CHAPTER FIVE: 5100
RESEARCH POLICIES
May 2007
5100
GENERAL RESEARCH
POLICY
PREAMBLE: This
section describes UI’s research activities and the procedures which have been
established to assure continued strong research productivity. This section was a
part of the 1979 Handbook. The definitions of section B have been revised
from time to time. More substantively section H and subsection E-6-c (and the
executor of section E changed from the Research Council to "UI") were
added in April of 1982 (and at that time the directorship of university research
was vested in the dean of the Graduate School [now the Vice President for
Research and Graduate Studies]); subsection A-2 and section J were added in May
of 1983. In 2003 section J2 & J3 were substantially revised and again in May
2007. Unless otherwise noted, the text is as of July 1996. For further
information, contact the University Research Office (208-885-6651). [ed.
7-98, 7-01]
CONTENTS:
A. Introduction
B. Definitions
C. Aims and
Objectives
D. Sources of
Strengthened Support for Research
E. Guidelines
Applicable to All Research
F. Provisions
Pertaining to Proposals for and the Conduct of Research Supported by Grants,
Contracts, and Cooperative Agreements
G. Obligations of the
University Pertaining to the Conduct of Research Supported by Grants, Contracts,
and Cooperative Agreements
H. Obligations of the
Principal Investigator Pertaining to the Conduct of Research Supported by
Grants, Contracts, and Cooperative Agreements
I. Investigations
Involving Human Subjects [see 5200] [ed. 7-97]
J. Indirect-Cost
Assessments
A. INTRODUCTION.
A-1. Teaching,
research, and service are UI’s basic functions. Consistent with these
functions, as they are influenced by the special responsibilities of a
publicly supported, land-grant institution, by state and federal legislation,
and by the regents’ designation of UI as the state’s chief research center
and preeminent center for research-oriented graduate programs [see 1240 B
and
1320 D], all faculty members have an obligation to contribute to UI’s
research effort. In turn it is UI policy to encourage, assist, and provide
facilities for faculty members in the fulfillment of their research
responsibilities. [ed. 7-97]
A-2. It is UI
policy that its employees conform to established ethical standards in the
conduct of their research and creative activities [see 3170 and
3230].
A-3. Though
departments have the direct responsibility to provide for and to evaluate
research efforts, administrators at all levels are responsible for allocating
to the research function a share of the available financial resources and
manpower that is appropriate in light of the teaching and service functions.
The allocation of research funds should also be proportionate to the research
capabilities and needs of the UI colleges and departments.
A-4. Research
undertaken by members of the faculty and staff on their own time, i.e.,
outside of normal duty hours, and that does not involve the use of UI
facilities (other than the library and normal office use), equipment,
personnel, or supplies, is not covered by these policies.
B. DEFINITIONS.
B-1. "Research," as defined in Webster’s Third New International
Dictionary, includes ". . . critical and exhaustive investigation or
experimentation having for its aim the discovery of new facts and their
correct interpretation, the revision of accepted conclusions, theories, or
laws in the light of newly discovered facts, or the practical application of
such new or revised conclusions, theories, or laws. . . ." For the
purpose of these policies, "research" includes not only the sense of
the above definition, but also those investigations, experiments, and creative
activities that are characteristic of, and appropriate to, the fine arts.
B-2. "Grant
research" denotes research that is conducted by UI under a written
agreement and made possible by a direct gift of money or equipment for the
initiation of a new project or for additional support of a continuing research
program. Research grants may or may not involve commitment of matching funds
from UI or the research unit involved. Unless matching funds are requested
from UI or the research unit involved, they should not be volunteered.
Whenever UI matching funds are offered, a detailed plan of the allocation of
faculty or staff members’ time to such matching must be provided to the
grants and contracts financial administrator on award of the grant, contract,
or agreement.
B-3. "Contract
research" denotes research conducted by UI under a written agreement
with, and funded by, an individual donor, foundation, private company,
institution, or governmental agency. The research is undertaken primarily for
the purpose of obtaining information requested by the outside contractor [but
see E-1].
B-4. "Cooperative-agreement research" denotes research conducted under a
written agreement entered into by UI and one or more other institutions or
agencies for the purpose of cooperatively conducting a research effort.
Resources are shared in order to attain mutual or complementary research
goals. The principal investigator must ensure that the cooperating agency is
aware that it must provide a budget and scope-of-work statement in the same
detail as required by UI. In addition, the cooperating agency is to be
requested to provide performance reports, both narrative and financial, to UI
on the same schedule as required of UI.
B-5. "Indirect
costs" are charges assessed to cover expenses incurred by UI but not
directly ascribable to a specific research activity. Examples of such costs
are those for services by the University Library and central administration,
including Facilities Management and Custodial Services, and overhead expenses
such as for insurance, utilities, and use of equipment and buildings. A
federally set indirect-cost rate is applied to projects supported by federal
grants or contracts and, as a general rule, the same rate is assessed to
projects funded by grants from or contracts with private industry. A different
rate applies to contracts with agencies of the state of Idaho. [For policies
and procedures concerning waiver of the assessment of indirect costs and the
allocation of funds received as reimbursement of indirect costs, see J.]
B-6. The
"Research Council" is the faculty’s standing committee that
oversees the implementation of research policies and resolves disagreements
about the interpretation or implementation of those policies [see 1640.72].
B-7. The
"Idaho Research Foundation, Inc.," is a not-for-profit corporation
organized to promote educational objectives: by carrying on and supporting
research programs that will be in the public’s interest; by functioning as
an agent of education in such areas as research, copyrights, inventions,
publishing, and contracts with governmental and other legal entities; by
training and developing persons for the conduct of research; by disseminating
scientific knowledge and technical information to the public on a
nondiscriminatory basis; and by encouraging and assisting scholars and artists
through financial support, aid in obtaining patents and copyrights, and other
means.
B-8. "Director
of university research" refers to the vice president for research and
graduate studies, who is designated by the president to direct the University
Research Office and, in general, to coordinate the university’s research
activities.
C. AIMS AND
OBJECTIVES. The policy stated in this section derives from and contributes to
the attainment of the following aims and objectives to which, among others, UI
is committed: (1) development and maintenance of undergraduate and graduate
academic programs of excellent quality, (2) advancement of knowledge through
research and scholarship, (3) preservation and dissemination of knowledge. [For
a complete statement of UI’s mission and role, see 1240 B and
1320.]
D. SOURCES OF
STRENGTHENED SUPPORT FOR RESEARCH. Full attainment of the goals implicit in the
above subsection is dependent in large measure on expanded research activities,
which can be made possible through:
D-1. Vigorous
effort on the part of faculty members to obtain research grants and contracts
from outside sources.
D-2. Strengthened
support for--and consequently, increased financial support from--the Idaho
Research Foundation, particularly from assignment of royalties and copyrights
to the foundation.
D-3. Assignments of
funds from the general education budget, whenever possible, to the University
Research Office. The amount of such funds should be commensurate with the
current level of research activity and will be computed on a percentage of the
research monies generated from outside sources by UI research units.
E. GUIDELINES
APPLICABLE TO ALL RESEARCH.
E-1. All research
projects undertaken should give promise of furthering UI’s mission,
functions, and objectives and those of the colleges and departments involved.
Contract research, though conducted primarily for the purpose of obtaining
information requested by the outside contractor, should also qualify under
this guideline.
E-2. Research
projects should be carefully planned so as to enhance the likelihood that they
will result in valuable contributions to knowledge or solutions of significant
problems.
E-3. Research
projects may be proposed and carried out by a single department, through the
cooperation of several departments and colleges, or in collaboration with
other institutions, including the Idaho Research Foundation. Whenever
possible, the research should be directed by a member of the faculty or
professional staff and should involve students.
E-4. The amount of
research activity undertaken by faculty members should be consistent with the
maintenance of both high research standards and excellence in the performance
of undergraduate and graduate teaching duties. Departments should offer
encouragement and guidance to faculty members so that they properly balance
research and teaching activities.
E-5. Departments
receiving state appropriations for research should regularly evaluate their
programs in order to strike an appropriate balance between the short-term
research needs of the state and long-term research goals. It should be
emphasized that, as a state-supported, land-grant institution, UI has a
responsibility to develop and conduct research programs to serve the people of
Idaho.
E-6. Research
projects that restrict the release of program content or results normally are
to be avoided. This policy in no way prohibits:
a. Provisions for
protecting the right to privacy of persons, business entities, and
corporations who are the subjects of, or the participants (e.g., through
interviews) in, a research program. [See 5200.]
b. UI from
granting a reasonable delay in the release of the program content or results
after a project’s completion, if the sponsor has a bona fide intention to
apply for a patent or copyright.
c. Research
involving cultural resource site locational data that are restricted on a
"need to know" basis.
d. Research
programs that are deemed to be in the best interest of the nation, the
results of which may be "classified" by the federal government.
Such proposals must be approved on a case-by-case basis by the director of
university research, the president of the university, and the Board of
Regents.
F. PROVISIONS
PERTAINING TO PROPOSALS FOR AND THE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH SUPPORTED BY GRANTS,
CONTRACTS, AND COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.
F-1. Proposals
addressed to outside agencies requesting support for research projects must be
approved by the appropriate college administrator(s) and the vice president
for research and graduate studies, or that officer’s designee, before
submission to the financial vice president. This vice president, as bursar, is
designated by Idaho law and by the regents to execute such documents on UI’s
behalf, and, as treasurer of the regents, is responsible for complying with
the board’s financial policies and reporting procedures. [See
1420 B-2 and
6140 B-2-b.] [ed. 7-97, 7-01]
F-2. It is
necessary to ensure that adequate facilities and equipment will be available
to conduct the research or that funds will be provided to make them available.
F-3. There should
be a good prospect of securing any additional professional or nonprofessional
personnel required to conduct the research.
F-4. The budget
must be adequate for the work proposed, including allowances for contingencies
and possible salary increases.
F-5. It is
necessary to make provision for any UI funds required in the form of either
direct or indirect costs. [See B-5.] Payment of expenditures in excess of any
research budget is the responsibility of the sponsoring department.
F-6. The terms
covering any research grant, contract, or cooperative agreement must be
compatible with the regular UI policies and procedures, including the
unrestricted release of the program content and results, except as provided in
subsection E-6. The terms must also conform to the principles of UI’s policy
on patents and copyrights [see 5300], must not infringe academic integrity,
and must permit UI and the departments and faculty members involved to
exercise administrative control over the project and to retain responsibility
for the work undertaken.
F-7. Prescribed
forms to be used in seeking external funding support can be obtained, with
instructions for their completion and routing, from the University Research
Office.
F-8. It is the
principal investigator’s responsibility to ensure that adequate audit
records of narrative reports, as specified in the agreement or contract, are
maintained to satisfy any future audit.
G. OBLIGATIONS OF THE
UNIVERSITY PERTAINING TO THE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH SUPPORTED BY GRANTS, CONTRACTS,
AND COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS. In accepting a grant or entering into a contract or
cooperative agreement for research, UI and the colleges, institutes, bureaus, or
departments involved undertake the following obligations:
G-1. To allocate
the research talent and time, library resources, and administrative services
(e.g., services of the central administration and Business and Accounting
Services, routine secretarial and clerical assistance, shop and laboratory
facilities, custodial service, insurance, utilities, and building maintenance)
required to fulfill the research commitment.
G-2. To provide
facilities for the production of reports and publications describing the
research performed and the results achieved.
G-3. To ensure that
persons conducting research and others in UI understand and comply with the
policies outlined herein, with patent, copyright, publication, and fiscal
requirements, and with UI’s policy covering conflict of interest. [See 6240.]
H. OBLIGATIONS OF THE
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR PERTAINING TO THE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH SUPPORTED BY
GRANTS, CONTRACTS, AND COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS. In making application for and
receiving a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement for research, the
principal investigator assumes the following obligations:
H-1. To ensure that
research conducted and reported is of high standards of excellence and
consistent with the mission, functions, and objectives of the university. [See
1240 B and 1320.]
H-2. To ensure that
all conditions of the grant, contract, or agreement are met.
H-3. To ensure that
only proper budget expenditures are made and that budget categories are not overexpended.
H-4. To ensure that
proper employee time records are maintained.
H-5. To ensure that
time schedules are observed.
H-6. To ensure that
progress and final reports are prepared and transmitted on time.
H-7. To ensure that
student and other researchers are given full credit for work on or for ideas
contributed to research projects.
H-8. To ensure that
UI policies and procedures pertaining to safety, vehicle use, human subjects,
patent, copyright, publication, etc., are adhered to in the pursuit of the
research.
H-9. To ensure that
research conducted away from the UI campus adheres to the same high standards
of excellence and conduct as is expected on campus.
H-10. To report
immediately in writing to one’s superior if any of the above obligations,
H-1 through H-9, cannot be fulfilled.
I. INVESTIGATIONS
INVOLVING HUMAN SUBJECTS. [See 5200.]
J. INDIRECT-COST
ASSESSMENTS.
J-1. UI does
not waive indirect costs (i.e., facilities and administrative costs, F&A) on any
grant or contract unless (a) the granting agency provides in writing its
official policy stating that it does not allow indirect costs or allows only a
specific percentage or (b) the vice president for research determines that the grant or contract is of such an unusual nature that a
waiver, in part or in full, is unquestionably in UI’s interest [rev. 5-07].
J-2. The annual income generated through facilities
and administrative costs (F&A) will be distributed between the university
administration and the units that generated
the income. This distribution will be reviewed by the Research Council as
provided in section J-3. [rev. 5-07]
a. The intended uses of these funds are to support and stimulate scholarly activities by
providing financial resources to address administrative, personnel,
infrastructure and other costs associated with productive research environments. [rev.
7-03, 5-07]
b.
The unit/department/principal investigator to which the funds are allocated has
control over use of these funds. A unit/department/principal investigator may,
however, choose to make its funds available to a different unit. [rev.
7-03]
c. In cases where revenues are generated by multiple units on a
single project, the units will jointly develop a method to allocate the
revenues. If the units cannot agree on a method for allocating the revenues, the
Vice President for Research will arbitrate the differences and specify the final
allocation. [add. 5-07]
J-3. The Research Council will review the sharing of indirect-cost
income and advise the university administration on its use and distribution on
an annual basis. [rev. 7-03, 5-07]
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