Respect is a core value and is widely honored by the members of our University community.  The University is committed to sustaining a respectful community environment that is, as much as possible, experienced by all as safe, inclusive and welcoming.

While we realize that the core value of respect is widely reflected in most of our day-to-day interactions, the University provides resources to assist employees who may be subjected to inappropriate conduct such as abusive, threatening, discriminatory or harassing behaviors.

By agreement with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Local 503, the University has committed to remind employees each year of resources available to assist them with inappropriate conduct.  Any employees subjected to inappropriate workplace conduct should feel free to take their concerns to their supervisor or unit head, the Office of Human Resources, or for concerns of discriminatory or harassing conduct to the Office of Equity and Inclusion.

Of course the most effective way to sustain a respectful community is through the good faith efforts of each and every one of us.  We appreciate and thank you for your efforts to create, foster and sustain a respectful and inclusive work and learning environment at OSU.

FY2013 RFP for Technology Resources Fund Grants

Through the University’s Technology Resources Fund (TRF), more than $7.4 million will be available for FY2013 projects that improve student learning at OSU through better access to information technology and technology services.  Past grants have ranged from $5,000 to $1.2M. Faculty, staff and sponsored student organizations are invited to submit proposals.

Lois Brooks, Vice Provost for Information Services, has released the Request for Proposals for the Fiscal Year 2013 (July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013) round of funding and invites the university community – students, faculty and staff – to submit proposals.

Proposals are due February 21, 2012 at 5:00 p.m.

In response to campus input and advice on the TRF, to better meet the needs of students and to realign the Technology Resource Fee process with the institutional strategic plan and IT governance structure, the approach to awarding and managing TRF funds has been modified.

Types of Grants Available

Two types of grants are now available:

1.            Start-up projects – one-time projects are sought, with a special interest in new and innovative ideas.

2.            Recurring programs – programs that have previously received TRF awards or anticipate requesting TRF awards in future rounds of funding

No less than 10% of the available funding will be reserved for start-up grants.

Use of Funds

TRF funds may be used for the following purposes:

•             New applications of information technology, e.g. interactive courseware, that improve student access to learning and the tools required for learning or that improve the student learning experience, including through improved pedagogy.

•             Spaces where students use computers, including, but not only, traditional facilities like classrooms and computer labs.  Or, equivalent forms of computer access through such mechanisms as virtual desktops or pools of loaned equipment that broaden access to IT resources beyond traditional labs and classrooms.

•             Other supporting services, software and systems, for example: providing e-mail and minimal electronic storage space for students; workshops and courses to enhance student use of information technologies; audio-visual or multimedia support of student projects/presentations; student software licenses

Review of Proposals

Proposals will be reviewed by a committee of faculty, staff and students that will make advisory recommendations to the University’s Instructional IT Committee and IT Infrastructure Committees and ultimately to the Vice Provost for Information Services who will make final funding determinations.  Reviewers will consider factors such as the following: alignment with the University’s strategic directions; evidence for the quality and likely effectiveness of pedagogy or service delivery models; collaboration and cooperation among campus units; number of students affected relative to the amount requested, co-investment and/or non-financial support by project sponsors; cost-effectiveness; past successes with similar projects and sustainability of the project.

TRF RFP

For more information, consult the Fiscal Year 2013 TRF Request for Proposals, http://oregonstate.edu/leadership/provost/trf/request.

TRF Online Application:

To submit a proposal: http://oregonstate.edu/trf/submit

Contact Information:

David Barber,

TRF Administrator &

Senior Program Manager

Information Services

Phone: 737-2367

E-mail: David.Barber@oregonstate.edu

[Updated: Thursday, January 9, 2012]

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Mas Subramanian, an internationally recognized chemist at Oregon State University, will receive the 2012 Chemical Research Society of India Medal, awarded to outstanding chemists of Indian origin who work outside of India.

Subramanian, the Milton Harris Professor of Materials Science in the OSU Department of Chemistry, will be honored at the 2012 CRSI 14th National Symposium in Chemistry in India this February.

An expert in such fields as high-temperature superconductivity, thermoelectrics, magnetoresistive materials, catalysis and solid-state dielectrics, Subramanian has discovered and developed many new materials. A recent discovery of new color pigments received worldwide attention.

Before joining OSU, Subramanian was a scientist at DuPont Central Research and Development. He has published nearly 300 papers in professional journals, which in turn received more than 12,000 citations. His work has yielded 54 patents that are in place or pending.

Subramanian received a doctoral degree from the Indian Institute of Technology in 1982, and is also a signature faculty fellow in the Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnology Institute.

As you know, your graduate program is scheduled for a Graduate Council Program Review either next year or the following.   You are therefore invited to attend the Graduate School’s Program Review Workshop on Wednesday, March 7^th, 1:30 pm-3:00 pm in MU 208 (LaRaza).

The purpose of this workshop is to help departments and programs that will be reviewed in 2012-2014 prepare for those reviews. We will introduce the Program Review Guidelines, which are attached, and we will be pleased to address any questions you might have about your self-study document or any of the other part of the review documentation and preparations. You are welcome to forward this email and/or bring others who will assist in your review preparation.

The graduate degree programs for review in 2012-2014 are:

• Applied Anthropology
• Botany and Plant Pathology
• Chemistry
• Interdisciplinary Studies
• Applied Ethics
• Computer Science
• Electrical & Computer Engineering
• Toxicology
• Mathematics
• Adult Education
• College Student Services Administration
• Human Development and Family Studies
• Wood Science
• Civil Engineering
• Construction Engineering Management

See you on March 7^rd, 2012.

Program Review Guidelines

On behalf of Rick Spinrad, Vice President for Research:

The January 24^th pre-solicitation webinar to discuss the DRAFT RFA for the upcoming USAID University Engagement through Higher Education Institutions opportunity received so much interest that the sponsors have decided to schedule another opportunity for faculty to discuss the DRAFT USAID RFA. This is a comment period and not an RFA per se, but the proposed program is a $100 million effort over 5 years.

Please forward this webinar opportunity to faculty that may be interested.

The USAID webinar is scheduled for January 30, 2012

Details are at:  http://universityengagement.usaid.gov/

USAID DRAFT RFA: http://universityengagement.usaidallnet.gov/sites/default/files/draft_rfa_for_commentl.pdf

To support your efforts to recruit diverse Chemistry & Physical Sciences Faculty, Academic Careers Online hosts the 4th annual Online Diversity Job Fair through the end of February (to coincide with Black History Month.)

How does it work? We built a large database of diverse faculty, doctoral students, and professionals in all academic and administrative areas, and using push-technology we alert them of your job in theOnline Diversity Job Fair. This includes applicants from diverse backgrounds as well as those in short supply such as women in science, technology, math and engineering, or males in nursing and education. It is very pro-active.

Any travel? It’s online so no need to travel and no access barriers for applicants to view your job opening.

How much? Each job opening advertisement, which automatically includes participation in the Online Diversity Job Fair, is USD 195

To post a job and participate: www.AcademicCareers.com or www.UniversityDiversityJobFair.com, select “Employers enter here” and follow the simple steps. You will receive an invoice later via email and can pay by purchase order, university check, or credit card.

I am here to help you. For a faster response do not hit the reply button but use the email address below.

Regards,
Robert J. Kuhne, Ph.D.
Academic Careers Online
485 Devon Park Drive, Suite 116
Wayne, PA 19087, USA
Telephone: 610-964-9200
Email: Info@AcademicCareersOnline.com

College of Science Faculty, Staff and Students:

As you know, Dr Sherm Bloomer will begin his appointment as Director of Budget and Fiscal Planning on February 1, 2012. I have initiated an expedited internal search to identify an interim dean. The interim dean will lead the College until a permanent dean is appointed and begins her/his appointment.

Dr Mark Zabriskie, Dean of the College of Pharmacy, will serve as chair of the screening committee for the interim dean position. The other members of the screening committee will be confirmed soon. In the meantime, the position announcement is attached and applications for the position are welcome. Please note the February 6 application deadline.

I will initiate the search for a permanent Dean in the near future, but first, I will identify a date and time for a College forum so that I have an opportunity to meet with you to hear about your expectations for the position.

Sabah Randhawa

Provost and Executive Vice President

Interim Dean of Science Job Description

The Research Office is requesting letters of intent from interested faculty for the National Science Foundation (NSF) – Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) program.

Please forward this funding opportunity announcement to faculty that may be interested.

Letters of intent submission deadline to the Research Office: Monday, March 5, 2012

The IGERT program has been developed to meet the challenges of educating U.S. Ph.D. scientists and engineers with interdisciplinary backgrounds, deep knowledge in chosen disciplines, and technical, professional, and personal skills. The program is intended to establish new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries. It is also intended to facilitate diversity in student participation and preparation, and to contribute to a world-class, broadly inclusive, and globally engaged science and engineering workforce.

Building upon the IGERT platform, the purpose of this IGERT solicitation is to support new models in graduate education in which students are engaged in an environment that supports innovation to learn through hands-on experience how their own research may contribute in new ways to benefit society and to learn the processes for the successful implementation of such contributions.

Guidance for preparation of Letters of Intent may be accessed at: http://oregonstate.edu/research/incentive/igert.htm

NSF – IGERT program guidelines: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2011/nsf11533/nsf11533.htm

Letters of Intent should be submitted electronically to Debbie Delmore, Research Office at debbie.delmore@oregonstate.edu as a MS Word document.

If you have any questions, please contact Debbie Delmore at (541) 737-8390.

Environmental Health Research Experience Program (EHREP) at the University of Washington Seattle

The EHREP is a funded nine week, summer experience for undergraduates with interest in an interdisciplinary field that uses the tools of science to solve human health problems related to the environment. EHREP provides students with hands on experience in laboratories of leading researchers, introduces them to key environmental and occupational health issues while offering research exposure that will help them become competitive for graduate school. Students will receive a stipend of $5,200.

The program is meant for student underrepresented in the sciences. The deadline for student applications is Wednesday, February 15, 2012.

Program website: http://depts.washington.edu/ehug/ehrep/index.html

Oregon Academy of Science
2012 Annual Meeting on Saturday, February 25th, in Portland Oregon

The annual award nomination deadlines have been extended to February 1^st.

Abstracts (poster or oral sessions) may be submitted through February 4^th.
Submission and registration forms are attached and are available at the Oregon Academy of Science website, http://www.oas.pdx.edu/ .

I would like to extend a special welcome to our graduate and undergraduate student members to present their research in one of the many forums available at this year’s meeting.
Student annual membership and meeting registration, including breakfast and lunch, is still just $20.00.

Best wishes for a peaceful new year,
Dieterich Steinmetz, M.D.

President, Oregon Academy of Science
Division Dean, Science and Engineering,
Portland Community College, Sylvania Campus, Portland, Oregon
971-722-4226

The Oregon Academy of science promotes scientific research and education in Oregon. Divisions of the Academy represent all areas of the natural sciences and social sciences. The Academy encourages participation by research and applied scientists and educators from all fields.