Office of the Provost

Space

Two floors of the Engineering and Science Building (ESB) have been dedicated by the Provost to support the mission of the ISG.  Recognizing that the ISG is an interdisciplinary institute whose members have their home in academic departments, and that it includes core facilities that are under the direction of the Vice President for Research (VPR), the responsibility for supporting the research and facilities needs of the faculty in the ESB is a shared responsibility among the Institute, the VPR, and the schools and colleges with participating faculty.  Guidelines for this shared responsibility include:

• Where costs arise that are attributable to individual faculty or to small groups with a single home department, such as the situation when a piece of research equipment breaks, the responsibility for dealing with that cost belongs to that department and school/college.
• For broader matters involving multiple units, the costs will be shared on a pro-rated basis among the various constituencies.  It shall be the responsibility of the Director of the ISG, with the support of the Provost’s Office, to work out these arrangements in an equitable way among the schools and colleges, the Institute, the VPR, and the Provost’s Office.

The ISG Director shall be responsible for space allocations within the 2 floors of the ESB, and shall be charged with insuring that this space is used productively.  As is the case with all academic space, the provost has the authority to reallocate this space to other purposes to account for low productivity or to take other priorities into account

Appointment of Interim Director

The Provost will issue a formal call for nominations for an interim Director of the Institute for Systems Genomics.  Finalists selected by the Provost will meet with a variety of stakeholders in the Institute who will provide feedback to the Provost who will ultimately select a director.  The Director’s charge will be to oversee the activities of the Institute, to promote interdisciplinary and cross-campus research in the areas of interest to the Institute, and to promote productive working relationships with associated schools, colleges, departments, and programs.  The Director shall also lead the preparations for the external review (see below).  The Director shall serve until the appointment of a permanent director (following a national search, see below) or until the dissolution of the Institute.

Selection of interim Associate Director

In consultation with the Provost, the interim Director will select an interim Associate Director – from UConn Health if the Director is from Storrs, and from Storrs if the Director is from UConn Health

Stabilize funding for the staff of the CGI and the CBC

The Provost, the Director and the VPR will agree on a stable funding mechanism for the staff of the Center for Genome Innovation (CGI) and the Computational Biology Core (CBC).

Formation of an Executive Committee

The Director and Associate Director will form an Executive Committee for the Institute with a clearly defined process for appointing membership.  The Executive Committee shall include representation from the entities on both campuses that are invested in the success of the Institute (such as associated schools, colleges, departments, or programs).  The Executive Committee shall advise the Director and Associate Director on the Institute’s programming and the scientific direction of the Institute, and shall help to foster collaboration between the Institute and other entities on both campuses.

Settle (as far as possible) the status of the Ph.D. program

The Ph.D. program for the Institute is in suspense due to a lack of funding.  The Director, Associate Director, and the Executive Committee shall re-evaluate the Ph.D. program and shall clarify the role and seek the endorsement of related programs and departments.  After such a reassessment, and with the support of associated programs and departments, the Provost will consider the possibility of finding funding to begin the program on a trial basis.

Invite an external review of the Institute

The Director and Associate Director, with the Executive Committee, shall prepare a brief self-study of the Institute’s progress.  As part of this process, this group shall clarify the Institute’s scope and mission.  The Provost, in consultation with the Director, Associate Director, Executive Committee, and the faculty shall identify a small group of external experts and invite them to assess the status of the Institute.  The principal questions for this review are:

1. To what extent does the Institute create opportunities for research and funding above and beyond what might occur through informal faculty connections? What is the value added by the Institute structure?
2. How effectively does the Institute engage faculty with relevant interests? How well does it balance the need for a scientific focus with the goal of outreach to the broader community?
3. How effectively does the Institute promote research in those areas in its scope?
4. What scientific opportunities is the Institute best positioned to pursue?
5. What are the programmatic strengths and weaknesses that would impact the success of an (external) search for a permanent director (e.g., research strengths, facilities, etc.)?

Conduct an external search for a Director (or dissolve the Institute)

Assuming this process has yielded stable governance, a clear mission, and support from faculty and related schools, colleges, departments, and programs, institute a search for a new Director along the lines arising from the external review.  If, alternatively, the process outlined in this document has failed to yield a clear mission or consensus support, then dissolve the institute (preserving the CGI and CBC as core facilities to support genomics research).