External funding for NIU is increasing, despite a nationwide recession.

NIU’s external funding for Fiscal Year 1991 reached $16.2 million, a 3 percent increase over last fiscal year’s funding, said Linda Schwarz, director of the Office of Sponsored Projects.

“External funding” refers to money awarded to NIU faculty to carry out specific projects. These projects include research, training and public service projects, said Schwarz.

External funding is received from the private sector, foundations, agencies and federal and state grants for university projects.

Schwarz said she is not sure of the exact reasons for the climb, but believes there are three main contributing factors.

“As more NIU faculty obtain external grants, NIU’s reputation grows,” Schwarz said.

Schwarz said another factor is the growing number of NIU faculty who are enhancing their reputations for expertise, knowledge and talent within their chosen fields.

In addition, it is important for faculty to seek external funding because of decreasing amounts of State of Illinois funding to NIU, Schwarz said.

“These grants are all for specific projects,” Schwarz said. “These are not gifts for the university.”

Schwarz said $1.9 million of the external funding came from the College of Continuing Education contract courses, the College of Business Executive MBA program and NIU’s Division of International and Special Programs.

Money brought in for these programs is used for the programs.

Frank Van Buer, director of the Office of International Training and Consultation, said NIU’s Division of International and Special Programs provides training and consultation for people overseas.

“There is a fee involved in this,” Van Buer said. “The money has to pay for salaries and materials—it pays for having something done.”

A spokesperson for the Executive MBA program said the same method is used for their courses—the money the students pay to go to the program is used to run the program.

Schwarz said NIU faculty working in areas of interest to outside agencies or organizations apply to them through the grant programs.

Although application guidelines vary with each agency or organization, faculty generally prepare budgets that tell the funding agency how much money they will need to carry out the project and how they intend to spend that money, Schwarz said.

“Faculty work with our office to make sure the budget is in keeping with university, state and agency regulations,” Schwarz said.

“Our office focuses primarily on developing countries such as Asia, Africa and Latin America,” Van Buer said.