Research Tracks

A publication of the Office of the Vice Provost for Research at Baylor University

September 14, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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Baylor physicist receives DARPA Young Faculty Award

Dr. Howard Lee received the 2017 DARPA Young Faculty Award at a ceremony this month in Washington.

The Office of the Vice Provost for Research congratulates Dr. Howard Lee, who was recently named a 2017 recipient of the DARPA Young Faculty Award (YFA).  Lee, an assistant professor of physics in Baylor’s College of Arts & Sciences, was one of just 28 researchers included in the YFA class of 2017.

The YFA program is intended to identify outstanding early-career faculty at U.S. academic institutions and support their research in defined topic areas related to DARPA’s defense-focused mission.  Lee was one of two recipients working in the topic area, “Designing Structured Materials for Improved Parametric Processes.”

August 15, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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OSP to host informational sessions for faculty and staff

Staff members from the OVPR and the Office of Sponsored Programs will provide guidance and answer questions about research administration and the proposal and award process at a series of informational sessions next month.  They’ll cover topics including proposal preparation and submission, award setup, subcontract issues, compliance and updates on the latest grant guidelines.

Check out the schedule of sessions below and contact the OSP at 254-710-3817 with any questions.

Wednesday, Sept. 13
3:00-4:30 p.m.
Baylor Sciences Building, room E234

Thursday, Sept. 14
2:30-4:00 p.m.
Baylor Sciences Building, room E234

Tuesday, Sept. 19
3:00-4:30 p.m.
Baylor Sciences Building, room E234

Wednesday, Sept. 20
2:30-4:00 p.m.
Reynolds Conference Center

Wednesday, Sept. 27
2:30-4:00 p.m.
Baylor Research & Innovation Collaborative (BRIC) symposium room 3160

August 10, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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Baylor profs’ film earns festival honors


“Blur Circle,” the latest film by director Christopher J. Hansen, associate professor and chair of Baylor’s department of film and digital media, was recently named the winner of the audience award for best dramatic feature at the Woods Hole Film Festival. The eight-day festival, which featured 130 independent films from emerging filmmakers, was held earlier this month in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Brian Elliott, senior lecturer of film and digital media, wrote and produced the film.

The film tells the story of a single mother still frantically searching for her young son two years after his disappearance.  When she meets an unusual man with a shrouded past of his own, she is forced to reevaluate her life and the way she has responded to grief.

“Blur Circle” was previously screened at festivals across Texas and was named best feature film at the Deep in the Heart Film Festival in Waco this past February.  The work is scheduled to appear at events in Tennessee and Kansas later this year.

Check out the official trailer for “Blur Circle” above and visit the film’s website for information on future screenings.

August 7, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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OVPR announces 8th annual proposal development seminars

Click the image above to download a flyer about the events.

Registration is now open for the OVPR’s annual proposal development seminars!

This year, we will offer the all-day “Planning and Writing Successful Proposals” program on Thursday, Jan. 4, 2018, as well as two two special half-day sessions focused on federal career development grants. The first half-day session, on the morning of Friday, Jan. 5, is focused on STEM awards like the National Science Foundation’s Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program. The second, on the afternoon of Jan. 5, covers biomedical career development programs like the National Institutes of Health’s Career Development Awards, including the mentored K-awards and the F-series fellowships for pre- and postdoctoral students. Special eligibility requirements apply to the half-day sessions; see the program descriptions below for specific information.

Our speaker for each of the sessions is Dr. Peg AtKisson, a neuroscientist and former director of proposal development in the Office of the Vice Provost at Tufts University.

Click here to register for the seminars. Contact Dr. Stacey L. Smith at 254-710-3252 with questions.

Session descriptions: Continue Reading →

May 18, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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OVPR Proposal Development Award self-nominations due May 26

The OVPR has announced that self-nominations for the 2017 Proposal Development Award are due by Friday, May 26.

At this stage, no pre-proposal is required. To nominate yourself for this program, simply send an email indicating your desire to be considered for the program to Dr. Peg AtKisson at peg@atg.consulting with a CC to Blake Thomas at Blake_Thomas@Baylor.edu.

After the May 26 deadline, Dr. AtKisson will provide instructions to all nominees for completion of the program application, which will be due on July 28. Participation in the program will be based on evaluation of the applications. All nominees, whether selected for participation or not, will receive feedback on their applications.

The Proposal Development Award is open to full-time, tenure track Baylor faculty who have previously attended one of the OVPR’s proposal workshops led by Dr. AtKisson.

Click here to read more about the program. Contact Blake Thomas in the OVPR at 254-710-3153 with any questions.

May 8, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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Change to IACUC/IBC 3-year review process

The Office of Research Compliance continuously works to provide efficient processes for our researchers while ensuring regulatory requirements for research are met. Therefore, we are implementing changes to the de novo review process for research under the purview of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) and the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC). The reason for the change is to make it easier for both researchers and our office to track the history of a research project for regulatory purposes.

IACUC and IBC protocols receive a 3-year approval. To renew the approval for the research at the end of the 3rd year, the review board must perform a de novo review of the research – i.e., the review board scrutinizes the research as if it is a brand new submission. Under our current process, researchers have been creating a completely new project in the IRBNet system and been provided with a new IRBNet number. Under the revised process, researchers will no longer be required to create a new project submission – instead, researchers should submit the research protocol as a subsequent package to their current IRBNet project.

This change is effective June 1, 2017. Please contact the Office of Research Compliance with any questions at 254-710-3708.

April 25, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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Self-nomination deadline for OVPR’s Proposal Development Award to be announced

Due to a change in the timeline for the OVPR’s Proposal Development Award, the deadline to submit self-nominations for the program will be pushed back.

Previously, the OVPR had announced self-nominations were due on May 1, but the deadline will now occur later in May.  The specific date will be announced soon after the new timeline is finalized.

Contact Blake Thomas in the OVPR with any questions about the program or application procedures.

April 5, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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OVPR unveils newly redesigned website

The new and improved Research@Baylor website.

The Office of the Vice Provost for Research is proud to announce a major update to the design and structure of its primary website, located at http://www.baylor.edu/research.

Just like the old site, the redesigned site includes information on the OVPR’s internal funding programs and administrative functions.  The new site also features improved organization that makes important information easier for researchers to locate.

Continue Reading →

March 6, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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Did you know? The OVPR provides proposal development assistance

You probably know that the OVPR provides faculty with assistance in finding sources of research funding through our internal grant programs and a campus-wide subscription to the Pivot database.  What you may not know is that we also offer one-on-one and group-based proposal development services!

Check out brief descriptions of the services we offer and contact our office with any questions. Continue Reading →

February 9, 2017
by Baylor OVPR
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Reminder: Drawings and raffles are not allowable forms of participant incentives

"Raffle Tickets" by alykat is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Raffle Tickets” by alykat is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

The OVPR would like to remind researchers that while it is acceptable to provide compensation to research participants, it is not appropriate for that compensation to take the form of entry into a drawing or raffle for a prize. The restriction is based on a Baylor policy that prohibits raffles or drawings as campus activities.

This policy most often applies to campus groups who might wish to hold raffles as fund-raising activities, but the Office of General Counsel has advised that the policy also applies to research participant raffles.

Brian Spry, research compliance specialist in the OVPR, can advise faculty on the appropriateness of planned participant compensation and help them develop alternatives that satisfy all applicable requirements.  He can be reached by phone at 254-710-3147, or by email at Brian_Spry@Baylor.edu.

Contact the Office of General Counsel with questions about the policy.