In 1999, following the advisement of the decision of the current Dean of the Graduate College and Vice Chancellor for Research at Urbana-Champaign that he would step down on Aug 20, 1999, the Chancellor reported his decision to split the two positions to the Apr 15, 1999 Board of Trustees meeting.1 From that time forward, the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research has been a separate entity at Urbana-Champaign.2
The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (OVCR) leads, enables, and supports research initiatives, technology commercialization and knowledge transfer at the University of Illinois. The OVCR has policymaking and oversight responsibility for the research mission and works collaboratively with the academic colleges and other administrative units to lead new research initiatives and to facilitate the ongoing scholarly endeavors of faculty, staff, and students. A number of interdisciplinary research and research support units report to the OVCR. These include the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, the Biotechnology Center, the Center for Advanced Study, the Committee on Natural Areas, the Division of Animal Resources, the Institute for Genomic Biology, the National Center for Supercomputing Applications, and the Prairie Research Institute, home of the State Scientific Surveys - Illinois Natural History Survey, Illinois State Archaeological Survey, Illinois State Geological Survey, State Water Survey, and the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center are also associated with the OVCR. scholarly endeavors of faculty, staff, and students. The OVCR also administers the Campus Research Board which provide support for faculty in disciplines across the campus. The OVCR is responsible for ensuring research compliance with governmental and University requirements concerning academic integrity in research and publication, the use of animals in research, conflicts of commitment and interest, the use of human subjects in research, and scientific diving expeditions. These responsibilities include formulation and distribution of policy in these compliance areas, outreach education to faculty and staff in colleges an departments, compliance reporting and review, and assessment and resolution of case specific problems/complaints. The compliance function for the use of animals in research is administered through the Division of Animal Resources. The other compliance areas are administered by staff in the OVCR working with campus advisory committees for each area. For example, the OVCR is home to the Institutional Review Board, which is responsible for overseeing all research involving human subjects on the Illinois campus. The OVCR also administers the annual Report of Non-University Activities, which provides a mechanism for oversight of conflicts of commitment and interest for academic staff, in accordance with the Policy on Conflicts of Commitment and Interest. The Research Integrity Officer is appointed by the VCR and is responsible for observance of the Policy and Procedures on Academic Integrity in Research and Publication.
Technology transfer and intellectual property issues are overseen collaboratively within the Office of the Vice President for Research. Additionally, in order to encourage collaborative efforts between University researchers and industry, the University of Illinois has constructed a Research Park in Urbana-Champaign.
The research park and its early-stage technology incubator program provide synergy for technology-based economic development in Illinois. In addition, the incubator provides our faculty and students with the opportunity to benefit from the commercialization of their research, keeping the University of Illinois competitive with other world-class research institutions for the very best talent. The incubator and Research Park are also attractive to many established technology firms as a source of new technologies complementary to their primary markets. 3
1. Board of Trustees Transactions, 70th Report, Apr 15, 1997. P. 202.
2. This first paragraph was taken from the Historical Note for the Graduate College draft of July 29, 2013.
3. Material in all other paragraphs taken from the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research website as of Nov 18, 2013.
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