Happy New Year!
What a great time of year to restart, revamp, and begin new things.
I’ve been Associate Dean for just over five months, and it seems a good time to report out on some changes we’ve been making to support you and your research. Themes include:
- becoming more data-driven so that we can make better decisions on how to strategically grow the research enterprise;
- creating transparency so you know what funds are available to you, how to apply, and who has been funded; and
- improving administrative processes so that you can focus on the research.
On the next page you’ll find some specifics on those themes. We’ve also generated a mechanism to help you navigate the (sometimes confusing) post-award system. That item will appear in a user-friendly format on the CALS website soon, but here’s the CyBox link to spreadsheets for now.
"I know of nothing more inspiring than making discoveries for oneself."
-George Washington Carver
Please reach out if you need assistance. In the CALS Office of Research & Discovery, we’re here to help you do great work. Hopefully our support will enable you to do as George Washington Carver suggests – go make some discoveries!
Carolyn Lawrence-Dill
Associate Dean
Research & Discovery
Opportunities
How can CALS support me in my research? How do I ask for support? How can I be included in networking opportunities? Who has been supported by CALS and did the support seed new opportunities?
Providing support for your research is not a new thing in CALS, but knowing what’s available, how to apply, and who gets the support is. We’re in the process of updating the Research tab at the CALS website and will be including in that revamp links to apply for funds to support your work. We’re also committed to reporting out on who got supported and how. While we’re working to get the website revamped, use these links to apply for funding to Travel or Gather a Team. We’ve also got an opportunity now available to support Research Seminar Training.
We’re also revamping the method to receive notifications of grant opportunities. January funding alerts will include a link to join the funding opps listserv. Beginning February 1, only subscribers to the list will receive funding alerts from CALS.
Help with proposal preparation
Proposal Preparation (Pre-Award): The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Research Excellence Support (CARES) Team is available to assist with all your sponsored funding proposal development and submission. How? Identify a funding opportunity then fill out the Pre-Award Support Initiation Form to notify the CARES Team of your plans. Reach out to your CARES Team member directly or make contact by sending an email to cares-team@iastate.edu as early as possible in the submission process. (Shameless ad: We’re hiring a CARES Team member! Email Ásrún for details.)
Grant Consulting: The VPR website lists several grant consulting companies under contract to assist in writing proposals. You can request funding from CALS to support grant writing assistance. Funding is awarded based on availability of funds as well as the size of the potential grant and must be approved by the college prior to engaging a consultant.
CAPER: CALS Advisory Panel for Engaged Research
CAPER is a new faculty team working to help CALS researchers achieve more. Their charge: identify opportunities to improve administrative processes that support and encourage the research enterprise. CAPER is made up of one researcher from each of the CALS departments. For departments with a Research Associate Chair, that’s the CAPER. For others, members are selected in consultation with department chairs. Got an idea to make things work better? Contact your CAPER!
ABE: Michelle Soupir AGEDS: Mike Martin AGRON: Danny Singh ANSCI: Nick Gabler BBMB: Dipa Sashital | ECON: John Crespi EEOB: Jeanne Serb FSHN: James Hollis GDCB: Maura McGrail HORT: Ajay Nair | NREM: Michael Weber PLPM/ENT: Justin Walley SOCJ: J. Arbuckle STAT: Ranjan Maitra |
Personnel - Who does what around here?
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| Carolyn Lawrence-Dill (me) I’m the Associate Dean for Research & Discovery. The Dean says my job is to double the research activity in CALS (pubs, dollars, impacts…). | Ásrún Kristmundsdóttir is the CALS Research and Development Lead. She coordinates our approach to research development and manages the CARES Team. | Darwin Campbell is our new Data Analyst. He creates the datasets and frameworks that will move the office to become a more data-driven and transparent operation. | Lynn Laws is the program specialist managing the Ag Experiment Station. Note well: Lynn is retiring in May! Keep us in the loop on how best to help you manage your project. |
Download the January 2022 Newsletter (pdf)
CALS Office of Research & Discovery
139 Curtiss Hall, Iowa State University | Ames, Iowa. 50011
515-294-8842 | research.cals@iastate.edu