Research Council Meeting

Friday, October 27, 2017

Members Present: Johna Leddy, Jason Rantanen, Kevin Kelly, Elizabeth Constantine, Nicholas Borcherding, Jessica Boyle, Titus Hou, Amanda Haes, John Nelson, Barbara Eckstein, Alberto Segre, Jane Nachtman, Jennifer Fiegel, Steven Mickelsen, Jane Paulsen

Members Absent: George Hospodarsky

Others in Attendance –John Keller, Rich Hichwa, Ann Ricketts, Marie Kerbeshian, Bob Kirby, Mahrya Carncross, Michael Weaver

Item 1:  Welcome, Introductions, and Approval of Minutes

• Research Council Chair, Johna Leddy, brought the meeting to order and welcomed the council
• Research Council members introduced themselves
• Minutes from May 8, 2017 meeting were reviewed and approved

Item 2:  OVPR&ED Updates (John Keller)

• Keller introduced himself as Interim Vice President for Research and Economic Development and spoke about his transition thus far into that roll.  A search committee will be conducting a review of the office to determine if there should be any changes in the OVPR&ED’s structure prior to hiring a permanent replacement for Dan Reed.  Keller expects more information in February as several different review committees wrap up their work.  Search Committee co-chairs, Aliasger Salem (Pharmacy) and David Gier (Music) will visit Research Council at some point during their review process.

Item 3:  Publication Waiver Subcommittee (Johna Leddy)

• Leddy discussed the subcommittee’s mission and requested volunteers
• Jane Paulsen, Kevin Kelly, and Jane Nachtman volunteered to serve on the committee.  They will complete training in January

Item 4:  Open Access Discussion (Mahrya Carncross)

• Open Access is a movement to make research more available.  Currently, government pays for research and private industry puts publications behind paywalls.  Carncross discussed the different models for publication of research and discussed what UI Libraries is doing to promote Open Access.  UI Libraries has dedicated $75,000 per year to assist researchers with publication charges in open access journals.  Top journals remain under the old publication model.
• UI Libraries has an Institutional Repository; a database that houses UI Research Publications (journals, theses, dissertations, articles – depending on the publisher’s policies)
• Carncross also works with open educational resources such as textbooks and class materials.  There will be an initiative in the spring to incentivize faculty to make materials available this way.

Item 5:  Research Excellence Awards Review Committees (Michael Weaver)

• Faculty Awards (2 Research Council Faculty)
  • Nelson, Eckstein
• Staff Awards (1 Research Council Staff)
  • Constantine
• Student Innovator Awards (1 Research Council Member)
  • Rantanen
• Postdoc & Graduate Student Awards (1 Research Council Member)
  • Kirby

Item 6:  Time Savings Subcommittee (Johna Leddy)

• Committee reviewed the survey taken by Rescue Time users.  It was noted that the survey is weighted toward certain disciplines and doesn’t gather data for scholars who would like to track time reading. 
• End goal of the committee is to change the culture of UI so that research is more prioritized, either through efficient practices of policy changes.
• Council will look for other institutional data (Keven Kregel/Provost office may have a larger survey available)

Item 7:  UIRF Updates (Marie Kerbeshian)

• Kerbeshian introduced herself and gave a background of her experience and goals for the University of Iowa Research Foundation

Item 8:  Roundtable

• Research Council discussed the UI APR (Academic & Professional Record) and how it can be improved and made more useful