Supporting UMass Amherst’s
Research Mission
Research has been a cornerstone of UMass Amherst’s mission as a land-grant university for more than 160 years. Your support can ensure this essential work.
Every day, the university’s faculty, scientists, and students at all levels are pursuing lines of inquiry that have the potential to provide society with cures for common diseases, cleaner water, a more sustainable global food supply, safer technology, and more equitable access to education and social mobility.
The university secures more than $150 million in federal grants and contracts each year to support this essential work. But recent federal actions have placed federal funding at risk. Without this funding and support for the people who fuel discoveries across disciplines at UMass— graduate students, postdoctoral research, research technicians—progress will come to a halt, the United States will lose ground as a leader of innovation, and countless lives will be affected.
The UMass Amherst Foundation is providing philanthropic avenues through which the UMass community can support those whose livelihoods are being negatively affected and help the university keep its promise to produce knowledge and solutions that move the world forward.
UMass Amherst Research Continuity Fund
Solutions to the world’s most pressing problems cannot be developed by one faculty member alone. Truly game-changing research requires the contributions of postdoctoral researchers, technicians, research staff, and multidisciplinary groups of graduate students. The university’s capacity to support potentially transformative research depends on the ability to support people with a wide array of expertise. Donors to the Research Continuity Fund can help directly cover the base salaries of postdocs, research staff, and research faculty, as well as stipends and tuition waivers for graduate research assistants.
Angel Fund
International students bring a range of unique perspectives to UMass Amherst and to their work as undergraduate and graduate researchers. They contribute key context and knowledge in their respective fields and work alongside faculty to ensure that the discoveries and groundbreaking solutions resulting from their work will benefit diverse communities around the world. Gifts to the Angel Fund will help meet the legal, academic, housing, living and counseling needs of students who are adversely affected by changes in federal immigration
Spotlight on UMass Research
We Know Nanoplastics Are a Threat—This New Tool Can Help Us Figure Out Just How Bad They Are
UMass Amherst leads international team of scientists is in development of ultra-precise, efficient, and flexible technique for measuring and analyzing nanoscale scourge.
Cold Weather Chills Intentions to Lose Weight
Study of U.S. adults co-authored by UMass Amherst researcher finds weight-loss behaviors rise and fall with temperature extremes.
Modeling data shows that upfront investments in co-undergrounding wires, particularly in outage-prone areas, can pay off.
Spring 2025 Rising Researchers Announced
Seven UMass Amherst undergraduates have been named Spring 2025 Rising Researchers in recognition of their outstanding research, scholarship and creative activity in a variety of fields.
Doctoral Student Eric Siegel Wins Grant from European Microbiology Society for Lyme Disease Research
Eric Siegel, a doctoral student has been awarded a grant from the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) to continue his efforts to reduce Lyme disease.