Fall 2025 Newsletter

McGinley Chair Thomas Massaro, SJ addresses one of the panels at the Conference on Im/migration, AI, and Social Justice in March 2025

Message from the CRO and Associate Provost for Research George Hong

In FY 2025, the Office of Research experienced a year of exceptional growth, strategic alignment, and expanding impact. Guided by Fordham’s Jesuit mission and the University’s new Strategic Plan (2025–2030), we advanced interdisciplinary collaboration, global engagement, and research excellence across many academic disciplines.

  1. Historic Growth in Grant Funding. Fordham reached a record-breaking milestone in external grant funding, receiving over $50 million—a 30% increase over FY 2024. However, four federal grants awarded in previous years have been suspended or terminated due to recent executive orders. We are currently awaiting final determinations regarding their status. Please note that significant expenditures from these awards were made in prior years.
  2. Expanding Strategic Partnerships. We deepened research partnerships with Columbia, NYU, Georgetown, IBM, and, most notably, through Fordham’s active participation in the AI Alliance. More than 65 faculty members have engaged in interdisciplinary dialogue with leading institutions and industry partners. Our upcoming Symposium on Responsible AI, co-sponsored by the AI Alliance, IBM, and NYU and scheduled for October 16-17, 2025, will highlight Fordham’s growing leadership in ethical, legal, and interdisciplinary AI research.
  3. Launching the Global Research Alliance of Jesuit Universities (GRAJU). Fordham has taken the lead in establishing the Global Research Alliance of Jesuit Universities, a new initiative designed to foster robust and sustainable international research collaborations among Jesuit institutions of higher education. Georgetown University and several international Jesuit universities have joined as founding members. Fordham will select up to 15 participants to collaborate with international Jesuit scholars and take part in the inaugural symposium and research field trip at Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines on March 10-13, 2026. More information on the GRAJU will be available soon at this webpage: https://www.fordham.edu/academics/research/office-of-research/initiatives-and-infrastructure/internal-funding-opportunities/

Looking ahead to FY 2026, the Office of Research remains deeply committed to building a dynamic, innovative, and impactful research ecosystem that strengthens Fordham’s scholarly mission and deepens its public engagement.

Thank you for your continued support and help. 

George Hong, Ph.D.

Professor, Chief Research Officer, and Associate Provost for Research