Research Enterprise

Office of Research Administration
The Office of Research Administration (ORA) provides support services to faculty, graduate students, and staff seeking external grant funds for research, instruction, and service from federal, state, and local government programs, as well as private foundations.  Several specialized research units report to the Office of Research Administration.  In addition, the ORA facilitates technology transfer through assisting inventors in filing for patent applications, negotiating licensing agreements, and setting up start-up companies. 

Center for Emerging Technologies
The Center for Emerging Technologies is a public-private-academic partnership, which includes the University of Missouri-St. Louis and the Missouri Department of Economic Development.  The mission of the Center is to position the St. Louis region as an important center for advanced technology and knowledge-based economic development.  The Center primarily functions as an incubator for startup companies.  With 90,000 square feet space, it houses fifteen startup companies. Inventions that lead to the establishment of these startups often originate from university research laboratories and faculty and graduate students provide valuable expertise to these enterprises.  In addition, the Center presents educational seminars to help entrepreneurs with legal matters related to patents and licenses, information on venture capital financing, and other business strategies. 

Missouri Enterprise
Missouri Enterprise is a non-profit statewide operation affiliated with the university.  It assists small businesses with industrial, manufacturing, and design engineering projects; it helps in developing strategic business and marketing plans; and in setting up performance evaluation.  Missouri Enterprise specialists advise businesses on all aspects of their operations, from tactical product promotions to complete, company-wide five-year business plans.  Their services assist businesses in improving personnel management, safety, manufacturing efficiency, research funding, communications services and record-keeping, feasibility studies, and more.

Public Policy Research Center
The Public Policy Research Center at University of Missouri-St. Louis seeks ways to make communities more livable through improved public policies.  The PPRC provides research services, programs, opportunities and expertise designed to foster university-community partnerships at the local, county and regional level. PPRC responds to community-identified needs with a multi-disciplinary approach to applied research and community and neighborhood development.

The PPRC endeavors to achieve its mission by:

• Undertaking objective basic and applied research.
• Serving as a regional information and data center.
• Sponsoring forums and seminars for debates and discussions.
• Publishing and disseminating policy briefs, issue papers, research reports, newsletters and books.
• Interpreting and preserving local history to help communities shape their future.
• Commenting on issues of public policy and identifying regional challenges and opportunities.
• Providing training and certificate programs for community and government leaders and professional organizations.
• Partnering with civic, governmental, non profit, and other agencies, as well as with individuals

The PPRC undertakes these tasks by developing partnerships with local, county, regional and state governments and agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and citizen's groups. It also promotes policy research through faculty and community fellowships. PPRC also serves as a policy laboratory for a number of graduate students participating in research and outreach activities.

PPRC is organized around three units: Applied Research, Community and Neighborhood Development, and Metropolitan Information and Data Analysis Services (MIDAS). It also curates regularly changing community photography exhibits.

Center for Business and Industrial Studies
The Center for Business and Industrial Studies is organized within the College of Business Administration for studying managerial problems and performing applied research. The center operates on a not‑for‑profit basis, helping organizations nationwide to understand factors affecting their business environments and to enhance their productivity. University faculty, supported by powerful computer systems, statistical databases, and sophisticated software, provide multidisciplinary consultation in a wide variety of business applications. Studies are undertaken in computer systems, operations management, human resources management, planning and business development, facilities location, distribution, marketing, and financial analysis. Organizations contract with the center for studies tailored to their specific needs. For a brochure outlining the center's services, call (314) 516-5857.

Center for Transportation Studies
This center is an interdisciplinary center, bridging contemporary and historical aspects of transportation.  It brings together scholars from Business, History, Economics, Political Science, English, Art History and others.  The Center is pioneering a new program in Supply Chain Management, developing funds for research into the role private sector transportation plays in the provision of public transportation services. For further information consult the http://www.umsl.edu/depts/cts/.

Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Education
The Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Education is sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences and the Division of Continuing Education to support and enhance economic, financial and entrepreneurship education in elementary and secondary schools. The center provides in‑service programs for area teachers. Working closely with local school districts, the center serves to improve and evaluate economics curriculum. The center develops and publishes curriculum units for K-12 classrooms.  The center also promotes the goals of economic, entrepreneurship and personal finance education among business, professional, educational, labor, and other organizations and individuals in the St. Louis community.

International Center for Tropical Ecology
The International Center for Tropical Ecology promotes education and research concerning the study of biodiversity, conservation, and sustainable use of tropical ecosystems. The center was established to centralize the activities of faculty at UM‑St. Louis and researchers at the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Saint Louis Zoo who specialize in ecology, evolution, systematics, and conservation biology. A priority is to provide funding for graduate students interested in tropical biology and conservation who are enrolled in the cooperative graduate program between UM‑St. Louis, the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Saint Louis Zoo. The International Center for Tropical Ecology sponsors multidisciplinary lectures and symposia on biological, political, and cultural issues related to tropical ecosystems. The center also provides funding and assistance to the undergraduate Certificate in Conservation Biology, which focuses on Missouri conservation, and the graduate certificate in Tropical Biology and Conservation.

Center for Molecular Electronics
Molecular electronics lies at the cutting edge of recent developments in the study and application of thin‑film materials, the growth of semiconductor device material, the fabrication of electronic sensors and devices, and the development of high‑performance polymers. In all these areas, knowledge and control at the atomic or molecular level is essential for state‑of‑the‑art materials and devices. In recognition of the critical importance of research, education, and industry‑university cooperation in these areas, the University of Missouri‑St. Louis has established the Center for Molecular Electronics. The goals of the center are both research at the forefront of the field of molecular electronics and assistance in development of high‑technology products by St. Louis-area corporations. To encourage cooperation between university and corporate scientists and engineers, the membership of the center includes physicists, chemists, and engineers from the University of Missouri‑St. Louis, Washington University, MEMC Electronic Materials, and Monsanto Company.

Center for Neurodynamics
This center sponsors basic research on transmission and processing of information by the brain and the sensory nervous system. Research functions are performed largely by faculty, graduate students, and postdoctoral research associates, though exceptionally talented and motivated undergraduate students also make valuable research contributions. The center is interdisciplinary, composed of faculty from the departments of Biology and Physics and the College of Optometry. It maintains a program of external associates with whom collaborative research projects are pursued. Current associates are in Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas; the Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, Mass.; and Viatech Imaging Inc., Ivoryton, Conn. The center is host to frequent scientific visitors and maintains an active program of seminars on contemporary problems in neuroscience and in the physics underlying neural processes. For further information consult the Center for Neurodynamics Home Page

Missouri Research Park
The University of Missouri System Strategic Plan establishes a mission and goal to promote economic growth for the state and provide assistance in manpower training, technology transfer, innovation and research and development through productive partnerships. The Missouri Research Park is a result of that vision and has been the catalyst for high-tech development along the Hwy. 40/61 corridor in St. Charles County.  Major corporations have followed the trend and are clustering near the Missouri Research Park. 

Center for Trauma Recovery
CTR is a multi-disciplinary center of the University of Missouri-St. Louis whose purpose is to foster research, graduate and undergraduate education, and service in the areas of trauma and victimization.  The Center consists of faculty affiliates from six departments in the University who have research, teaching or service interests in trauma related topics.  These individuals share a common set of goals.  The Center sponsors a colloquium series every semester and offers an undergraduate certificate in Trauma Studies.  The CTR is housed in the Kathy J. Weinman Building which also contains the Weinman Child Advocacy Center that provides services to traumatized children.

Children's Advocacy Services of Greater St. Louis (CASGLS)
The Children’s Advocacy Services of Greater St. Louis provides services to children who have been sexually abused.  The organization offers forensic fact-finding interviews; medical exams; victim advocacy, individual, family and group therapy; and training for the community at-large and area professionals.  Internships for undergraduate and graduate students are available. Children’s Advocacy Services has two facilities: one is located on the University of Missouri-St. Louis South Campus and one is located in the Central West End.

Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center
Now beginning its fourth season of presenting the finest in the performing arts to the St. Louis region, the Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center opened its doors in September 2003.  The $52 million non-profit facility designed by the architectural firm of internationally renowned I. M. Pei features the 1,625-seat Anheuser-Busch Performance Hall and the 350-seat E. Desmond and Mary Ann Lee Theater.  The Touhill is the jewel of the UM-St. Louis campus and is a focal point for creating an arts district for students at the University.

The Touhill’s mission is laid out in the following statement:  The Touhill Performing Arts Center at the University of Missouri-St. Louis creates opportunities for the people in our region to experience, appreciate and embrace the transformational power of the performing arts.  It is a welcoming place, a leading cultural partner in our community and a symbol of this University’s commitment to integrate education, innovation and excellence. More information about the Touhill can be found at

Child Development Center
The Child Development Center, 130 South Campus Classroom Building, provides high-quality day programs for children of students, faculty, staff, and community families. The center is accredited by the Academy of Early Childhood Programs, a division of the National Association for the Education of Young Children, one of 24 accredited programs in the St. Louis area. The program operates from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, year round. The center offers evening child care to UM St. Louis students and faculty during the fall and winter semesters.  The center is open Monday thru Thursday from 5:00-9:00 p.m. Children aged 3-11 years old are eligible. This program serves children from six weeks to five years of age. The center also provides university students with observation, participation, research, and similar educational and clinical opportunities. Call the center at 516-5658 for additional information.

Center for Human Origin and Cultural Diversity
 The Center for Human Origin and Cultural Diversity was founded in Fall, 1995 as a joint venture between the Anthropology Department, and the May buye Center (Archive of the African National Congress) at the University of the Western Cape, South Africa.  Building on the foundation of anthropological knowledge, the Center will design a K-12 curriculum.  Currently, no comprehensive anthropology curriculum exists in the U.S.  Programs are also offered in conjunction with the Gerontology Program and the Missouri Historical Society.

Center for the Humanities
The Center provides visibility and focus for humanities activities at UM‑St. Louis and attracts and channels resources for support of interdisciplinary humanistic inquiry. The Center sponsors a variety of conferences, symposia, and lectures. For over a decade, the Center has sponsored an annual conference titled "What is a City?" that examines the structure and social environment of cities and their effects on social and cultural life.  The Center sponsors the Monday Noon Cultural Series, which features a variety of humanities and arts presentations and performances. The Center also supports and coordinates the poetry and short story series, which showcases authors reading their original works. In addition, the Center houses and funds the journal Theory and Society, a refereed, interdisciplinary journal of social theory and practices, published by Kluwer Academic in The Netherlands. The Center disseminates information on the humanities on its Web site and promotes development of interdisciplinary outreach programs.

Center for International Studies
The Center for International Studies supports academic programs, seminars, and conferences designed to promote and improve research in international studies, improve methods of teaching international studies in schools and colleges, and encourage an interest in international affairs in the university and area communities. The center's Office of International Student and Scholar Services coordinates and provides services for international students and scholars including admissions, immigration, orientation, nonacademic advising, etc. In addition, the center administers the campus exchange and study abroad programs and disseminates information on study, work, and travel abroad. The center promotes the development of interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary courses, assists in staffing courses within individual departments, houses the Joint Center for East Asian Studies of UM‑St. Louis and Washington University, the E. Desmond Lee Global Ethnic Collaborative, the Karakas Family Foundation Alliance for the Advancement of Hellenic Studies, and the Endowed Professorships in African/African-American Studies, Chinese Studies, Greek Studies, international education, Irish Studies, Japanese Studies,  the German Culture Center, and the Greek Culture Center. It conducts seminars that address specific faculty and student needs and interests, sponsors conferences for academic and community audiences, organizes international business development programs, sponsors an International Performing Arts series, issues occasional papers, administers undergraduate certificate programs in Africana studies, East Asian studies, European studies, Greek studies, international business, international studies, and Latin American studies and the Graduate Certificate in International Studies. In addition, the Center serves precollegiate educators statewide through the International Studies Resource Library and operates a comprehensive global education program.

Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL)
The CTL is a division of the Office of Academic Affairs that promotes student learning by offering programs and resources that support effective teaching and learning at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.  Orientations, workshops, and seminars on research and teaching are designed to support the professional development of faculty (full-time and part-time), academic leaders, graduate students, and Teaching Assistants. The CTL co-sponsors programs with other campus units that augment the orientation programs, introduce technology supports for teaching and learning, and  create campus conversations about timely initiatives such as student and civic engagement. Major CTL programs include:

• New Faculty Orientation in August
• New Part-time Faculty Orientation offered before the start of fall, spring, and summer semesters
• Teaching Assistants conference and workshop in August
• Academic Leaders Forum
• Fall Focus on Teaching and Technology Conference

The CTL coordinates two UM System initiatives on campus, the New Faculty Teaching Scholars Program and the Leadership Development Program and sponsors the implementation of the Faculty Survey of Student Engagement. Confidential classroom consultations and mid-semester online course are available each semester to all faculty.

E. Desmond Lee Technology and Learning Center (TLC)
The TLC models a technology enriched classroom where theories and ideas are put into practice.  The TLC is a resource for the community.  Everyone is welcome to use the facility. Graduate students working in the center focus on research and assist in the development of effective uses of technology learning environments.

Information Technology Services
Information Technology Services provides students, faculty, and staff with an integrated array of voice, video, and data services, including consultation, programming, training and operational support.

Eleven Smart classrooms provide network-attached computers at each student station as well as an instructor station.  High-resolution projectors and video/audio systems complete these facilities.  There are also more than fifty media-enhanced lecture halls/classrooms with instructor stations as well as projection systems. These Technology Enhanced classrooms provide faculty with electronic blackboards for lecture notes, and software demonstrations. Complementing these facilities are student computer laboratories in the Social Sciences Building, Thomas Jefferson Library, Benton Hall, and South Campus Computer Building where consultants are available to assist students with general operation and troubleshooting needs.

KWMU
90.7 KWMU-FM, is the 100,000‑watt public radio station of the University of Missouri‑St. Louis and National Public Radio/ Public Radio International affiliate. The professionally staffed station broadcasts news, talk, and entertainment 24 hours a day. KWMU provides programming that is responsive to the needs of the community. In training students who plan to pursue broadcast careers, KWMU augments the educational and training function of the university.

Regional Center for Education and Work
The Center initiates, promotes and supports programs that foster cooperation and information sharing among business, labor, social service and education for healthy long-term work force development and economic improvement for the St. Louis Region.  The center will be a hub for regional research and planning in workforce development, employment trends and job forecasting.  It serves as a resource to education, school counseling, labor force training and social service providers. For further information consult the Regional Center for Education and Work Home Page.

The Faculty Resource Center (FRC)
The Faculty Resource Center (FRC), provides enhanced technical support to faculty, TA’s, graduate students and support staff wishing to integrate technology into course content. These support resources include assistance in development of web-based material, assistance with online courses; the integration of video or graphics into course materials; training in the use of various instructional technologies; and access to networked workstations with software and media capabilities.. For more information, please visit our web site at: or call (314) 516-6704

My Gateway
The My Gateway Site provides on-line course materials as well as many other features such as: class email, discussion forums, virtual chat, and address book, calendar, and task list. From this web site, you can access course and organizational information; find tools to communicate with students, professors and colleagues; link to Registrar's grades and schedules; and access links to other campus services.

The On-Line Testing Center in the South Campus
The On-Line Testing Center in the South Campus Computer Building, Room 200, provides new line computer-based testing services.  The center is staffed seven days a week, offering both midday and evening hours, by a proctor that assists the students in getting started with examinations and provides scheduling support.

The Technology Support Center
211 Lucas Hall (516-6034) is available for students, faculty, and staff who have general questions regarding their accounts or use of campus resources. The Web office provides assistance for faculty and staff in developing Web pages.

University Eye Center
Located on the South Campus, the center is open to the public as well as to faculty, staff, and students of the university. Its goal is to provide patients with high‑quality vision care and optometry students with diverse educational opportunities. The school also operates the Optometric Center, a comprehensive optometric eye care facility in the Central West End of the city of St. Louis, and the East St. Louis Eye Center, jointly owned and operated by the University of Missouri‑St. Louis College of Optometry and Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. For further information consult the Center for Eye Care Home Page.