University research

A story on the front page of the Southeast Missourian earlier this month detailed a research project at Southeast Missouri State University whose aim is to develop a more effective antibiotic. The research combines chemistry and biology and involves faculty members and students from both areas.

The university, whose roots are in preparing teachers for classrooms, isn't usually regarded as a research institution. But the antibiotic project is just one example of the research activity faculty members are encouraged to pursue.

The key to research is funding. While the university has been able to provide some financial resources for research, these projects generally rely on outside grants.

Research could get a more prominent profile when the university's planned research park is developed around the new Interchange 55 interchange between Cape Girardeau and Jackson. That development also could spur more funding for innovation and research efforts.

Perhaps the most important aspect of research projects at Southeast is the learning opportunity for students. Projects like the antibiotics research can be tedious and time-consuming. Students involved in the process have hands-on opportunities to apply what they are learning in the classroom to practical research.