SAN ANTONIO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) College of Sciences has received a $1.5 million gift from The Welch Foundation to establish the Robert A. Welch Chair in Chemistry. With this support, the university will recruit a distinguished chemist who will contribute to research efforts in chemistry and support the university as it grows to attaining Tier One research status.
The Welch Foundation gift will be matched dollar for dollar by funding available from a university endowment to create a $3 million endowment to attract and recruit a strong leader to teach and conduct research at UTSA.
Texas has three Tier One universities, each of which has at least three Welch Chairs.
“Having a Welch Chair has become a symbol of achieving a high level of excellence in scholarly chemistry research, and I am very pleased that The Welch Foundation’s directors recognize UTSA’s progress and promise through the funding of this chair,” said George Perry, dean of the UTSA College of Sciences.
Recruiting top faculty to provide instruction and conduct research that serves society is one aspect of UTSA’s efforts to become a Tier One university. Such universities provide opportunities that lead to economic growth, generate new discoveries and innovations in science and engineering, and increase exposure to world-class cultural and artistic programs.
“The Welch Foundation endowment is a great opportunity for us. It will impact the research environment in the Department of Chemistry,” said Waldemar Gorski, chair of the Department of Chemistry. “The Welch Chair will both amplify our ability to conduct high quality research and catalyze our scientific collaborations.”
UTSA’s relationship with The Welch Foundation began in 1993. Over that time period, foundation funding has grown to more than $4.2 million to support both the chemistry department and individual chemistry researchers.
The Department of Chemistry has research specialty programs including the major sub-disciplines of organic chemistry, biochemistry, inorganic chemistry, analytical chemistry, and physical chemistry as well as other interdisciplinary collaborations including medicinal chemistry and materials chemistry.
The department offers bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees and currently has 350 students enrolled in its programs.
The Welch Foundation, based in Houston, is one of the nation's largest and oldest private funding sources for chemistry research. It primarily supports researchers at Texas institutions of higher education.
The University of Texas at San Antonio is one of the fastest growing higher education institutions in Texas and the second largest of nine academic universities and six health institutions in the UT System. As a multicultural institution of access and excellence, UTSA aims to be a national research university providing access to educational excellence and preparing citizen leaders for the global environment.
UTSA serves more than 30,000 students in 134 degree programs in the colleges of Architecture, Business, Education and Human Development, Engineering, Honors, Liberal and Fine Arts, Public Policy, Sciences and Graduate School. Founded in 1969, UTSA is an intellectual and creative resource center and a socioeconomic development catalyst for Texas and beyond. Learn more at www.utsa.edu/today.