Dr. James Henson named DoD EPSCoR project director

Las Vegas, Nevada // April 21, 2008 -- Dr. James M. Henson was recently selected by the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) Research Affairs Council to act as the Project Director for the Department of Defense Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (DEPSCoR). He will also serve as a member of the NSHE Project Director Council. DEPSCoR is a federally funded program intended to increase research competitiveness in states that historically have not received significant research and development funding from DoD agencies. Nevada is one of 25 states and 2 territories authorized to participate in the program. Federal funding for the program in FY2008 amounted to $15.7 million.

Dr. Henson is the Associate Chair of the Department of Electrical and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Nevada, Reno. Since joining the faculty in 1991 he has served as principal investigator on numerous DoD supported grants and contracts – largely in the area of high resolution military imaging radar simulation and analysis. He has also worked with the Department of the Treasury and the Nevada Gaming Industry in areas related to the deterrence of counterfeit paper currencies. In 2002 he testified, on behalf of the Coalition of DEPSCoR States, before the US Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. Dr. Henson currently has five patents pending in the areas of the fabrication of covert media and 3D imaging radar systems.

As director of the DEPSCoR program, it will be Dr. Henson’s goal “to maximize the number of DEPSCoR research awards for researchers in Nevada and to seek continued congressional support for the DEPSCoR program at large.” According to Dr. Henson, “Not only does the DEPSCoR program help to fund and stimulate research in Nevada, it also provides DoD research laboratories with the seed money needed to stimulate innovative research in small to medium sized universities in the DEPSCoR states.”

Nevada DEPSCoR programs have successfully been awarded over $4 million. The research has been matched with over $2 million from the state and has been critical to increasing involvement in research projects that bring cutting-edge science to the real-world solution of critical issues for DoD. Nevada is the home of many DoD facilities, including Nellis Air Force Base, Fallon Naval Air Station which includes The Naval Surface Warfare Center and the TopGun program, and the Hawthorne Army Ammunition Depot.

For more information regarding the Nevada DoD EPSCoR program, visit www.nevada.edu/epscor