WID Research Competition

• Announcing the WID Theme Competition
• Pre-proposals
• Criteria for Reviewing WID Full Proposals for Research Themes
• Summary of Review Process
• Other Considerations
• Full Proposals
• Implementation

Announcing the WID Theme Competition

This document, created by the WID Program Committee, presents the next steps in the implementation of the plan for WID that was approved by the Graduate School Academic Planning Committee (APC) on April 11, 2007 and the University APC on October 18, 2007. This plan is based on the selection of five WID themes. Each theme will involve researchers from throughout the UW–Madison campus and will be led by a current UW–Madison faculty member who will relocate into the WID building. Three new faculty members will be hired for each theme. Thus, 75% of the WID faculty will be new to the UW–Madison campus, anchored by 25% who are already tenured members of our university faculty. This design is based on a commitment to use WID as an opportunity for growth in the UW–Madison faculty, not simply expansion of space for current faculty, and a sensitivity to the negative impact on departments if all or most of the WID occupants were current faculty members who would be drawn away from the departments and centers where they currently reside.

Members of the UW–Madison community are invited to participate in a competition to select the five research themes of WID. The selection process is modeled after the successful cluster-hire program. Each theme will articulate an area of research that intertwines the three “thrust” areas of WID (biotechnology, nanotechnology, information technology). Each theme will ultimately involve a group of 4 faculty members (1 who is currently a member of the UW–Madison faculty who is the leader of the proposed theme, and 3 who will be newly-recruited to the UW–Madison faculty).

Proposals for research themes will be developed by groups of faculty from the UW–Madison, with one faculty member serving as the theme leader.

The theme leader of a successful proposal is expected to relocate into the WID building when it opens in 2010, chair the search committee that is charged with recruiting the other 3 faculty members who will comprise that research theme, and in collaboration with the WID Director, work with academic departments to vet candidates for appointment in a department as well as membership and residence at WID. He or she is expected to serve as a magnet to attract new faculty to the UW–Madison and will assume leadership of the research theme for the initial 5-year period. The other faculty members who collaborated with the theme leader on the development of the proposal will constitute an advisory committee that, among other functions, will link the WID theme with others on the UW–Madison campus who are carrying out related research. WID is envisioned as a much larger program than the research performed inside of the WID building, involving faculty collaborations campus-wide.

The recruitment of the three additional members of each research theme will begin following the selection of the final themes.

Pre-proposals

Pre-proposals are limited to a cover sheet, five single-spaced pages of text, a one-page appendix listing UW–Madison faculty members who were involved in the development of the theme proposal and who will serve as the theme Advisory Committee, and the CV of the theme leader.

Use Arial 11 point font and 1 inch margins.

Cover sheet: Abstract; Name and contact information for lead faculty member.

Five-page proposal: The following headings should be used in all pre-proposals.

1. Research Aims and Scope – describe the research goals and methodologies of the theme.
2. Integration of Biotechnology, Nanotechnology, and/or Information Technology – describe how at least two of these technologies will be incorporated into the theme and will lead to scientific discovery with the potential to benefit human health and welfare.
3. New Faculty Positions – describe the vision for the three new faculty positions, and how each will advance the theme’s research and scholarly goals.
4. Collaboration and Interdisciplinary Activities – describe the plans for interaction and collaboration both among the faculty members that comprise the theme and with others on campus, and identify the range of disciplines that will be involved.
5. Innovation and Fit – describe how the theme is innovative and creative, and why it is a good fit for WID. Of special interest is the potential impact of the theme on interdisciplinary research and education at the UW-Madison.
6. Faculty Theme Leader – describe the track record and capacity of the lead faculty member to serve as theme leader.

Appendices

• Names and departmental affiliations of faculty who will serve as the theme Advisory Committee and who will be part of the larger theme activities on campus.
• CV of theme leader

Submit proposals electronically by 5 p.m. on November 3, 2008.

Pre-proposals will be reviewed by the Chancellor, Provost, Graduate School Dean, Director of WID, and others TBA. This is the model followed in the selection of pre-proposals for the cluster hire program. Finalists will be invited to submit full proposals, due on April 1, 2009. Full proposals will be reviewed by a faculty advisory committee. Below are examples of criteria that will guide the review of full proposals. These criteria build on and extend the criteria used in the review and selection of pre-proposals.

Criteria for Reviewing WID Full Proposals for Research Themes

• demonstrate how the theme is innovative, leading to cutting edge, creative interdisciplinary research
• demonstrate how it will integrate biotechnology, nanotechnology, and/or information technology to lead to research advances with the potential to benefit human health and welfare
• describe the vision for each of the 3 new faculty positions, how they will contribute to advancing the theme’s focus, and discuss the potential for collaboration by the four faculty members within the theme and with academic departments and programs across disciplines
• include a plan for involving existing UW–Madison faculty (who will not move to the WID building) and for partnering with academic departments
• demonstrate both interdisciplinarity and a strong unifying concept
• identify the cores that would be needed for this research theme
• provide a plan for education and outreach for this theme
• suggest a plan for engaging faculty from the social sciences, education, and/or the arts and humanities
• discuss long-term intellectual sustainability, and ability to attract extramural funding
• project a timeline for the future achievement of the goals of this theme and provide a plan for growth within existing space resources
• demonstrate why WID is the best fit for this theme
• describe the amount and type of space that will be needed for the theme and how it fits within the plans for the WID building
• suggest a list of UW–Madison faculty who can be members of the theme search committee and confirm that these faculty are ready to serve
• suggest a list of potential non–UW candidates who could be recruited for the theme
• identify the possible departmental tenure homes for faculty in this theme

Summary of Review Process

1. Review of pre-proposals and selection of finalists conducted by Chancellor, Provost, Graduate School Dean, Director of WID, others TBA.
2. Review of full proposals (including site visits or interviews) by faculty advisory committee, with recommendations for finalists to Chancellor, Provost, Graduate School Dean, Director of WID.
3. Selection of final five research themes by Chancellor, Provost, Graduate School Dean, Director of WID. External reviewers may also be invited to consult on the selection of the final themes for WID.

Other Considerations

The selection of the final five research themes will reflect not only the recommendations of the faculty advisory committee but also an assessment of the extent to which the themes are synergistic. The faculty advisory committee will thus be asked to identify at least ten themes that meet the criteria outlined above (i.e., at least twice as many as ultimately will be selected). The Chancellor, Provost, Graduate School Dean, and Director of WID will make the final selection, with consideration given to synergy and complementarity of the themes. The Director of MIR will also be consulted throughout this process. Although the MIR Director will not be in a decisionmaking role, it is important for the development of the programs of WID and MIR to reflect continuous lines of communication and cross-talk.

Long Term Plan for the 15 Faculty Positions

If a faculty member who is recruited to one of the WID positions resigns from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, the position will revert to WID. Recruitment of a new faculty member for this position would follow the process used for cluster positions (i.e., WID would recruit in partnership with a home department).

If a faculty member who is recruited to one of the WID positions moves his or her office and lab from the WID building to his or her home department, the faculty line will stay with this faculty member as long as he or she remains a member of the faculty of the UW–Madison. If he or she subsequently resigns from the University, the position will revert to WID, as described above.

WID space vacated by that faculty member may be allocated to another faculty member within WID or to a faculty member who would move to WID from elsewhere on the UW–Madison campus, at the discretion of the WID Director.

Full Proposals

A faculty advisory committee will review full proposals, due April 1, 2009. The committee will make recommendations to the UW–Madison chancellor, provost, Graduate School dean and WID director, who will collectively select the final five WID themes by September 2009. The faculty advisory committee will be asked to identify at least ten themes from which the final five will be selected.

Successful theme proposals will meet a specified set of criteria.

Implementation

Those faculty with successful proposals will be expected to occupy the WID building when it is completed in 2010, chair the search committee for the three new faculty members who will comprise their respective research themes, and, in collaboration with the WID director, work with academic departments to vet candidates for faculty appointment in a department as well as membership and residence at WID. Faculty with successful proposals will assume leadership of a WID research theme area for an initial five-year period and will be active in the process to attract and recruit outstanding new faculty to the UW-Madison campus. Other UW-Madison faculty who contribute to the development of a successful proposal will constitute an advisory committee that, among other roles, will link their respective themes with other labs and faculty on campus doing similar research.

Recruitment of the three additional members for each research theme will begin immediately after successful proposals are selected.

The goal of this exercise is to fully populate the public side of the WID building within a few years of completion, primarily with new faculty organized into five research themes of four faculty each and that function in a mode similar to UW-Madison's current research clusters and that have intellectual reach to faculty and departments beyond the WID facility.