UNT Resource : End Note

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End Note

UNT Resource magazine >> End Note

UNT enters the 21st century with both a mission statement and a new vision statement that place considerable emphasis on the importance of research and discovery.
      Our mission statement, most recently affirmed by the UNT Board of Regents in May of this year, defines what UNT is today. It states, "The University of North Texas is the largest and most comprehensive research and doctoral degree-granting institution in the North Texas area and the flagship of the UNT System. The university is committed to excellence in teaching and the discovery and application of knowledge through research and creative activities. ..."
      Now, thanks to intensive universitywide planning inspired and led by Chancellor Alfred F. Hurley, a new vision will guide the direction, development and growth of UNT's facilities, programs and enrollments between now and the year 2015.
      Vision is a look forward that speaks to UNT's future. The outcomes we are seeking with our visionary planning are expressed by our vision statement: "The University of North Texas will be one of the state's top-tier universities — a premier educational, intellectual, research and cultural resource. As the flagship of a multi-institutional university system and the leading university of its region, UNT will be recognized for education, research, creative activities and public service, and for advancing innovations in the enhancement of learning. ..."
      Because UNT is a comprehensive university, the word "research" is an umbrella term that includes scientific research, academic and original scholarship of all forms, and artistic creativity.

Cross-disciplinary research

Since 1985, UNT research has moved forward on many levels. However, UNT's ultimate success in realizing its foremost objectives (set forth in its 21st-century mission statement and its new vision statement) is inexorably connected to its ability to take a strong leadership role in research that will help drive the economy of the Metroplex and the state of Texas. The research capabilities of the university that are expanding most quickly are those driven by cross-disciplinary team efforts and research partnerships.
      Two areas highlighted in this magazine, electronic materials and devices and environmental science, showcase the success and potential of cross-disciplinary research at UNT.
      Cutting-edge research in UNT's new Laboratory for Electronic Materials and Devices centers on fundamental properties of materials associated with electronic devices of all kinds. Opened in the spring of 1999, the laboratory houses materials growth and characterization equipment in a unique configuration enabling a wide range of materials science studies. The laboratory apparatus was made possible by a gift from Texas Instruments (valued at $3.5 million). Work in the new lab involves faculty and students from several academic departments, including chemistry, engineering technology, materials science, mathematics and physics.
      Our future vision in this area calls for the establishment of a Center for Solid State Chemistry that will focus on fundamental research in solid-state materials with a special emphasis on nanotechnology — the creation of materials and devices atom by atom. National recognition of the importance of this new technology is exemplified by a projected 83 percent federal increase in funding for nanotechnology research for fiscal year 2001. The center will perform basic and applied research to create new knowledge, and the university will transfer technology through patent licensing to enhance the Texas knowledge-based technology economy.
      The Institute of Applied Sciences is UNT's oldest and largest interdisciplinary research consortium. Here, faculty and students from scientific disciplines ranging from astronomy to zoology come together with faculty and students from philosophy and environmental journalism to pursue research and issues related to such important topics as water resource analysis and management in Texas and the impact of mass transportation systems on the air quality of the Metroplex.
      We plan for research on one of the most critical issues for the North Texas region in the 21st century — water quality and availability — to carry our future vision for environmental studies to the establishment of a new Center for Watershed Analysis and Management. While no other Texas university has focused on this important topic, UNT has a 30-year record of research and public service in analyzing watershed and watershed issues.

Research for the future

The message we are sending is that research is an extremely important component in UNT's vision for the future. We hope that the citizens, communities, non-profit organizations and businesses of the North Texas region will support and become partners in our endeavors so that all citizens of Texas can reap increasing benefits from our growing commitment to research and discovery.