As the only public research university in eastern Missouri, UMSL has a responsibility to initiate and support innovative research, scholarship and creative works that enhance educational success and economic activities as well as lead to a better understanding of the human condition. This compact affirms the unique research role of the University of Missouri in the state’s higher education system and UMSL’s focused efforts to successfully execute that important mission in the St. Louis region.
Goal
Enhance and expand the capabilities of the Office of Research Administration (ORA) to increase research and creative support
Actions
- Realign F&A cost recovery to increase the direct support and growth of ORA by 2019.
- Use ORA F&A cost recovery to support critical research infrastructure needs (e.g., major equipment, technical staff, databases) shared by multiple principal investigators by 2019.
- Fund ORA on an as-needed basis to assist research faculty with time-sensitive opportunities/issues by 2020.
- Maintain a searchable database within ORA of faculty areas of expertise as well as campus research resources, such as major lab instrumentation, computational facilities, specialized software and large databases, which will be available to faculty at all four UM campuses.
Goal
Increase the number of successful proposals for external funding
Actions
- Increase external research funding by 10%/yr, from $24M to $39M, through 2023.
- Hire an additional grant writer by 2019.
- Establish a mentoring program for new faculty – offered by ORA and to include the Broader Impacts Network – by 2018.
- Establish campus peer review panels in various disciplines to provide feedback on proposals prior to submission.
Goal
Increase research, publications and creative activity
Actions
- Increase the number of journal articles, from 452 to 726, by 10%/yr through 2023.
- Increase the number of books by 10%yr, from 37 to 59, through 2023.
- Increase the number of juried performances by 5%/yr, from 126 to 160, through 2023.
- Establish an ORA program to engage senior faculty mentors and provide formal recognition for mentorship (merging with mentorship program - IE) by 2023.
- Work with advancement to increase support of scholarly and creative work in the arts, humanities, and other areas with limited opportunities for external funding.
Goal
Increase support for interdisciplinary research and projects
Actions
- Hire a “lead” faculty member in programs identified in the Academic Program Prioritization as having potential for significant growth by 2023.
- Maximize use of Accelerate space in the Cortex for student and multidisciplinary faculty and staff engagement.
- Establish a program to increase research cooperation between departments and foster interdisciplinary research and relationships by 2020.
Goal
Bridge high value research and practice
Actions
- Create a centralized online portal to help connect companies to university resources such as faculty expertise, university intellectual property, advanced instrumentation and specialized facilities by 2020.
- Increase the level of corporate research collaboration.
- Increase the number of invention disclosures, patents filed and license agreements signed in line with the increase in funded basic research.