University Research Council
October 13, 2009
Meeting Summary
Council Charge
James V. Maher, the University’s Provost, delivered the
Council’s charge. He asked Council
members to continue to sponsor the Multidisciplinary Small Grant Program and the
Central Research Development Fund. He
also asked the Council to maintain its support for the annual Federal Agencies
Trip and to determine whether additional programs can enhance faculty members’
research portfolios.
Provost Maher also discussed the cumulative effect of
federal regulation upon academic research.
Within the University, the Office of Research, the Research Conduct and
Compliance Office, and the Office of Budget and Controller administer
regulatory requirements. Externally,
universities often work through the Association of American Universities and
the National Association of State Universities and
Report from the
Office of Research
Allen DiPalma, Director of the Office of Research, discussed
research funded via the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The University received almost 250 awards,
which sum to approximately $125 million.
The reporting requirements associated with ARRA grants are more complex
than those for other federal grants, but his staff completed all reports by the
October 10 deadline.
Mr. DiPalma also mentioned ongoing efforts to streamline the
Office of Research’s operations. His
staff re-engineered the account-creation process so that account numbers are
created more quickly. His staff also now
maintains an ongoing, electronic log for each proposal, through which they and
the relevant department(s) can determine the status of individual proposals.
Mr. DiPalma also discussed:
Science 2009
Science
2009 will be held on Thursday and Friday, October 14 and 15. Drs. Victor Ambros,
Michael Grätzel, Cori Bargmann,
and Bruce Beutler will be the plenary speakers. An undergraduate research poster reception, a
Google sky-map demonstration, and a life-science supplier show are also
planned.
Conflict of Interest
Policy
The draft
Conflict of Interest policy was slightly revised to address several, previously
unforeseen issues. The draft policy will
be reviewed by the University Research Council, the University Senate, and the
Deans’ Council before it is forwarded to the Provost and the Chancellor.
Miscellaneous
Council members also discussed: