An injection of over $12 million in federal funding is set to transform the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s fledgling nanotechnology and cybersecurity programs.
U.S. Sen. John Boozman (R-AR) helped spur the $12.75 worth of federal aid through his role on the Senate Appropriations Committee and was on hand Thursday as the new funding was announced at Little Rock’s Ottenheimer Library.
“We’ve got a great delegation that really does work very, very well together,” Boozman said. “We don’t always agree on everything at the federal level, but when it comes to Arkansas, everybody forms ranks and makes it happen.”
The result will be an influx of capital to several emerging high-tech programs being offered by the university:
- $750,000 will be allocated for the William H. Bowen School of Law’s Veterans Legal Services Clinic.
- $3 million will go toward purchasing research equipment, plus another $3 million for bone-regeneration research involving nanomaterials.
- $5 million will be allocated toward cybersecurity, specifically research into a breach-resistant platform that is being developed through a partnership with Montana State University.
- $1 million will go to the university’s Collaboratorium for Social Media and Online Behavioral Studies Laboratory (COSMOS).
“Our work does not happen in isolation,” Little Rock Chancellor Christina Drale said. “We partner with industry leaders, government agencies, nonprofit organizations and institutions across Arkansas and around the world to address real-world challenges.”
Brian Berry, Little Rock’s vice provost of research, said the funding will enhance the university’s goal of providing up-to-the-minute educational opportunities for emerging fields.
“We focus on practical research, not research for its own sake,” Berry said. “This kind of research creates meaningful opportunities for students. They’re working alongside faculty on projects in cybersecurity, data analytics and advanced materials. That experience prepares them to step directly into high-demand careers, many of them right here in Arkansas.”
News of the federal funding came during a week when the university also received a $50,000 gift toward helping sustain the Shellam Flake Planetarium Endowment Fund in the Donaghey College of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (DCSTEM).
Photo by Benjamin Krain
READ ALSO: Arvest Named to Forbes 2026 Best Banks List
