Month: January 2018

A shifting landscape of federal research funding and declining corporate research and development budgets make university and industry collaborations highly attractive.

Learn how to establish and manage these collaborations in a webinar series offered to the university community by the Division of Research’s Office of Industry Contracts with support from the Watt Family Innovation Center and the Clemson University Research Foundation.

Representatives from the Office of Industry Contracts and the Clemson University Research Foundation will be available for questions or further discussion at the end of each webinar.

To help faculty pursue opportunities for industry collaboration, CURF is offering an opportunity for faculty who attend the webinar to receive a travel stipend valued at $250 to be used to support registration or travel expenses (airfare, lodging) to an upcoming industry-related conference or meeting. A drawing for the stipend will be held at the end of each webinar. Those eligible are faculty or research faculty who attend the webinar and are present at the time of drawing.  The stipend will be in the form of travel reimbursement and CURF will require pre-approval of the designated conference/meeting.

The webinar series – “Working at the University-Industry Interface: Effective Strategies for Active Researchers” created by Academic Impressions and the University-Industry Demonstration Partnership – will guide you through the nuances and complexities of research collaborations between university and industry. Over seven sessions, experts at research universities and global corporations carefully cover the most critical considerations for creating win-win relationships:

1. Navigating the benefits and challenges
2. Managing expectations and creating relationships
3. Establishing contacts and handling proprietary information
4. Preparing proposals and budgets
5. Addressing compliance and contracting issues
6. Negotiating intellectual property (IP)
7. Leveraging government involvement

The sessions are ideal for faculty researchers, research center directors, research administrators, technology transfer officers, and any additional stakeholders who cultivate, negotiate or manage industry partnerships.

Upcoming Webinar Sessions

Preparing Proposals and Budgeting
Wednesday, March 21, 1 – 2:15 p.m.
Location: Room 238, Strom Thurmond Institute
Speakers: Abby Benson, assistant vice chancellor for research and innovation, University of Colorado Boulder; and Gaylene Anderson, U.S. director, contracts and alliance management, Boehringer Ingelheim
REGISTER

Addressing Compliance, Contracting and Consulting, and Outside Activities
Wednesday, April 4, 1 – 2:15 p.m.
Location: Room 238, Strom Thurmond Institute
Speakers: Katie Morris, university director, research contracting, Indiana University; and Charles Adelsheim, contracts and licensing manager, research and strategic collaborations, Varian Medical Systems
REGISTER

Managing Intellectual Property (IP) Issues
Wednesday, April 25, 1 – 2:15 p.m.
Location: Room 238, Strom Thurmond Institute
Speakers: Dushyant Pathak, associate vice chancellor for technology management and corporate relations, University of California, Davis; and Mary Jo Meyer, director, intellectual property management, Givaudan
REGISTER

Benefiting from University-Industry Collaborations with Government Engagement
Wednesday, May 2, 1 – 2:15 p.m.
Location: Room 238, Strom Thurmond Institute
Speakers: Theresa Mayer, vice president for research and innovation, Virginia Tech; and Chris Ramming, research manager, VMware
REGISTER

The Division of Research is working to enhance the quality of scholarly endeavors and growth of research programs with direct input from faculty.

The newly created Research Faculty Advisory Board held its first meeting in November. The board will provide input to the vice president for research on procedural matters and other issues affecting research at Clemson. Faculty are encouraged to share ideas and concerns with the advisory board members from their colleges.

The board will meet monthly, with members serving three-year terms. Research Faculty Advisory Board members are:

Andy Wesolek
University Libraries

Antonis Katsiyannis
College of Education

Brian Powell
College of Engineering,
Computing and Applied Sciences

Christopher Parkinson
College of Science

Edmond Bowers
College of Behavioral,
Social and Health Sciences

Lawrence Fredendall
College of Business

Lee Morrissey
College of Architecture,
Arts and Humanities

Sarah White
College of Agriculture,
Forestry and Life Sciences

For planning purposes, please notify individuals in your college/division to use the following proposed pooled fringe benefit rates for Fiscal Year 2018-2019.

The FY2018-19 pooled fringe rates have been proposed and submitted to the Department of Health and Human Services for review.  We anticipate their approval by the beginning of the next fiscal year.

The deadline to apply for seed grants from the Clemson Faculty SUCCEEDS program is Feb. 14. The program provides seed grants of up to $35,000 to help interdisciplinary faculty teams compete for external funding of $1.5 million or more.

SUCCEEDS (Strategic University Challenge for Competitive Excellence and Expertise in Discovery and Scholarship) is one of four R-Initiative funding opportunities available this semester. It provides seed grants to support leading-edge research and scholarship that capitalizes on the existing intellectual capital at Clemson. Preference is given to projects that are multi-disciplinary, inter-institutional and that advance the ClemsonForward strategic innovation clusters: advanced materials; cyber infrastructure and big data science; energy, transportation and advanced manufacturing; human resilience; health innovation; and the sustainable environment.

The goal for each funded Clemson Faculty Succeeds grant is the successful submission of a significant external research proposal.

Last year’s SUCCEEDS grants supported work on prenatal care, computational genomics and virtual reality research, and novel dietary therapies for gluten sensitivities. More information on last year’s grant recipients is available online.

The R-Initiative funds are part of the ClemsonForward strategic plan, representing the “R” of the REAL priorities – Research, Engagement, the Academic core and the Living environment.

For details, guidelines and instructions for applying, visit the R-Initiatives webpage. Questions should be directed to Diana Thrasher in the Division of Research at dianas@clemson.edu or 864-656-6444.