A smiling researcher in safety googles, gloves and jacket uses a device to prepare samples for research. A smiling researcher in safety googles, gloves and jacket uses a device to prepare samples for research.

Transforming UAlbany's Division for Research & Economic Development

About the Initiative 

As a Carnegie-classified Research-1 (R1) institution, the University at Albany is one of the top 146 universities in the nation with very high research activity.  

To maintain and grow our research activity, UAlbany is committed to transforming the Division for Research & Economic Development, with a particular focus on: 

  • Investing in R1-level research infrastructure 
  • Increasing our federal funding 
  • Hiring new faculty members 

The Division is seeking feedback from the entire UAlbany community during this process, which is being guided by the work of four critical task forces. 

Anyone can submit feedback IDEAS Portal. If you have questions or would like to speak to someone directly, please contact a task force co-chair directly.

Thank you for your engagement in this important effort to transform UAlbany’s research infrastructure!

 

Summary Results from Campus Roundtables 

The Division hosted three campus roundtables in March and April 2023 to provide a high-level summary of the transformation initiative and to engage in conversation with attendees. 

About 80 campus community members attended the roundtables and were asked to respond to specific questions during the moderated discussion. Review their anonymized, aggregated responses below: 
 

What hopes do you have for this initiative?
  • Strengthen infrastructure and solidify our R1 status  

    • Promote better understanding of and support for research  

    • Spark enthusiasm for research among students and faculty  

    • Grow the University’s research portfolio with more interdisciplinary and industry-sponsored research 

    • Strengthen infrastructure and operations  

    • Onboard more staff and resources to make faculty feel supported and existing staff feel appreciated  
       

  • Bring the University closer as a community 

    • Increase engagement, transparency and communication  

    • Build a community and network to encourage collaboration  
       

  • Build partnerships with stakeholders  

    • Work as a team, break down silos and build bridges  

    • Make lives easier for everyone and streamline processes  

    • Incentivize research and reduce the administrative burden for both researchers and administrative staff

    • Use data to leverage past successes and improve workflow  

  • Streamline administrative processes and funding management 

What fears do you have for this initiative?
  • Resistance to change  

    • Conflict between State and RF, increasing regulatory environment and too much red tape  

    • Fear of the project becoming bureaucratic or not being implemented correctly  

    • Fear of losing track of the goal and being unable to move forward  
       

  • Resource constraints, administrative support, and staffing issues 

    • Fear of losing funding due to lack of administrative support  

    • Fear of losing colleagues due to frustration or workload issues  

    • Not being able to offer competitive salaries  

    • Tiredness, lack of momentum and fear of burnout or losing focus  

    • Inability to attract, and fear of losing, high-quality candidates  
       

  • Lack of clarity and communication 

    • Not engaging faculty and students effectively  

    • Conflicting priorities pulling faculty into different directions 

Where are your most common frustrations or frictions while conducting research?
  • The amount of work for a continuation award is the same as a new award  

  • Lack of research facilitators and graduate student participation  

  • Inconsistent incentives and coursework across different schools and colleges  

  • Clunky connectivity between pre and post award for Principal Investigators (PIs) 

  • Lengthy accounting processes for purchasing  

  • Inability to mix State and RF money  

  • Employee turnover and lack of succession planning  

  • Inconsistent policies and responses to questions  

  • Printable paperwork needing modernization  

  • Need for a chat/ticketing system to address questions and collect data  

  • Lack of user testing and engagement from the beginning  

  • Red tape getting in the way of research activity  

  • Lack of transparency in research priorities and decision making  

  • Communication issues and lack of information about policy changes  

  • Difficulty getting approval or funding for community-based research 

  • Need for transparency in Indirect Cost Recovery / Return (ICR) distribution  

  • Importance of education and training for new faculty  

  • Need for two-way communication and feedback 

How can the Division improve its communications with you?
  • More targeted and effective communication  

    • Partner with communications and marketing teams to create engaging videos instead of long emails  

    • Recognize different cultures in various school/colleges and work with schools, colleges and departments to send more targeted emails about grants, opportunities and incentives, instead of generalized listserv emails 

    • Recognize communications as two-way and provide feedback to the community  
       

  • Leverage existing meetings and events 

    • Attend faculty meetings to give brief presentations  

    • Conduct orientation for researchers every few years to update them on policy changes  

    • Leverage the Research Coffee Hour  
       

  • Leverage existing website and technology  

    • Encourage campus to use the IDEAS Portal  

    • Learn from the University Library’s chat system  

    • Provide clear guidelines on who to contact on the website  
       

  • Offer more interpersonal interactions 

    • Centralize and leverage research facilitators as ambassadors to offer in-person support  

    • Interact more with the campus community through zoom or in-person meetings  

Task Forces

 

Task Force 1: Faculty Outreach & Engagement

task-forces
Task Force 1: Co-chairs & Members

Co-chairs:

  • Satyendra Kumar, Associate Vice President for Grant Development 

  • David Hochfelder, Associate Professor & Director of the Public History Program, Department of History, College of Arts & Sciences

Staff Volunteer: Elisa López, University Research Awards & Information Coordinator 

Members from the Division for Research & Economic Development:  

  • Erin Bell, Interim Assistant Vice President (Research Compliance) 

  • Maria Pidgeon, Interim Director, Office of Economic Development 

  • Peter Gonczlik, Director, Office for Innovation Development & Commercialization 

  • Christine McCrary, Interim Associate Director for Research Administration, Sponsored Programs Administration 

  • Tianning Huang, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Data, Assessment, and Technology 

Members from the University Community: 

  • Won Namgoong, Professor and Associate Dean for Research, Interim Chair of Computer Science, College of Engineering & Applied Sciences 

  • Rabi Musah, Professor, Department of Chemistry, College of Arts & Sciences 

  • Nick Bassill, Senior Research Support Specialist, Department of Atmospheric & Environmental Sciences; Research Scientist, Atmospheric Sciences Research Center 

  • DeeDee Bennett-Gayle, Associate Professor, College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity 

Task Force 1: Scope & Top Priorities

Scope: Establish effective and efficient ways to communicate with and engage faculty/researchers. 

Top Priorities: 

  • Bidirectional communication between Sponsored Programs Administrations (SPA) staff and faculty to develop rational internal timelines and policies 

  • Engage faculty and the Council on Research to incentivize research and scholarship 

  • Best communication practices for the services and infrastructure offered by the Division 

  • Mentoring researchers in obtaining grants and post-award requirements 

  • Promoting and affecting faculty research excellence 

Task Force 1: Expected Outcomes & Deliverables

Bidirectional communication between Sponsored Programs Administrations (SPA) staff and faculty to develop rational internal timelines and policies 

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Clearly communicate F&A policy for non-federal agencies to faculty

Document describing the F&A policy

February 2023

Revise guidelines for community engagement to allow rapid access to research facilities, software, etc. to community members 

New guidelines to cut red tape and enable engagement activities on short notice  

March 2023

Engage the Compliance office and researchers to improve information exchange (change focus from liability to project success)  

Develop communication channels and methods to keep researchers informed  

March 2023

 

Engage faculty and the Council on Research to incentivize research and scholarship 

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Inform faculty about policy on ICR sharing, and its future

An updated description of all scenarios for F&A rates and variance

February 2023

Engage faculty and the Council on Research to streamline internal awards to maximize the impact on research; clarify the eligibility of non-faculty scholars

Develop revised guidelines for internal awards

September 2023

Consider creative ways to promote research: research sabbaticals, summer research appointments, industry engagement, etc.

New programs to advance research and scholarship 

May 2023

Help develop a reasonable course-release policy to enable research and scholarship for faculty with/without extramural grants and align the cost of course buyout to the grant with the actual cost 

Unambiguous policy regarding course reduction and buyout

To be announced

 

Best communication practices for the services and infrastructure offered by the Division

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Inform faculty about the resources to find funding opportunities (Spin, Grants.gov, etc.)

Documentation, website and periodic workshops

April 2023

Develop rational internal timelines and procedures for proposal submission; increase faculty’s awareness regarding internal and external compliance requirements, improve technology 

Document revised guidelines, post on SPA website, broadly disseminated to faculty via presentations and red teaming

June 2023

Engagement between SPA staff and faculty to reduce cultural tension

Schedule of periodic (monthly) events, annual ice cream socials, picnic, and relocating SPA staff closer to researchers

April 2023

 

Mentoring researchers in obtaining grants and post-award requirements

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Training in writing effective grant applications, secure internal and external pre-submission reviews, offer sample proposals as examples

Working with the Associate Deans for Research of UAlbany’s schools and colleges to publicize current services and develop new ones

March 2023

Organize networking opportunities to enable formation of large research coalitions in strategic areas; provide support to junior and individual faculty researchers

Identify model mechanism for brining faculty together

April 2023

Assist faculty in proposal development, hire grant writers, build community of scholars to enable mutual support in securing grants

A list of available SPA services, plans for hiring grant writers

September 2023

Define roles of Research Facilitators and Research Administrators in support of proposal development (CV, current and pending supports, Conflict of Interest, environment documents) 

Define roles and tasks of various SPA staff categories to assist grants development

June 2023

 

Promoting and affecting faculty research excellence

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Engage Council on Research, Deans and department chairs to increase the number of award nominations; establish a nomination committee for external awards and professional boards/academy memberships

Clarity of the process and key individuals involved

May 2023

Inform UAlbany community and general public about faculty excellence, exceptional accomplishments and regional impacts

Define channels of communication to community and public, frequency of publications, and individuals in charge

June 2023

Conduct satisfaction survey of researchers and Division staff, implement required changes, monthly meetings of SPA staff to resolve issues or escalate them to next level

Hold focus groups, craft surveys for faculty and staff satisfaction, a process to review the input and actions to be taken 

April 2023

 

Task Force 2: Digital Transformation

Task Force 2: Co-chairs & Members

Co-chairs:  

  • Tianning Huang, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Division for Research & Economic Development 
  • Spencer Bruce, Research Technology Manager, ITS  

Members from the Division for Research & Economic Development:  

  • Theresa A. Pardo, Associate Vice President for Governance of Institutes, Centers & Specialized Labs, and Research Data 
  • Satyendra Kumar, Associate Vice President for Grant Development 
  • Terrell Rabb, Interim Director, Office of Regulatory & Research Compliance 
  • Lauren A. Cole, Director, Research Foundation Human Resources 
  • Todd A. Remkus, Manager of Award Establishment and Maintenance, Sponsored Programs Administration 

Members from the University Community: 

  • Ramon Gil-Garcia, Director, Center for Technology in Government 
  • Barbara J. Zampella, Research Facilitator, Department of Atmospheric & Environmental Sciences, College of Arts & Sciences 
  • June A. Mastan, Director, Professional Development Program 
Task Force 2: Top Priorities
  • Reconfigure and automate manual processes 

  • Improve the use of existing systems and integrate with new technologies 

  • Website content and structure reform for more transparent, efficient and effective user experience

Task Force 2: Expected Outcomes & Deliverables

Reconfigure and automate manual processes 

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Work with Task Force 3 to identify key redesign elements required for process improvements that can help inform technology options considered for new investments

A list of processes that need to be automated for Stage 1 automation

Note: Stage 1 automation will be a start. The digital transformation will be a continual process.

November 2022

Survey and/or interview peer institutions to identify and evaluate the best technical solutions (Research Foundation Central Office)

A list of potential technology solutions

February 2023

Scope out the implementation plan with ITS, including a budget, proof of concept, procurement, tech support, staffing needs, etc.

Implementation Plan (First Draft for Stage 1) 

Note: Depending on the technology, the timeframe for the implementation will vary. 

March 2023

 

Improve the use of existing systems and integrate with new technologies

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Identify existing challenges for both our customers and administrators in the current systems (PACS, Interview Exchange, BI, etc.) and share it with ITS to start addressing the challenges

A summary of existing challenges for customers and administrators and a “wish list” for proposed improvements

February 2023

Integrate the new systems from Task Force 2’s Priority 1 with the existing ones, so users are not overburdened with learning different tools 

An Integration Plan (First Draft for Stage 1)

March 2023

 

Website content and structure reform for more transparent, efficient and effective user experience

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Work with the Office of Communications & Marketing to launch new Research Lifecycle web content that is searchable

New Research Lifecycle web content

First Draft: January 2023 

Estimated Launch: May 2023 

Work with Task Force 1 and OCM to create new pages for faculty outreach and engagement efforts 

A new set of pages for faculty outreach and engagement efforts

March 2023

Create an integrated portal for different systems in the Division to offer a one-stop shop. All tools should have easy tutorials and ways to collect user feedback.

An integrated web portal (an ITS-OCM project created)

May 2023

 

Task Force 3: Division for Research & Economic Development Processes

Task Force 3: Co-chairs & Members

Co-chairs:

  • Terrell D. Rabb, Interim Director, Office of Regulatory and Research Compliance 

  • Gary Ackerman, Associate Professor, College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security & Cybersecurity 

Members:  

  • Erin M. Bell, Interim Assistant Vice President (Research Compliance) 

  • Tom Begley, Professor of Biological Sciences, Associate Director of The RNA Institute, College of Arts & Sciences 

  • Lauren Cole, Director, Research Foundation Human Resources 

  • Jerry Gauriloff, Director of Post-award Services, Sponsored Programs Administration 

  • Paula Kaloyeros, Assistant Vice President for Sponsored Programs Administration & Deputy Operations Manager 

  • Christine McCrary, Interim Associate Director for Research Administration, Sponsored Programs Administration 

  • Theresa A. Pardo, Associate Vice President for Governance of Institutes, Centers & Specialized Labs, and Research Data 

  • Thecla Philip, Senior Associate for Finance & Administration 

  • Maria Pidgeon, Interim Director, Office of Economic Development 

Task Force 3: Scope & Top Priorities

Our mission is to prioritize changes to institutional processes that will strengthen UAlbany’s research, scholarship and creative pursuits. The Division’s processes for research administration must not hinder UAlbany’s efforts to be a leader in addressing societal challenges, advancing human knowledge, and driving innovation and discovery. 

Processes will be prioritized for change that are identified as hindering the University's recruitment and retention of faculty, staff and graduate students who can strongly contribute to distinctive disciplinary and interdisciplinary research programs — especially those programs that drive entrepreneurship, public-private partnerships and translational application.  

Changes proposed or made to processes will need to be evaluated to ensure new procedures will empower faculty, staff and students to engage in innovative research and will enhance research infrastructure. 

In addition to regular obligations, members will need to budget considerable time to the team to achieve the expected outcomes.  It will also be essential to communicate and coordinate with the efforts of the other Task Force teams to avoid duplication of efforts. 

Task Force 3: Expected Outcomes & Deliverables

Expected Outcomes & Deliverables

Deliverable Date

Development of a clear plan to systematically address the processes of the research and sponsored program lifecycle will be necessary to achieve the desired outcomes

December 2023

Establish clear and sustainable processes for identifying, proposing, and administering sponsored activities and research

November 2023

Reduce unnecessary redundancy in processes to ensure compliance with regulatory, sponsor, and institutional requirements and policies

November 2023

Identify investments in technology are essential to meet institutional needs and goals to facilitate a significant increase in sponsored research activities 

November 2023

 

Task Force 4: RF Employee Engagement & Development within Research Administration

Task Force 4: Co-chairs & Members

Co-chairs:  

  • Lauren Cole, Director, Research Foundation Human Resources 

  • Paula Kaloyeros, Assistant Vice President for Sponsored Programs Administration & Deputy Operations Manager 

Members from the Division for Research & Economic Development:  

  • Charlene Cox, Accounts Payable Team Leader, Sponsored Programs Administration 

  • Peter Gonczlik, Director, Office for Innovation Development & Commercialization 

  • Thecla Philip, Senior Associate for Finance & Administration 

  • Ashley Turski, Administrative Assistant II 

  • Todd A. Remkus, Manager of Award Establishment and Maintenance, Sponsored Programs Administration 

Task Force 4: Top Priorities
  • Employee Retention 

  • Employee Recruitment 

  • Employee Performance Management  

  • Employee Engagement 

Task Force 4: Expected Outcomes & Deliverables

Employee Retention

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

RFHR will perform classification and compensation analysis

RFHR has begun to, and will continue to, analyze compensation against Market Data to ensure compensation is equitable 

Ongoing

RFHR will work with Department heads to evaluate and restructure positions

Create a structure that promotes growth opportunities within Research Administration. Restructure positions to include more responsibility at increased compensation 

Ongoing

For workload management, identify areas in need of Research Facilitators

Identify gaps in Administration and make a recommendation to VPRED

May 2023

 

Employee Recruitment 

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Identify gaps in job applicant pools and additional resources for recruitment

Identify new methods of recruitment to reach a broader applicant pool

Ongoing

Create marketing materials for recruitment

Develop a recruitment flyer to highlight the perks of Research Foundation Employment

Ongoing

 

Employee Performance Management

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Implement Performance Programs & Evaluations for all RF employees in Research Administration annually

RFHR will provide guidance and a template for supervisors of RF employees working within Research Administration 

December 2022

Ensure submission of Performance Programs & Evaluations

RFHR will monitor receipt of performance programs & evaluations

Ongoing

 

Employee Engagement

Top Challenges & Actions

Deliverable

Deliverable Date

Formalize a Social Committee

Implement a method for engagement for all units of Research Administration on a rotating basis

January 2023

Identify new methods to promote training, staff development and continuing education opportunities 

Promote opportunities to better position staff to succeed in their roles 

Implement a budget for such opportunities

Ongoing

Survey employees and peer institutions 

Identify ways to improve work life balance and engagement with staff

Ongoing