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June 2016 Newsletter

Council on Research and Creativity

On May 5, the Council on Research and Creativity (CRC) held its grants workshop for the 2015 – 2016 First Year Assistant Professors (FYAP). The workshop featured a ‘Grants: Cradle to Grave’ section that was facilitated by representatives from the Office of Research, Office of Proposal Development, Sponsored Research Administration, and FSU Research Foundation, followed by breakout sessions led by successfully funded faculty within specific academic fields, and concluded with posters presented by recipients of the 2014 – 2015 FYAP award, which displayed the results of their first summer at FSU and its impact on their planned research. The CRC chose to recognize the top three posters for ‘best in show’ and prizes were awarded to the following:

  • Christianne Beekman, Physics
  • Virginia Lewis, Classics
  • Justin Kennemur, Chemistry and Biochemistry 

All posters are viewable here.

Pilot Program for Partial Salary Funding of Full-Time Specialized Research Faculty

In an effort to address potential grant compliance issues, the Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) will provide funding to cover 5 percent of current salary plus applicable fringe benefit coverage for certain full-time specialized research faculty supported exclusively by federal research contract or grant funds to recognize their participation in proposal development and writing. Applications for funding may be submitted by individuals who are PIs on grants or other key senior individuals who take time away from their funded research to actively engage in successful efforts to obtain additional extramural funding.

Eligibility for this program will be reviewed and confirmed by the OVPR.  For clarity, the OVPR will provide funding only for the research activities defined in this notice. Funding for other non-project related activities should be sought from departmental or other sources. In no case should individuals engage in activities outside of their funded research if those additional activities would occur while being supported by an unrelated research contract or grant.

It is our intent that upon approval of an application, funding for the applicant could be made available for a period of up to 3 years contingent upon annual certification that the approved individuals are continually engaged in efforts to obtain extramural research funding.  All awards approved under this program will be made at the discretion of the OVPR.

The application form should be used for funding requests and should be submitted to the OVPR for consideration at least five weeks prior to the beginning of the fiscal year funds are needed.

Download the application form by visiting https://www.research.fsu.edu/media/2455/application-for-salary-funding.pdf. If you have any questions, please contact Kerry Peluso at kpeluso@fsu.edu or 850-644-8664.

Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program

The faculty portal is now open for FSU's Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP): http://cre.fsu.edu/Faculty-Research-Mentors/Undergraduate-Research-Opportunity-Program-UROP

UROP is a year-long program in which high-achieving first- and second-year students, as well as some transfer and veteran students, serve as research assistants to faculty members working on research or creative projects. Students admitted into UROP get access to the projects submitted by faculty, interview with faculty, and serve as research assistants for the academic year. Faculty who submit a project are under no obligation to accept a student. All UROP students attend a year-long research colloquium and present their work at the annual FSU Undergraduate Research Symposium.

As UROP research mentors, faculty members, postdocs and graduate students can have student research assistants at no cost to them. Faculty can also receive a materials grant for up to $1,000 (a maximum of $500 per student) and be eligible for a $2,000 Undergraduate Research Mentor award. Graduate students can receive a materials grant of up to $250 and be eligible for a $500 Undergraduate Research Mentor Award. We encourage you to upload your research or creative project(s) for which you would like research assistants (and view previous UROP projects) through the UROP site. For more information on UROP, contact Dr. Jhunu Chatterjee at jchatterjee@fsu.edu.

Facility for Arts Research

The Department of Art recently filmed a new video about the Facility for Arts Research. View it here.

Searle Scholar Program

The Searle Scholars Program supports research of outstanding individuals who have recently begun appointments at the assistant professor level, and whose appointment is their first tenure-track position.  The Program is funded from the estates of Mr. and Mrs. John G. Searle. Mr. Searle was the grandson of the founder of the world-wide pharmaceutical company, G.D. Searle & Company. It was Mr. Searle's wish that certain funds be used to support "research in medicine, chemistry and the biological sciences".

Each year,  15 new individuals are named Searle Scholars. Awards are currently set at $100,000 per year for three years.  Florida State University may submit the name of one individual who will be allowed to apply.  If you are interested in applying for this opportunity, please visit the limited submissions portal to apply.   The internal deadline for this program will be July 15 with the Searle application deadline being September 30.

FSU to host 2016 Ecological and Evolutionary Ethology of Fishes

Florida State University will host the 20th Biennial Ecological and Evolutionary Ethology of Fishes (EEEF) Meeting June 14-16, 2016. The meeting will be held on the FSU campus, with hotel accommodations nearby.

The steering committee this year includes Dr. Felicia Coleman, Dr. Chip Cotton, Dr. Gary Ostrander, and Dr. Joseph Travis (all from Florida State University), Dr. Gene Helfman (University of Georgia), Dr. David Noakes (Oregon State University), Dr. Nathan Putman (NOAA Fisheries, Southeast Fisheries Science Center), and Dr. Colette St. Mary (University of Florida). The meeting is organized around four primary themes:

  • Population genomics of fishes (Organizer: Travis)
  • Sensory ecology, movement patterns, and behavior (Organizer: Putman)
  • Species Interactions (Organizer: Cotton)
  • Biodiversity: Discovery, Variation & Conservation (Organizer: St. Mary)

To learn more or register for the meeting, visit https://marinelab.fsu.edu/eeef/.

Upcoming Infographics Workshop

The Office of Proposal Development will host an infographics workshop July 26 from 2 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. in the Rovetta Building B, room 113. Infographics are an important tool for communicating a complex story quickly. Visuals can also draw attention to key messages or explain multi-step processes in the blink of an eye. But creating charts and infographics can be time-consuming and confusing. This workshop will provide techniques and practical approaches for creating effective infographics.  

Paul Marty (School of Information) and Ken Armstrong (Program in Interdisciplinary Computing) will share their expertise on creating effective data visualization.  Topics will include:

  • Why data visualization is so important
  • A demonstration of some tools that are used to make infographics
  • A hands-on experience where participants are encouraged to bring example data sets to create real-time infographics 

For more information, and to register, visit https://research.fsu.edu/research-offices/opd/workshopstraining/infographics-workshop-2016/.

DigiNole Research Repository

Devin Soper from FSU Libraries will provide an overview of FSU’s DigiNole Research Repository. He will explain the purpose of the repository, the workflow for submission and review of author manuscripts. He will also explain its relationship to the new open access policy and development priorities for the repository going forward. The demonstration will be held from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. on June 21 in the OVPR Conference Room. Anyone is welcome to attend.

Exercise Science Professor Featured in Great Courses

FSU Assistant Professor of Exercise Science Michael Ormsbee is the newest addition to The Great Courses lectures that are seen around the world. For a preview, watch The Great Courses’ Facebook video with him as he talks about the pros and cons of fitness trackers. Watch here.

NIH and AHRQ Requirements for Rigor and Reproducibility

In October 2015, NIH and AHRQ introduced new requirements for rigor and transparency for most research grant and individual mentored career development award applications (see NOT-OD-16-004, NOT-OD-16-011 and NOT-OD-16-012).

Originally this requirement was to be implemented for institutional training and individual fellowship applications submitted for the May 25, 2016 due date and beyond. NIH recognized however, that the development of substantive and effective instructional plans and curricula to ensure in-depth, transformative education and training in rigorous experimental design across the many different fields and disciplines supported by institutional training grants, institutional career development awards, and individual fellowships would require time and resources on the applicant’s part; therefore, the timeline for implementing this requirement has been extended.

Implementation of these requirements will be as early as FY 2017 but will not be in 2016 as indicated in NOT-OD-16-004. A new website focused on what these reproducibility efforts mean for NIH applicants and grantees may be found at http://grants.nih.gov/reproducibility. The associated Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ; http://grants.nih.gov/reproducibility/faqs.htm), will continue to be updated.

NSF PAPPG Notice

NSF published a notice in the Federal Register announcing the availability of a “For comment” draft of the Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG).  The Foundation is accepting comments from the external community until close of business July 15, 2016.

To facilitate review, revised text has been highlighted in yellow throughout the document and explanatory comments have been included in the margins, where appropriate. 

The following are links to the draft PAPPG and associated Federal Register Notice: Draft PAPPG and  Federal Register Notice.

Any questions should be directed to the Division of Institution and Award Support (DIAS)/Policy Office at policy@nsf.gov.

New MOU among NIH, USDA, and FDA

NIH, USDA, and FDA have participated under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Concerning Laboratory Animal Welfare for over 30 years. Each agency, operating under its own authority, has specific responsibilities for fostering proper animal care and welfare. This agreement sets forth a framework for reciprocal cooperation intended to enhance agency effectiveness while avoiding duplication of efforts in achieving required standards for the care and use of laboratory animals. The new MOU is available at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/olaw/references/finalmou.htm.

SUS Washington Update

Attached is the June edition of the State University System E-Update Newsletter from Washington. Included are brief articles on the budget, NIH grant applicants and new competitive grant program opportunities. Click here for the update.

FSU Awards Report

A monthly awards report is available online. This report will allow interested faculty, staff and others, to learn more about who has been recently awarded research grants. Access the latest report here.

Funding Opportunities

Please click here to access some of the latest funding opportunities available for the arts, humanities, social sciences, STEM disciplines and medicine.

Federal Lobbying Activities Report is Due July 5

Federal regulations require that FSU report to the U.S. House and Senate all time and expenses related to federal lobbying activities conducted by its faculty and staff. To aid us in completing those reports accurately, employees who participate in federal lobbying related to University activities should report those activities to FSU’s Office of Federal Relations. The Federal Lobbying Activities Report covering the period April-June 2016 should be submitted to the Office of Federal Relations no later than July 5, 2016. To access the form and additional information, please visit the Federal Relations website.

New Faces in the Office of Research

Five new team members have recently joined the Office of Research family. Please join us in giving them a warm welcome.

Matthieu Dumont
Welcome Matthieu Dumont to the Office of Commercialization, where he will be working as a licensing manager overseeing a portfolio of chemistry and other physical sciences-related technologies for commercial licensing. Matthieu was most recently a consultant with the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation in Washington, D.C. He has a Ph.D. in inorganic chemistry from University of Florida, an M.Sc. in Chemistry from University of Toulouse, and a B.Sc. in Material Science from University of Lyon.

Ella Thomason
Welcome Ella Thomason to the Research Foundation. Ella is a new accounting representative. She graduated from University of South Carolina and brings valuable accounting experience to the foundation.

Madeline Brink
Next time you head by the Human Subjects Committee Office, say hello to Madeline (Maddie) Brink, a new file clerk for the committee. Maddie graduated in Fall 2015 with a degree in religion from FSU and will focus on managing the office file room.

Joan Joseph
Heading over to the Office of Proposal Development? Say hello to new student assistant Joan Joseph. Joan is pursuing a dual degree in political science and applied statistics with ambitions of obtaining a doctorate in political methodology and becoming a research scholar.

Victoria Sanchez
The Research Foundation has welcomed student accountant Victoria Sanchez to their ranks. Victoria is pursuing her degree in accounting with aspirations of becoming a certified public accountant.  She will perform day-to-day clerical and accounting functions for the research foundation.