BAR HARBOR – Calling it a “watershed moment,” representatives of four Maine schools and the state’s two premiere scientific institutions announced Tuesday that $5.5 million in federal grant money will be used to create a statewide biomedical research network during the next three years.

This represents the largest grant received by the Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory in its 103-year history, Dr. John Forrest, the laboratory’s director, said.

Called the Biomedical Research Infrastructure Network, or BRIN, the group will be based at the Salisbury Cove lab and be composed of students, faculty and research scientists from the Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory, The Jackson Laboratory, College of the Atlantic, University of Maine, and Colby and Bates colleges – all working to further the science of genetics within the state.

“What you see before you today is the mightiest and best hope for the Maine economy,” said Sen. Jill Goldthwait, an independent from Bar Harbor. “This is an incredible team. They’re going to do wonderful things with this money.”

Maine ranks last among the states in the number of qualified science and engineering graduates entering the work force, Forrest said.

With BRIN in place, however, students at the participating colleges will have the opportunity to conduct real, meaningful research in conjunction with world-class scientists at the two laboratories, he said.

“This project is an excellent example of how Maine can nurture the talent pipeline,” said Joel Russ, director of the Maine Science and Technology Foundation.

Undergraduate programs, funded by the grant, will begin in May 2002 and will include both 10-week summer mentoring partnerships for 24 students and short-term, academic year programs that will be incorporated into the schools’ curriculum for a maximum of 192 students.

Graduate students will have the opportunity to compete for five junior faculty positions at participating schools, where they will be paid to conduct independent research under the guidance of scientists at the laboratories.

“I think this can be a transformational moment,” said Robert Kennedy, UM executive vice president and provost. “The integration between student learning and research will connect these institutions in a very real way.”

Scientists at the two Bar Harbor institutions are known internationally for their work in comparative genomics – experimenting with the genes of other species such as sharks and mice, to further understanding of human diseases ranging from cystic fibrosis to heart disease to osteoporosis.

Maine, however, has few such institutions, and is ranked 44th among the states in federal grant funding for scientific research and 47th among states in funding from the National Institutes of Health, which is sponsoring the $5.5 million BRIN grant, Forrest said.

In fact, to even qualify for BRIN funding, states must not have received more than 5 percent of available NIH funding in any recent year.

With grant writing seminars and mentoring programs planned and new video conferencing equipment on order, the research network should position Maine institutions and graduates to compete more effectively for grant money at the highest level, Forrest said.

“It [federal funding] is going somewhere,” Goldthwait added. “It’s up to us to decide if it’s coming to Maine or not.”

Forrest gave credit for the NIH funds to MDI Biological Laboratory scientist Patricia Hand, who has worked for a year to prepare the 300-page grant, as well as to the Maine voters and the political powers who have supported an increase in state funding for research and development.

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins and U.S. Rep. John Baldacci, who are in session in Washington, sent congratulations Tuesday through representatives, while Goldthwait and state Reps. Paul Tessier, D-Fairfield, and Ted Koffman, D-Bar Harbor, offered their accolades in person.

All spoke to the importance of providing seed money from the tax base that may be used to obtain funding such as the $5.5 million NIH grant.

“This award is another example of the benefits of investing in our state’s biomedical research infrastructure,” Gov. Angus King said in a statement released Tuesday. “This not only leads to solid economic impact and employment during slowed economic times, it is bound to lead to excellent health benefits for the world as a result of this extraordinary research being done here in Maine.”