For further information visit our

website at www.baylor.edu/research

MEDIA REPRESENTATIVES : Permission is granted

to use part or all of any article published here.

Appropriate credit and a tear sheet are requested.

When Dr. Truell hyDe accepTeD The role of Baylor universiTy’s vice provosT for

research in 2001, the idea of a discovery park for interdisciplinary innovation and collaboration was just that: an idea — and a bold one, to boot. But just a decade later, guided and galvanized by the principles set forth in the university’s strategic plan, Baylor 2012, those ideas are now burgeoning realities — with the most visible reality being the 330,000-square-foot Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative (BRIC).

As the centerpiece of the Central Texas Technology and Research Park, the BRIC takes teams of creative engineers and scientists, diverse research centers and institutes, wet and dry labs, workforce training capability, business formation and enhancement services and academic symposia and brings them all together in a setting designed from the very beginning to foster interdisciplinary collaboration.

“Under Baylor 2012, the university wanted to move forward as a top-tier, preeminent research institution while deepening its commitment to its Christian mission and excellence in teaching. Since 2002, we’ve made remarkable progress,” says Hyde. “The most visible sign of that progress is the amount of infrastructure that’s been created. For example, the Baylor Sciences Building, and now the BRIC, provide space where faculty from the STEM disciplines — science, technology, engineering and mathematics — can collaborate on interdisciplinary research initiatives. With the BRIC now open, we also have research space for students and faculty in electrical engineering as well as a new Ph.D. program. Other measures of research activity include a significant rise in faculty and student publications and grant proposals, as well as the recent Carnegie classification of Baylor as a university with ‘high research activity.’”

BORN FROM BAyLOR 2012, THE BAyLOR RESEARCH

AND INNOVATION COLLABORATIVE (BRIC) IS POISED

FOR CONTINUED GROWTH AND PROSPERITy,

LED By THE GUIDING PRINCIPLES OF PRO FUTURIS.

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4

The RU/H classification attests to the value of the vital research that’s being conducted at Baylor and its impact on the university and Greater Waco community, says Eileen Walker, chief executive officer of the Tucson, Arizona-based nonprofit Association of University Research Parks (AURP), of which Baylor is a member.

“As a university increases its focus on research, it is able to provide an even higher-quality learning experience for its students. The university is also better equipped to work with industry on collaborative projects, which provide employment opportunities for students once they graduate,” says Walker. “The research park itself will be a reflection of the important work going on within the university, its students and partners.”

With that caliber of research and the introduction of new doctoral programs comes the ability to recruit additional top-flight faculty, says Hyde. “You need doctoral programs to attract great faculty. We’re moving from being recognized as a good school with master’s programs to a full-bearing doctoral-granting institution.”

In the past decade, Baylor’s flourishing reputation as a research university with a steadfast commitment to teaching excellence and its Christian mission has helped attract several world-renowned researchers and scholars. That includes new faculty such as Dr. Marlan O. Scully, National Academy of Sciences member and distinguished research academician of science and engineering, who is known around the world for his work in theoretical quantum optics; Dr. Dennis O’Neal, dean of the School of Engineering and Computer Science,

who will build Baylor Ph.D. programs in engineering and computer science; and Dr. Lea Steele, best known for her research on Gulf War illness.

While Baylor 2012 ushered in an unprecedented era of growth and development, Pro Futuris — the current strategic plan — promises to continue that momentum. Nonetheless, any vision this bold is not a one-and-done proposition, nor does it exist within a single area of study, notes Hyde.

“The new science that’s interesting is not the science within a single discipline, but the science at the intersection of disciplines. That’s where the clues lie for diseases that plague generations,” says Hyde. “New funding will also cross university boundaries, with new programs in multiple universities in Texas — and abroad.”

Embedded in the aspirations of Pro Futuris is the goal to propel Baylor to rise to the highest Carnegie classification, a university with “very high research activity.”

“This is a worthy goal. Schools in the RU/VH cohort include Cal Tech, Duke, Cornell, Harvard, Yale, MIT and Johns Hopkins,” says Hyde. “Baylor is rapidly building critical mass, hiring top faculty across multiple departments. This impacts all departments while maximizing return on investment.”

The writing is on the wall, so to speak. As multidisciplinary research becomes the research of the future, universities and industry are leveraging their talent and resources — and an ideal place to do just that is within the BRIC.

“The Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce is bringing big companies to the table, and these companies want wet

and dry lab space and a trained workforce,” says Hyde. “What’s exciting is that this is now provided within a single building at Baylor. Anyone can build a wonderful building, but the manner in which programs and research come together inside the BRIC is what turns the crank for companies.”

among The compelling BenefiTs for poTenTial Businesses To seT up

shop in The Bric is a TraineD, reaDy-To-Work Workforce, thanks to the partnership with Texas State Technical College Waco (TSTC), that will occupy 45,000 square feet in the BRIC.

“TSTC Waco teaches students to be techs who can operate lasers, nano-fabricators, large MRIs and other critical research equipment,” says Hyde. “Each of the technologies at TSTC is overseen by a board composed of folks who are tops in their field. This results in highly skilled high-tech workers who are ready to hit the ground running on day one.”

Also within the BRIC, some 175,000 square feet will be dedicated to graduate research space, enabling Baylor departments and centers and institutes access to state-of-the-art labs. Those include the Baylor School of

Engineering and Computer Sciences, the Baylor Institute for Air Science, the Center for Spatial Research; and the Center for Astrophysics, Space Physics and Engineering Research, which has expanded from a single-person office in 1999 to a center with six research groups and faculty located around the world.

Other assets include the Baylor Advanced Research Institute, which helps create new research opportunities and stewards new discoveries into practical applications in industry; the Hankamer School of Business’ innovative business accelerator, LAUNCH, which provides a host of services to accelerate the commercialization process for businesses across the spectrum from start-ups to large corporations; and the Baylor Angel Network, which provides funding for entrepreneurs.

The BRIC also provides 30,000 square feet of space for research symposia — not just for STEM disciplines, but for other disciplines, including arts and humanities — and public meetings, says Hyde. “With this space, we can bring large entities to town. They’ll see the BRIC, the town and the people and perhaps think about locating a part of their business operation here.”

As with any discovery or research park, however, the goals are long-term, notes Hyde. “The BRIC has a lot of moving parts, but when you put all disparate parts in one building and allow researchers to run into each other, you stimulate new ideas and help people and businesses grow, become successful and want to stay here, hire people, pay taxes, and impact the community in a positive way.”

Studies show that for every job within a research park, another 2.57 jobs are created in the local community. And it’s not just the number of jobs, but the types of job that will be created through the BRIC — jobs with strong payrolls and higher education levels.

“University research parks are by their nature long-term investments in the future of a region. Thus, they are very complex endeavors,” says Walker. “Research parks are university-based, but address many different aspects of what sets the university and the region apart. Baylor’s developing research strengths will provide the impetus for development of new companies and new endeavors, which will be unique to Baylor and unique to Waco, and enable the Waco region to participate in the global economy.”

As a bridge

connecting Baylor 2012 and Pro Futuris,

the BRIC will play

a particularly vital

role in helping the

university realize the

aspirational statement

of Compelling

Scholarship.

The Carnegie Foundation classifies doctorate-granting institutions based on

the level of an institution’s aggregate and per-capita research activity. THE THREE

CATEGORIES ARE: DRU, doctoral research university; RU/H, high research activity; or

RU/VH, very high research activity.

a

6

“If I’m recruiting

a faculty member

who is a top researcher,

I can walk them through

the BRIC and show them

the space that’s available.

It’s really a blank slate.”

8

—Dr. Dennis O’NealDean, School of Engineering

and Computer Science

Taking The nexT sTep ToWarD a carnegie classificaTion of “very high research acTiviTy”

Will require groWing neW ph.D. programs in science anD engineering fielDs. One area in which growth is already occurring is the School of Engineering and Computer Science. The school recently inaugurated its first Ph.D. program in electrical engineering, and is working toward offering doctoral programs in mechanical engineering and computer science, as well.

The school’s new dean, Dr. Dennis O’Neal, believes strongly that offering advanced degree programs in science and engineering fields is key to multiplying the impact of Baylor’s research around the world.

“Technology is driving many of the innovations that make our lives better,” he says, adding that the most important developments are produced in labs populated with individuals who hold advanced degrees in science and engineering disciplines.

“If Baylor wants to be a player in those environments, it’s critical that we offer Ph.D. programs in STEM disciplines.”

O’Neal knows what it takes to build a successful program in engineering research and education. Prior to joining Baylor in August 2012, he was associate dean of research in the Dwight Look College of Engineering and deputy director for the Texas Engineering Experiment Station at Texas A&M University. Before that, he was the head of Texas A&M’s Mechanical Engineering

Department — one of the nation’s largest programs.

While serving in these leadership positions at Texas A&M, O’Neal built and maintained a culture where faculty were expected to bring what he calls “the complete package” — a strong, externally funded research agenda with a commitment to teaching and mentoring undergraduate and graduate students.

He says the way to maintain undergraduate teaching while building faculty research is to establish an expectation that faculty will involve undergraduate students in their research and make education and mentoring meaningful parts of the tenure and promotion process.

So how can Baylor recruit faculty who are committed to these high standards of excellence in teaching and research? O’Neal says it begins with great facilities, something the BRIC delivers in spades.

“The BRIC is a key component for engineering growth,” he says. “If I’m recruiting a faculty member who is a top researcher, I can walk them through the BRIC and show them the space that’s available. It’s really a blank slate.”

He says the “blank slate” quality of the BRIC allows him to confidently tell prospective faculty members that Baylor can customize lab space to fit their exact needs.

In addition to attracting new faculty talent, O’Neal says the BRIC will also help

Baylor build on its existing research strengths by providing current faculty with expanded research space in a collaborative environment that encourages interaction between researchers in divergent disciplines.

“Science and engineering faculty need infrastructure like electron microscopes and materials characteristics facilities to work at extremely small levels,” O’Neal says. “Our current building is space-restricted, so for Baylor to build the capacity to work in these important areas, it was necessary to acquire additional space. That makes the BRIC’s development especially timely.”

O’Neal says by providing top-notch facilities for faculty research along with access to industry and business expertise, the BRIC will help to make Baylor a leading destination for faculty and students who want to work together to solve important problems, a process of which a Ph.D. program is a critical part.

“The innovations that make our lives better — safer cars, longer-lasting materials — it all comes from advanced research and development. Ph.D.-holding researchers drive those innovations.”

BRIC planners intend the new facility’s development to demonstrate to the scientific community that Baylor is serious about becoming a more active player in science and engineering research, and according to one new faculty member, that signal is being received loud and clear.

Dr. Mack Grady joined the Baylor faculty in 2012 after spending nearly 30 years as a faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin, where he built a research program around analysis of electric power systems. Now a professor in Baylor’s department of electrical and computer engineering, Grady sees the BRIC’s development as presenting an opportunity that top researchers and graduate students can’t help but notice.

“The BRIC is more than just nice lab space,” he says. “It’s a very visible symbol that Baylor isn’t just talking, they’re doing things.”

In his first few months at Baylor, Grady has been impressed with the quality of Baylor’s graduate and undergraduate students, who he says will help the university’s national and international profile continue to rise as they enter the scientific community and begin building their own research programs.

THE GROWTH OF BAyLOR’S

RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE

OVER THE LAST TEN yEARS

HAS POSITIONED THE

UNIVERSITy TO REACH NEW

HEIGHTS IN DISCOVERy

AND INNOVATION.

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10

“The innovations that make our lives better – safer cars, longer-lasting materials – it all comes from advanced research and development. Ph.D.-holding researchers drive those innovations.”

Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering

—Dr. Dennis O’Neal

Dr. Klaus Kirsten, a professor in Baylor’s department of mathematics, says that an interdisciplinary perspective not only helps researchers find the answers to important questions, but it also helps them know what questions are important to ask in the first place.

“Talking to other experts in a field makes it easier to decide if an area is appealing and if it is possible to make significant scientific contributions,” says Kirsten, who is also a member of Baylor’s Center for Astrophysics, Space Physics and Engineering Research (CASPER). “The direct communication made possible by the center informs all sides about questions and open problems in other areas that one person alone cannot be aware of, but might possibly be able to contribute to by coming from a different perspective.”

h

Around the nation, universities have recognized the benefits that come from interdisciplinary research in centers and institutes. These arrangements leverage existing faculty strengths and spread the investment in faculty across multiple departments.

Patterns of funding from major national funding agencies reflect the growing consensus that the best science happens at the boundaries where disciplines intersect.

Research centers, like people, go through stages of maturity, and Baylor’s centers reflect a broad range of experience from mature, well-established centers to those in the early stages of development.

CASPER is a mature center that serves as a model for building on existing faculty strengths and developing new capabilities. The center is made up of six research groups where faculty from a variety of backgrounds study theoretical and experimental astrophysics and complex plasma physics, space physics, STEM education, experimental astronomy and business innovation.

hisTorically, The BiggesT Discoveries in science anD engineering Were maDe By scienTisTs Working in TraDiTional acaDemic Disciplines.

In today’s world transformative discoveries are happening in interdisciplinary environments, where faculty from

diverse backgrounds come together to bring their varied expertise to bear on important questions.

12Professor of Mathematics

CASPER Assistant Research Professor

Where Interdisciplinary Environments are Born

Director, CASPER

anoTher inTerDisciplinary cenTer, The Baylor insTiTuTe for air science (Bias), is BuilDing iTs program By proviDing collaBoraTive opporTuniTies for sTuDenTs anD faculTy from a varieTy of BackgrounDs. In addition to research in aviation, BIAS faculty

also study space weather, a branch of space physics dealing with the interaction between energy emitted from the sun and the earth’s atmosphere.

Dr. Trey Cade, BIAS director, says that because space weather events like solar flares can impact such a wide range of technologies, he and his students will have the opportunity to work with faculty in physics, engineering, astrophysics, and even psychology on avionics-related projects.

The expertise and experience of Cade and other BIAS faculty will also create opportunities for collaborations with industry partners seeking to develop improvements in areas like aviation technology, satellite communication, power transmission and pilot responses to fatigue.

Cade sees BIAS as a great example of the potential for interdisciplinary research to bring benefits to faculty and students alike.

“We’re seeing a growing trend in the research world where funding agencies expect to see interdisciplinary approaches,” he says. “Those projects broaden students’ perspectives and give them exposure to areas they wouldn’t normally consider, which really improves their educational experience.”

While casper is maDe up primarily of faculTy WiTh an inTeresT in maTh, physics anD asTronomy research, the Center for Spatial Research

(CSR) facilitates research on even more diverse topics. CSR uses spatial data, which integrates geographic data with other observed information, to create models that help researchers address issues of global importance from water quality to wildfire control.

Bruce Byars, CSR director, says because most scientific research has a spatial component, he and his colleagues can provide support and analysis to collaborators in virtually any field.

“Our faculty are subject matter experts in a variety of fields, from science and engineering to natural resources,” he says. “We can apply that expertise and our spatial modeling to solve real-world problems.”In addition to working with Baylor faculty across campus, CSR faculty are also partnering with municipal governments and national regulatory bodies to help improve the quality of drinking water, limit the damage caused by wildfires, and provide more accurate forecasts of weather.

“Our faculty are subject matter

experts in a variety of fields, from

science and engineering to natural

resources. We can apply that

expertise and our spatial modeling

to solve real-world problems.”

Dr. Qin Sheng, Baylor mathematics professor, says that one of the benefits of working in interdisciplinary teams is breaking down traditional “ivory tower” models of research, which sometimes stifle creativity by discouraging faculty members from sharing ideas with colleagues outside their own departments.

“The connection between faculty members in the CASPER research groups presents a great opportunity,” he says. “The bonds and connections between faculty with different but overlapping interests help research groups to grow larger — and produce more.”

In addition to helping faculty compete successfully for external research funding, CASPER also facilitates collaboration with partners at other universities across the country and around the world. CASPER faculty already collaborate with colleagues at domestic institutions like Auburn University, the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Texas at Dallas, Virginia Tech, and Texas State Technical College Waco. Work is also ongoing between Baylor faculty and international partners at universities in Germany, Hungary, Brazil and China.

These national and international partnerships provide enhanced opportunities for Baylor’s undergraduate and graduate students, as well as faculty members. This exposure to a wide range of perspectives gives students a unique experience, which Sheng says makes them more attractive candidates for future jobs in academia or industry.

W

14—Bruce Byars

Director, Baylor Institute for Air Science

Research Associate

Director, Center for Spatial Research

a

TWo key researchers Who Will soon move Their highly regarDeD laBs To The

Bric have long engageD in collaBoraTions anD research projecTs ThaT span DecaDes. Dr. Marlan O. Scully, National Academy of Sciences member and distinguished research academician of science and engineering, and Dr. Lea Steele, Institute of Biomedical Studies research professor, will be setting up shop in the BRIC later this spring.

“We are thrilled to have Dr. Scully and Dr. Steele in the BRIC,” says Dr. Truell Hyde, vice provost for research. “Both exemplify what the BRIC embodies and each brings a well-established research program to Baylor, providing the university with a tremendous asset.”

With their impressive qualifications — peer-reviewed publications, presentations, funded research, national or international collaborations, experience with business and industry, student involvement, multidisciplinary partnerships and more — Scully and Steele bring unique collaborative opportunities to Baylor, the BRIC and the Greater Waco community.

“The more faculty of Marlan’s and Lea’s stature who move into the BRIC, the closer Baylor comes to reaching critical mass.” says Hyde. “Additionally, both Marlan and Lea interact with faculty from departments and universities around the world, providing the international collaborations required for success.”

All are potential practical applications of quantum optics and examples of the types of research Scully’s quantum optics laboratory brings to Baylor. Further, with faculty appointments at Texas A&M University, Princeton University and now Baylor, Scully’s reputation opens doors to labs, facilities and researchers across the United States.

Scully says quantum optics involves probing and picking on molecules, asking them questions in the miniscule time domain in which they exist. He’s excited about his BRIC lab for many reasons, not the least of them being the unique prospects for collaboration.

“We have the opportunity to bring together pieces of excellence across Texas,” says Scully. “Take what we already have, bring a laser system to Baylor, and add the push of Baylor’s facility and the in-house research expertise and make a quantum leap forward.”

Not only will the mingling of research ideas be shared among researchers, but Baylor’s faculty and students will partake in the broader exchange of ideas and expertise. For example, Scully’s Texas A&M office shares a wing occupied by many other talented researchers, including two Nobel Laureates — Dr. Dudley R. Herschbach, winner of the 1986 Nobel Prize in chemistry, and Dr. David Lee, who received the 1996 Nobel Prize for his work in low temperature physics.

“Everyone in the group is a super person. Research in general is organic and none of us is as smart as all of us,” Scully says. “Continue in areas where you’re already an expert and connect to the rest.”

Neutralizing chemical and biological weapons n Detecting anthrax n Analyzing air pollutants n Locating and characterizing tumors n Diagnosing diseases

WITH ExTERIOR CONSTRUCTION

COMPLETED AND MUCH INTERIOR SPACE

NOW OCCUPIED By RESEARCHERS WHO

ARE BUSILy SETTING UP THEIR LABS AND

OFFICES, THE BRIC IS COMING TO LIFE.

Impacting the Nation and the World

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16

Distinguished Research Academician of Science and Engineering

The Optical Society of America recognized Scully’s overall distinction

in optics by awarding him the 2012 Frederic Ives Medal/Jarus W. Quinn Prize during the Frontiers in Optics meeting in

October 2012 in Rochester, N.y.

Uncovering the secrets of Gulf War illness

He adds that Baylor, Texas A&M, Harvard, Princeton, Rice and the University of Texas at Austin all engage in research collaborations. Depending on when a facility is available and what type of research is being conducted, researchers will choose which university’s lasers to use. By connecting — and sharing — expensive resources and expert knowledge, researchers become more efficient and better able to innovate.

Scully also collaborates with the Quantum Institute at Texas A&M. “The Quantum Institute provides a unique opportunity to take advantage of and build on the outstanding strengths which already exist at Baylor, melding them into an excellent interdisciplinary group,” Scully says. Success could have great national and international impact in industry (optical storage, chip manufacturing, secure free-space wireless communications, new solid-state devices), medicine (dermatology, keratectomy, early disease detection), renewable energy efforts, active imaging, lightning discharge control, and at-range detection of bio-chemical agents and air pollution.

“The BRIC is an outstanding fit to our interdisciplinary interests.”

“The lab at Baylor will be an ultra-fast, high-power laser lab which will focus

on the application of laser spectroscopy to biophotonics,” says Scully. He envisions working with other individuals and institutions on projects ranging from early detection of cancer and osteoporosis, to medical physics and the detection of pathogens such as anthrax and/or aflatoxins from peanut and corn mold, to developing ways to reshape the eye. “These are the sorts of things that we can bring people together to collaborate on in a common meeting space.”

Combining research, technology, industry, workforce development at a central location in the heart of Texas, the BRIC “has all the ingredients,” says Scully, whose eagerness to work with other researchers makes him a natural for the BRIC.

“Marlan is a great fit for the BRIC,” Hyde says. “In addition to being one of the top researchers in the world in his field, he is also one of the most versatile, publishing across a variety of areas — physics and chemistry, environmental science, biology, mathematics, religion and philosophy. His presence strengthens the BRIC paradigm, providing the type of leadership in international research that leads to centers of excellence. On top of it all, he’s a wonderful mentor to the Baylor family — all of the Baylor family — from faculty members to the undergraduate student.”

“Everyone in the group is a

super person. Research in

general is organic and none

of us is as smart as all of us.”

The 1990-91 Gulf War was launched in response to Iraq’s invasion of neighboring Kuwait in August 1990. Operation Desert Storm began the following January, with a thunderous six-week air campaign that demolished key targets of Saddam Hussein’s military. The ground war began in late February 1991 and ended with the decisive defeat of the Iraqi Army in just four days. Though battlefield deaths were kept to a minimum, the war’s casualty count continued to climb — today, at least one in four of the nearly 700,000 military personnel who served in the 1991 Gulf War theater of operations- still suffers serious after-effects of that deployment.

18

Research Professor, Institute of Biomedical Studies

Scully is credited with development of the Scully-Lamb quantum laser theory and the laser-phase transition analogy with special application to Bose-Einstein condensation — the first classical theory of the free-electron laser.

More than 20 years hence, important questions concerning the enigmatic Gulf War illness (GWI) remain unanswered, and medical assistance for those afflicted is limited. Baylor epidemiologist Dr. Lea Steele is determined to find those answers.

For many years, GWI baffled physicians and researchers with its myriad concurrent symptoms — chronic headaches, widespread pain, unexplained fatigue, gastrointestinal and respiratory symptoms, cognitive difficulties and more. Even today, no laboratory tests to definitively diagnose GWI exist. Steele and her team are working to better characterize the biological differences in veterans suffering from GWI so they can be properly diagnosed and adequate treatments developed.

“Our research exemplifies

the importance of involving

scientists in multiple areas

to achieve breakthroughs

in addressing complex

scientific problems.”

REGIONAL COLLABORATORS

Scott & White Health Care, Temple, Tx n VA Center of Excellence for Returning War Veterans n Texas A&M Health Science Center in Temple n Myriad RBM (a biomarker discovery company) in Austin

NATIONAL COLLABORATORSColumbia University School of Public Health (Ny) n Minneapolis (MN) VA n Westat (a prominent survey research firm) n Boston University School of Public Health n Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine n Nova Southeastern University (FL)

over The pasT TWo years, her Work has Been funDeD By Three major granTs from the U.S. Department of Defense

totaling $2.3 million. Her current work involves far-ranging collaborations with regional and national institutions from diverse biomedical fields. “Our veterans’ health research program at Baylor is possible, in no small part, because of the strong research partnership we have formed with Scott & White Health Care, and other collaborators across the country.”

“This type of interdisciplinary work is essential, given the complexity of this condition,” Steele explains. Her initial Baylor project evaluates ill Gulf War veterans from multiple perspectives, including assessment of brain structures using MRI scans, tests of brain function, plus diverse assessments of immune and endocrine function.

“Our research partners include neuroscientists, toxicologists, immunologists, psychologists, geneticists, and other specialists. The partnerships exemplify the importance of involving scientists in multiple areas to achieve breakthroughs that address complex scientific problems.”

Previous studies have consistently shown that GWI was not caused by combat stress and is not a psychiatric problem. Instead, the problem has been linked to a number of exposures encountered by troops in theater.

“What did cause GWI has been a challenging puzzle to decipher ,” she says. “Military personnel who served in the Gulf War encountered myriad potential hazards, many unique to that deployment. Hazards included first-time use of two bio-warfare vaccines, low-level exposure to chemical nerve agents, depleted uranium munitions, excessive exposure to many classes of pesticides and contaminants from hundreds of burning oil wells that darkened Kuwaiti skies for much of 1991.”

Steele points out that the chemicals of greatest concern can produce long-term neurological effects. She says symptoms and neurological findings associated with Gulf War illness parallel those seen in chronically ill pesticide workers and in survivors of the March 1995 sarin gas terrorist attack in a Tokyo subway.

As many as 200,000 veterans have been sick for more than 20 years — a fact that reminds Steele of the importance of her work. She finds recent advancements encouraging, but is quick to point out that “the most important work remains — to identify diagnostic tests and treatments that substantially improve veterans’ health.”

o

“Lea’s research is not only among the best in the world in this area, it fits the interdisciplinary nature of the BRIC in ways that complement multiple departments across campus,” Hyde states. “One of the first things she did once she arrived at Baylor was to establish relationships across multiple departments and research groups at Baylor as well as with entities across the region,” he says. “There is no other researcher in the world who is as determined as she is about finding the answers to GWI. Her presence in the BRIC provides the critical mass necessary for success.”

Steele strongly believes these answers will be found, and as the first health sciences research group to move into the BRIC, she and her colleagues are confident they are well prepared to uncover many of them.

“Veterans deserve answers,” she says, “and we are strongly committed to finding answers that advance the diagnosis and treatment of GWI.”

20

B

22

President, Texas State Technical College Waco

BuT inTegraTing a Workforce DevelopmenT funcTion inTo The

research faciliTy iTself…?With almost a half-century of high-

technology training and a vibrant campus just a few exits up Interstate 35, bringing Texas State Technical College Waco (TSTC Waco) on as the BRIC’s in-house workforce development partner certainly qualifies as a “no-brainer.” TSTC Waco’s reputation for anticipating and responding to the always-fluid technical workforce needs of Texas industries consistently places the school among the nation’s highest rated technical training institutions. Over 90 percent of TSTC Waco students have jobs waiting for them upon graduation.

Early on, the BRIC floor plan allocated 45,000 square feet specifically to allow workforce faculty to work on-site and in tandem with the very researchers, technicians and others who developed the technology. That on-site presence is a nod to the critical role of training that potential industry partners find highly attractive, and that Dr. Elton Stuckly Jr., president of TSTC Waco, is eager to point out.

“The number one question asked by entrepreneurs and companies that are seeking to start or relocate a business is, ‘What’s my availability to a trained workforce? How will I staff my business?’” Stuckly says.

“In the BRIC, it’s a plus to be working with the people who developed the technology; you’re working hand-in-hand, not after the fact,” he says. “Usually, you have to have meeting after meeting just to learn what the business is. Being in the BRIC makes it much easier.”

That kind of broad collaboration — not just across disciplines but across functions as well — was central to the BRIC’s design. Ron Sanders, TSTC Waco’s vice president for student learning, finds the concept especially appealing.

“There is a lot of understanding today that communication all the way around is important,” he says. “I was in on some of the early BRIC design discussions and — just by way of example — there was a lot of emphasis toward making sure that technicians, scientists, engineers, students — everyone — would use the same entrance. There was a realization that it’s the combination of those folks together that generates great ideas.”

Workforce development has its own unique set of challenges. TSTC Waco is widely regarded for its advanced, real-world settings that closely mimic the actual workplace environment. On average, 60 percent of TSTC Waco’s instruction is hands-on. That model fits the BRIC to a “T.”

“That’s what we do,” Sanders explains. “Putting people in a classroom is easy. Giving a presentation to them that says, ‘This is step one to operating this or that’ is easy. But setting up an environment

that mimics the workplace as closely as possible so that technicians are immediately productive when they get into the workplace, that’s the hard part. Companies generally can’t provide an on-site facility that is set up to do training in the most efficient manner possible.

“In the BRIC,” he continues, “we’ll have a space that allows us to be more flexible in the way we operate. We’ll be able to create and recreate settings that meet the clients’ needs as they come up.”

That ability for all three groups involved — researchers, workforce faculty and industry clients — to work together at the same facility is itself an innovation in the research/discovery park concept that is tailor-made to shorten the lab-to-market cycle, reduce development costs and yield a significant competitive advantage.

TSTC Waco’s long history of corporate relationships with such heavy-hitters as John Deere, Luminant, ExxonMobil, Dell, Toyota and many others presents potential clients and research collaborators with the complete range of integrated workforce development options.

INDUSTRy ExECUTIVES AND ENTREPRENEURS KNOW ALL

TOO WELL THAT TRAINING CAN BE A VERy BIG COMPONENT

OF ANy COMMERCIALIzATION PROJECT.

terms of interdisciplinary approaches and helping to commercialize the most advanced research; it was a real game-changer,” Meadors recalls. “The BRIC has the potential to be a tremendous catalyst for working with the area’s current research capacity and our existing businesses and industry, and then attracting new individuals who are looking at the BRIC as a location to conduct advanced research as it relates to their field.”

Still, any research park can only meet these high expectations if it succeeds. That means starting with top-quality researchers and a functional, attractive facility, and then adding a suite of services that will draw potential researchers, industry clients and collaboration partners.

Jim Kephart, director of the Baylor Advanced Research Institute (BARI), knows it’s a tall order, but one the BRIC is well equipped to fill.

“The BRIC is not just a science research facility,” Kephart explains. “Starting with the programming of the building, research and workforce development and training efforts have been strategically placed to optimize ‘cross-pollination.’ The idea of bringing the workforce training service provider under the same roof with researchers is a new and bold one that has received considerable positive reaction from current and potential clients.”

The Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative Brings the Tools for Discovery Under One Roof

“LAUNCH is

centered on

delivering the

tools, processes

and leadership

development

needed to enable

commercial

success.”

ffrom spanDex To spacecrafT, virTually everyThing ThaT Defines The 21sT cenTury qualiTy of life We all enjoy firsT Took shape in research

laBoraTories. Today, researchers in labs at the new Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative (BRIC) are working to develop new ideas and products with the potential to raise that standard of living even further. Largely because of the brisk demand for innovation, communities near research centers tend to enjoy robust, recession-resistant economies.

This is a fact not lost on Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce President Matthew Meadors. Before coming to

Waco, he was CEO of the Southwest Indiana Chamber, and witnessed first-hand the economic clout a

major research park can have. “Purdue’s research park really put the

institution and the state on the map in

24

Director, LAUNCH

President and CEO, Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce

“The BRIC offers a wide array of well-equipped, strategically placed meeting and symposium spaces for regional, national and international meetings in technology and innovation,” Kephart points out. “To this mix, the BRIC adds space for high-technology industry and LAUNCH, the Hankamer School of Business’ innovative business accelerator, with the goal of providing a more effective means for new businesses to commercialize their products successfully.”

LAUNCH is central to the commercialization process, supplying expertise, connections and resources crucial to success, but that are often unavailable to innovators.

“More than nine out of 10 company leaders from around the globe declare that innovation is critical to their futures,” says LAUNCH Director Greg Leman. “At the same time, only half of them say they have confidence in their firms’ abilities to execute an innovation strategy.”

Statistics bear that out. “Even major companies

bringing relatively incremental innovations to market only have about a 35 percent success rate; start-ups with truly breakthrough ideas make it to market only about 10 percent of the time,” Leman says.

To improve those success rates, LAUNCH offers a comprehensive suite of business formation, enhancement and augmentation services that includes international market development through Baylor’s international entrepreneurship programs, legal and accounting

services, help with small business loan applications, and training for executives of new technology companies and assistance with garnering funding through the Baylor Angel Network and other venture capital financing.

“LAUNCH is centered on delivering the tools, processes and leadership development needed to enable commercial success. [That capability] is built on a 75 percent success track record. Our promise is to accelerate innovation that is on-target with market needs.”

Taken in sum, with its world-class researchers, established in-house workforce development solutions and broad array of business start-up and enhancement services, the BRIC represents a comprehensive research facility that recognizes and addresses the importance of the challenges that lie outside the laboratory door.

iin concepTualizing The Bric, much ThoughT Was DevoTeD To proviDing meeTing anD evenT spaces ThaT WoulD make The Bric a forum for The exchange

of scienTific anD Technical iDeas.

“The BRIC offers

a wide array of

well-equipped,

strategically

placed meeting

and symposium

spaces for regional,

national and

international

meetings in

technology and

innovation.”

26

— Jim KephartDirector, BARI

“There are many DifferenT avenues for people To connecT physically,” says Sarah Roberts, senior vice president of economic development at the Greater Waco

Chamber of Commerce. “Whether you’re a researcher in a lab, or a company collaborating with Baylor, or getting technical training, the BRIC was designed to have a complete ecosystem so the building is a gathering space for innovation in [Waco’s] marketplace.”

Within the BRIC walls lie symposium and conference spaces. Flexible meeting room space on the first floor can be opened up to 1,500 square feet or divided into two or three separate meeting spaces, says Kevin Karr, Baylor senior project manager for facility, planning and construction services. In addition, levels two and three are also equipped with adaptable meeting spaces. When completed, the BRIC will offer 30,000 square feet of space for meetings, symposia or conferences. Even the glass doors and walls serve the purpose of allowing guests to look inside and see what’s happening in the labs.

THE BRIC WAS BUILT AS A PLACE TO FOSTER

INTERDISCIPLINARy COLLABORATION, BUT JUST AS IMPORTANTLy,

IT WAS BUILT AS A PLACE WHERE THE COMMUNITy CAN LEARN,

THRIVE AND INTERACT. DESIGN ELEMENTS WERE CAREFULLy CRAFTED

TO ENSURE COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS AMONG BRIC RESIDENTS COULD

EASILy HAPPEN, BUT ALSO TO ALLOW THE WACO COMMUNITy

AND VISITORS TO PARTICIPATE.

T

28

The BRIC will soon begin hosting community meetings and luncheons and a quarterly research series open to the public is in the works, says Jim Kephart, director of the Baylor Advanced Research Institute. Future meetings will include national and international technical experts, workforce development and training professionals, industry advocates and policy leaders. Planning for these types of events is underway and the community has a stake in them, he says.

William l. clifTon jr. WiTh The clifTon group, a Waco-BaseD Business managemenT consulTing firm, says the BRIC is the most

important economic development project he’s been involved with since becoming a member of the Waco-McLennan County Economic Development Corporation in 1997.

Clifton believes there’s no doubt the BRIC will have a positive impact on significant job growth and wages. “Our community is greatly advantaged by all the education here, but Waco has a brain drain. We don’t have the jobs to keep our graduates [here].”

In 2007, the Association of University Research Parks (AURP) teamed up with Battelle Memorial Institute, located in Columbus, Ohio and commissioned the AURP-Battelle study of North American research parks. Findings from the study confirmed that research parks have become a key element in the infrastructure supporting the growth of today’s technology-based economy. “Things are going to happen. Are they going to happen here or somewhere else?” remarks Clifton. “The BRIC brings it here.”

Elizabeth Smith, community volunteer and civic leader, was part of Waco’s Community Visioning Project, a two-year effort to formulate a new vision for the city. The project culminated in five priorities: strengthening the heart of the community, increasing economic opportunities, engaging leaders, enhancing life outside the workplace, and developing our distinct advantage. The BRIC fits into this vision for the Waco community.

“What I’m interested in is anything that will give people opportunities for high-wage employment,” says Smith. “Anything we can do to shift our economy to higher wages will help propel this community.”

W

Another planning group Smith served on assessed what makes a community attractive to people employed in technology sectors. “It is seldom that a young person will go to a community for a job if they feel they have opportunities in that field with just one employer,” she says. “For an individual to make a commitment to a community, they need to know there’s more than one employer to commit to. Young people need to see multiple opportunities.”

In addition to helping Waco appeal to a younger demographic, the BRIC strives to appeal to and inspire children.

“One of the most appealing things about the BRIC is their provision for K-12 STEM development,” says Smith. “We can work with the kids to stimulate their interest in science, technology, engineering and math. Bringing kids to the BRIC so they can see the research going on there helps us grow our own.”

“So many students make decisions by middle school that influence their ultimate career option,” says Smith. “We need to grab these kids before they are making these decisions.”

“Educational outreach has always been part of the BRIC’s plan,” says Kephart. “We have always had outreach as one of the pillars of the BRIC concept. We are developing interactive and museum-quality display cases that focus on every BRIC research effort. You don’t have to be in the lab to see these outreach features. These displays will be situated in the expansive hallways, corridors and all around the building.”

“We are on a growth curve for the expansion of the BRIC into a fully operational research park in the next 15 years,” says Kephart. “We are sitting on more than 21 acres and the BRIC will be full before we know it. We’ve had conversations with officials from other research parks and after touring the BRIC, one of them said, ‘You’d better start building another building now.’”

Baylor was awarded more than 50 decommissioned NASA artifacts that will be on display throughout the BRIC. n Also on display will be historical items from the General Tire & Rubber Co. collected prior to BRIC construction. n A 78-foot vertical drop tower that will provide approximately 2.2 seconds of free fall for research experiments will also be visible to visitors. n The third floor will have STEM-specific interactive kiosks.

One Bear Place #97310Waco, TX 76798-7310

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Accounting — MAcc, MAcc/BBAAmerican Studies — MAAir Science and Environment — IMESArmy Baylor University Graduate Program in Health

& Business Administration, Fort Sam Houston — MHA, MHA/MBA

Biology — MA, MS, PhDBiomedical Engineering —MSBME, BSECE/MSBME,

BSME/MSBMEBiomedical Studies — MS, PhDBusiness Administration — MBA, MBA/JD, MBA/ME,

MBA/MSW, MBA/MDiv Business Administration, Dallas, Austin — EMBABusiness Administration/Information Systems —

MBA/MSISChemistry — MS, PhDChurch Music — MM, MM/MDivChurch-State Studies — MA, PhDClinical Psychology — PsyD, MSCPCollaborative Piano — MMCommunication Sciences and Disorders — MA, MSCDCommunication Studies — MACommunity Health Education, MPHComputer Science — MSCSConducting — MMCurriculum and Instruction — EdD, MA, MSEdDirecting — MFAEarth Science — MAEcological, Earth and Environmental Sciences — PhDEconomics — MSEcoEducational Administration — MSEdEducational Psychology — EdS, MA, MSEd, PhDElectrical and Computer Engineering — MSECE,

BSECE/MSECE, MSECE/PhDEngineering —ME, ME/BMAEnglish — MA, PhDEntrepreneurship — MBAEnvironmental Biology — MSEnvironmental Science — MES, MSExercise Nutrition, PhDExercise Physiology, MSEdFamily Nurse Practitioner — FNPGeology — MS, PhDHealth Care Administration — MHA/MBAHistory — MA, PhD

Information Systems — MSIS, PhDInternational Economics — MSIEco, MAIEcoInternational Journalism — MIJInternational Relations — MAIRJournalism — MAKinesiology, Exercise Nutrition, and Health

Promotion — PhDLimnology — MSLMathematics — MS, PhDMechanical Engineering — MSME, BSME/MSMEMuseum Studies — MAMusic Composition — MMMusic History and Literature — MMMusic Performance — MMMusic Theory — MMNeonatal Nurse Practitioner — MSNNursing Practice — DNPNutrition, Fort Sam Houston — MSPhilosophy — MA, PhDPhysical Therapy, Brooke Army

Medical Center — DScPTPhysical Therapy, Fort Sam Houston — DPTPhysical Therapy, West Point — DScPTPhysician Assistant Studies, Brooke, Madigan,

Darnell and William Beaumont Army Medical Centers — DScPAS

Physics — MS, MA, PhDPiano Accompanying — MMPiano Pedagogy and Performance — MMPolitical Science — MAPSci, PhDPsychology — PhD, PhD/MAPsychology & Neuroscience — PsyD, PhDPublic Health — MPH-CHEPublic Policy and Administration — MPPA, MPPA/JDReligion — MA, PhDReligion, Politics, and Society — PhDSocial Work — MSW, MSW/MDivSociology — MA, PhDSpanish — MASport Management, MSEdSport Pedagogy, MSEdStatistics — MS, PhDTaxation —MTax, MTax/BBA, MTax/JDTransition Doctor of Physical Therapy

Program — MPT to DPT

Allbritton Art InstituteBaylor Advanced Research InstituteBaylor Institute for Studies of ReligionCenter for Analytical SpectroscopyCenter for Spatial ResearchCenter for Astrophysics, Space Physics & Engineering Research Center for Business and Economic ResearchCenter for Christian EducationCenter for Christian EthicsCenter for Christian Music StudiesCenter for Community Learning & EnrichmentCenter for Community Research & Development Center for Drug DiscoveryCenter for Family & Community MinistriesCenter for International EducationCenter for Jewish StudiesCenter for Ministry Effectiveness & Educational LeadershipCenter for Reservoir & Aquatic Systems ResearchInstitute for Air ScienceInstitute of ArcheologyInstitute of Biblical & Related LanguagesInstitute of Biomedical StudiesInstitute of Ecological, Environmental, & Earth SciencesInstitute for Faith & LearningInstitute of Gerontological StudiesInstitute for Oral HistoryJ.M. Dawson Institute of Church-State Studies

Graduate Degrees at Baylor University Research Centers and Institutes