Amid record-breaking research funding this year, CSU has plans to try to attract increased private dollars for research as federal dollars dry up.

The university plans to do so by increasing its profile as a research and development shop for businesses that increasingly have outsourced their research to universities, said Bill Farland, CSU's vice president for research.

"In order for us to grow, we're going to have to grow in that private-sector funding," he said.

The move, incorporated in the university's strategic plan, follows an ominous speech by Tony Frank in which the university president warned that the state of Colorado would no longer be able to fund higher education in the coming years. He said the university was evaluating its options to shore up any losses in state funding.

Similarly, CSU Research has begun preparing for its forecasted federal funding decline.

It hired Mark Wdowik, chairman of the Rocky Mountain Innosphere, as assistant vice president for Research and Industry Partnerships earlier this year. Wdowik has held administrative roles in technology transfer at CSU Ventures and at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

He now is tasked with