April 26, 2019

Date of Meeting: 

Friday, April 26, 2019

Research Council Meeting

Friday, April 26, 2019

Members Present: John Nelson, Alberto Segre, Amanda Haes, George Hospodarsky, Kevin Kelly, Jessica Boyle, Jane Paulsen, Guowei Qi, Rebecca Taugher, Barbara Eckstein

Members Absent: Keyan Zarei, Diane Rohlman, Jennifer Fiegel, Jane Nachtman, Jodi Graff, Steven Mickelsen, Jason Rantanen

Others in Attendance – John Keller, Rich Hichwa, Bob Kirby, Marie Kerbeshian, Ann Ricketts, Jennifer Lassner

Item 1:  Updates from OVPRED (John Keller)

  • The newly hired Vice President for Research, J. Martin Scholtz, was announced via IowaNow on 4/25.  Keller thanked the Research Council for their service and reflected on his time as the Interim Vice President for Research.  Scholtz will start on June 28 and Keller will return to his previous role at that time.
  • Jennifer Lassner was awarded the Hancher Finkbine Medallion for staff.
  • The Iowa Center for Research by Undergraduates has officially moved to the Office of the Vice President for Research.
  • The Research Services Fair brought in almost 300 attendees.  Attendees’ comments were very positive.
  • Celebration of Excellence event is scheduled for April 30.

Item 2:  VPR Central Services Advisory Committee Proposals (John Keller)

  • Keller discussed prior requests made by the Vice President for Research Office to the Budget Review Board. 
  • This year’s requests include:
    • Equipment and Systems Refresh and Service Maintenance – Keller talked about the new core facility, CREATES, and summarized the funding request.  We are generally successful with equipment grants, but aging equipment has high maintenance costs.
    • Support for Research Compliance and Administration – this request will address staffing concerns in the Human Subjects Office and the Division of Sponsored Programs.
    • UIRF Postdoc Training Program – this request will fund several positions in the UIRF to train postdocs on work in the field of technology transfer.  In addition to providing alternative career training to postdocs, this program will create a pipeline of talent to the UIRF.