Last week Governor Beshear announced that Kentucky was the recipient of a major grant from the National Science Foundation. The NSF grant, which totals $12.5 million over five years, will fund university research in three key technological areas: biotechnology, nanotechnology and cyber-technologies.

Gov. Beshear also announced that Kentucky’s Department of Education was the recipient of a $2.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education Advanced Placement Incentive Program to expand Advanced Placement opportunities in Kentucky high schools.

“These grants further my administration’s goal of focusing on quality education for our children,” said Gov. Beshear. “We must broaden opportunities for students to stretch their minds and provide the necessary tools for them to learn, conduct research and develop innovative concepts that will, ultimately, improve Kentucky’s ability to compete in a 21st century economy.”

Centre College and Berea College are among eight Kentucky colleges and universities that will conduct research under the NSF grant. The primary grant recipients are the University of Kentucky and University of Louisville.

The five-year award was made through Kentucky’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), an initiative of the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation. The grant is expected to be matched with an additional $5 million from the commonwealth over the life of the grant.