North Dakota Senator John Hoeven visited with researchers at the NDSU Office of Research and Creative Activity to learn about initiatives occurring at NDSU and their connection to Department of Defense funding. Senator Hoeven was recently selected to serve on the Senate Appropriations Committee and its Subcommittee on Defense, a group that provides funding for projects serving defense priorities.

During the visit, Senator Hoeven met with NDSU Vice President of Research Dr. Kelly A. Rusch and Executive Director of Corporate and Foundation Research Relations Dr. Jolynne Tschetter; researchers Dr. Dante Battocchi (Coatings and Polymeric Materials), Dr. Chad Ulven (Mechanical Engineering), and Shane Stafslien (Bioactive Materials Research Laboratory).

The group toured labs and met with research staff and students. The Senator learned about research into coatings that limit corrosion and wear on military infrastructure; research into limiting the buildup of organics such as barnacles; high performance materials created from bio-based sources including soybeans and studies related to limiting bacterial accumulation on water filtration systems.

Senator Hoeven commented, “North Dakota plays an important role in our nation’s defense with missions at Minot Air Force Base, Grand Forks Air Base and our Fargo Air Guard, but our state is also conducting important research and development for our military. We appreciate the good work of these researchers in developing new tools to keep our military on the cutting-edge.”

Dr. Kelly A. Rusch added, “Senator Hoeven was highly engaged in discussions with our researchers and he asked many thoughtful questions of Dante, Chad, and Shane about their work. His role as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee and its Subcommittee on Defense connects well with the expertise of our researchers at NDSU and we look forward to ongoing discussions on future funding opportunities.”

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