UH sets extramural funding record for 4th consecutive year, $734M in FY 2025

from UH News, August 6, 2025

Despite growing uncertainty in federal research support, the University of Hawaiʻi has once again set a new extramural funding record reaching $734 million in fiscal year 2025 (FY 2025). This marks the fourth consecutive year UH has surpassed the half-billion dollar mark and represents a $118.3 million (19.2%) increase over the previous record of $615.7 million set in FY 2024. Extramural funding includes investments from external agencies such as the federal government, industry and nonprofit organizations that support research and training conducted by UH faculty and staff.

“This year marks another record-breaking milestone in federal support for the University of Hawaiʻi, highlighting the excellence of our researchers and our university system. These numbers reflect UH’s key role in addressing the urgent challenges facing our state and the world,” said UH President Wendy Hensel.

Notably, this success comes at a time when concerns over cuts in federal research funding continue to grow. As of August 5, 66 grants totaling more than $89 million have been terminated at UH due to shifting federal priorities. Proposed cuts in the next federal budget to major research funders like the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health, along with widespread federal staffing reductions, signal a more challenging funding landscape ahead.

“At the same time that we celebrate our impressive research success last year, we are navigating the unprecedented federal funding cuts that will affect UH in the year ahead,” Hensel said. “We continue to monitor the situation and will take whatever steps we can to maintain the tremendous momentum of our research enterprise. We appreciate the unwavering support of our congressional delegation and are committed to working with state leaders to minimize disruptions.”

UH Mānoa leads away

The UH-led Maui Wildfire Exposure Study offers comprehensive health screenings and enrolls affected individuals into the most extensive social and bio-monitoring study in Hawaiʻi following a disaster.

UH Mānoa, the research flagship of UH’s ten campus system, led the extramural award amounts in FY 2025 with $570.4 million. UH System brought in $98.7 million, UH Community Colleges totaled $31.3 million, UH Hilo received $23.9 million, and UH West Oʻahu totaled $9.7 million.

“I would like to congratulate the UH Mānoa research community for their outstanding contributions toward UH’s record extramural funding tally for FY 2025,” said UH Mānoa Interim Provost Vassilis L. Syrmos. “The dedication and commitment from our faculty, staff, and students are what drives the UH research enterprise to be a major contributor to the well-being of our state, the nation, and the world.”

An economic impact report published by the University of Hawaiʻi Economic Research Organization in 2021 revealed that UH research-related expenditures totaled $476.8 million or 21 percent of total UH expenditures in FY 2020, generated $734.8 million in total business sales, $236.9 million in employee earnings, and $41.2 million in state tax revenue, while supporting an estimated 5,428 jobs.

“This four-peat in record extramural funding is an achievement that the University of Hawaiʻi and the state can be extremely proud of,” said UH Interim Vice President for Research and Innovation Chad Walton. “Our success can be attributed to the efforts of our dedicated and hardworking faculty, staff and students to grow the UH research enterprise—which serves as a major contributor to Hawaiʻi’s economy.”

Kakaʻako news conference

The record federal funding announcement was made at an August 6 press conference in Kakaʻako where the UH Cancer Center and the UH John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) is located, with Gov. Josh Green, U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, U.S. Rep. Jill Tokuda, UH leadership and researchers. The UH Cancer Center and JABSOM accounted for tens of millions in federal funding awarded in FY 2025.

“The University of Hawaiʻi is not only our state’s higher education system—it’s a critical driver of innovation, health and economic resilience,” said Green. “This record-breaking year of research funding underscores UH’s essential role in tackling our most pressing challenges, from health equity to climate resilience. As governor, I’m committed to continuing our partnership to ensure that UH has the support it needs to serve the people of Hawaiʻi.”

“This investment shows growing recognition of the UH Cancer Center’s unique work to address cancer disparities in Hawaiʻi’s communities, including Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, and Filipinos,” said UH Cancer Center Director Naoto T. Ueno. “It supports scientific research on higher-risk groups, and programs that bring education and prevention to underserved communities statewide.”

“Our research is rooted in the needs of Hawaiʻi’s people—because if we don’t do it, no one else will,” said Sam Shomaker, dean of JABSOM. “From Native Hawaiian health disparities to wildfire recovery on Maui, this record support enables us to carry out hyperlocal research that wouldn’t happen anywhere else. We’re grateful to our congressional leaders for championing this work.”

A few examples of UH programs that attracted the attention of funders:

• The Water Resources Research Center at UH Mānoa received a $2.4 million award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to assist Hawaiʻi farmers with on-farm trials of an innovative weather-based irrigation management system that utilizes hyperlocal information from a network of weather stations across the islands.
• The UH System Office of Land and Conservation Futures received $2.3 million from the U.S. Department of Defense to conduct a U.S. Army Garrison Hawaiʻi installation study to address the state’s needs for a robust biocontrol program and improved wildfire mitigation efforts.
• The Hawaiʻi State Department of Land and Natural Resources awarded $1.72 million to the Pacific Cooperative Studies Unit in the College of Natural Sciences at UH Mānoa and the Oʻahu Invasive Species Committee to survey and control Little Fire Ant and Coqui frog populations on Windward side of Oʻahu.
• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded $1.56 million to the Thompson School of Social Work & Public Health at UH Mānoa to study and understand how the experiences of residents, first responders and other stakeholders involved the 2023 Maui wildfires have shaped 1) preparedness, response, and recovery; 2) individual and community health, social, and emergency system resilience; and 3) population health outcomes.
• The UH Cancer Center received $792,000 from American Cancer Society to create a greater awareness among Native Hawaiian men of the risk, available screening and treatment options for prostate and other urinary cancers; while addressing social barriers in the community, such as a lack of transportation.
• The John A. Burns School of Medicine received $551,767 from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to support research on Indigenous addiction and pain management treatment outcomes for Native Hawaiian communities.

Syrmos added that more than $479.5 million in awards were received from the federal government, which have significant impacts to the state and the nation. Much of this funding was the result of the close coordination between UH and Hawaiʻi’s congressional delegation, which includes U.S. Senators Brian Schatz and Mazie Hirono and U.S. Representatives Ed Case and Jill Tokuda.

U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz
“UH is a world-class institution for research and higher education that’s helping power Hawaiʻi’s economy,” said Schatz, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “While this record funding is good news, it comes at a challenging time as the White House continues to threaten federal funding for universities across the country. We will continue doing everything we can to protect UH and the critical work they do for its students and Hawaiʻi.”

U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono
“UH’s record amount of extramural funding this year is a testament to the cutting-edge research and innovation taking place across the system,” said Hirono. “This funding benefits communities throughout our state, across the nation, and around the world, which is why I have been working hard to support UH’s funding requests at the federal level. As the Trump Administration continues to threaten federal funding for colleges and universities through its all-out attack on education programs, I will continue working with UH leadership to do everything we can to protect the university’s funding moving forward.”

U.S. Rep. Ed Case
“This fourth straight year of a new record level of federal and other extramural funding for the University of Hawaiʻi says everything about UH’s sustained expansion of research and innovation talent and capacity as well as broadened and strengthened partnerships with Hawaiʻi’s Congressional delegation and other partners,” said Case. “While recognition of this accomplishment and of its contributions to Hawaiʻi higher education and our economy are well deserved, the storm clouds we now face are very real and mean that we will all have to work even harder and smarter and in stronger coordination to preserve and expand these welcome advances for UH and our community.”

U.S. Rep. Jill Tokuda
“This record-breaking extramural funding is a clear testament to the caliber of UH’s faculty, students, and researchers, and to the relevance and impact of their work in the field—delivering real solutions for Hawaiʻi, our country, and the world. Their innovation drives discovery, supports local jobs, and creates meaningful opportunities for Hawaiʻi’s future. While federal funding faces growing threats, I remain committed to fighting for the resources that sustain this vital work and the economic and educational opportunities it brings to our state.”

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