Dear Colleagues,
I hope you are finding time to relax and recharge this summer while continuing to pursue new and continuing research. Your work is a cornerstone of the eminence of our university.
The OORI team nurtures and promotes research, scholarship, creativity, and innovation at USC. If you are new to research or simply feel the need to refresh, I encourage you to attend the Navigating Research and Scholarship at USC webinar on August 23. With our team, you will be able to explore internal funding opportunities and how to access resources to accelerate your discovery and scholarship, and translate and transfer your research.
With gratitude,
Ishwar K. Puri, Senior Vice President, Research and Innovation
FACULTY ENGAGEMENT: Congratulations! Dr. Maryam Shanechi, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, VSOE, has been named a 2024 Blavatnik National Awards for Young Scientists Finalist in Physical Sciences & Engineering. Dr. Shanechi is one of only six honorees of 331 candidates selected this year in Physical Sciences & Engineering.
USC enterprise licenses to be discontinued: Please note, as of July 15, 2024, USC’s enterprise license for the reference manager Citavi will be discontinued. Importantly, your Citavi reference library will no longer be available as of July 15th. In addition, the enterprise license for the qualitative software N-VIVO and Atlas.ti will not be renewed. Users will have until July 30, 2024, and July 19, 2024, to download their data from N-VIVO and Atlas.ti, respectively.
Associates Award for Creativity in Research and Scholarship: The USC Associates Awards are the highest honors the university can bestow on its members for their distinguished achievements. Please submit your nominations by September 25th. For program and nomination information, click here.
Call for Nominations – The Frontiers Planet Prize: Launched by the Frontiers Research Foundation, the Frontiers Planet Prize recognizes and awards a National Champion for each participating country, and three prizes of CHF 1 million each to 3 International Champions. The link to apply is here: https://provost.sma.usc.edu/prog/2025_frontiers_planet_prize_-_nominations. The eligibility criteria for nominations can be found here. Additional information can be found here. The award is based on Dr. Johan Rockström’s nine planetary boundaries, which form the basis on which this award is based.
Navigating Research and Scholarship at USC: Whether you are new or need a refresher, we would like to invite you to attend this year’s research and scholarship orientation for faculty, staff, postdocs, PhD students, and graduate students on Friday, August 23, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm PDT, via zoom. We have prepared an exciting and informative program on the latest and greatest resources and support available at USC to help you conduct research and navigate scholarship. Learn more and register here.
FEDERAL LANDSCAPE UPDATES: Changes Coming to NIH Applications and Peer Review in 2025: Multiple changes are coming in 2025 that will affect the submission and review of NIH grant applications. These changes include updates to the peer review and submission of most research project grants, fellowships, and training grants; NIH biographical sketches and Current and Pending (Other) Support forms; updated instructions for reference letters; and the transition to FORMS-I application instructions. The webinar from June 5th detailing these changes can be viewed here, and registration for the second webinar, which focuses on fellowship application changes, can be found here.
Newly Released Funding Opportunities: The Department of Defense (DoD) has released several newly active funding opportunities accepting applications over recent weeks, managed by the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP); these opportunities span across CDMRPs focus areas for 2024. More information on CDMRPs anticipated funding opportunities and currently active, recently released funding opportunities can be found here.
DEPARTMENT OF CONTRACTS & GRANTS: The Department of Contracts and Grants is pleased to announce a staffing update. We would like to welcome Heidi Harris to the DCG Team. Heidi will be the new Principal Officer for the UPC campus and brings a strong background in research administration from UCSD, Scripps Health, and the University of Utah. We are excited to have her on the DCG team!
Monthly Training Dates for July:
The Department of Contracts and Grants offers, on a monthly basis and upon request, a pre-award and post-award training. The pre-award training walks administrators through the proposal process at USC covering; roles and responsibilities, how to route proposals through the Cayuse system, and USC processes and policies to be aware of. The post-award training provides an overview of roles and responsibilities, cost principals, common post award issues and how/when to seek sponsor prior approval. Below are the dates and times the trainings will be available in July:
Pre-Award Training: A Walk Through Cayuse SP and the Proposal Process
Zoom Link: https://usc.zoom.us/j/3436532845
Monday, July 15th, from 2:00 pm–3:30 pm PDT
Post-Award: Managing Common Post Award Issues and Questions
Zoom Link: https://usc.zoom.us/j/3436532845
Wednesday, July 17th, from 2:00 pm–3:30 pm PDT
STEVENS CENTER FOR INNOVATION: The USC Stevens Center has revamped its innovation internship program and is pleased to announce the first cohort of licensing interns! Seven exceptional PhD candidates with expertise in life sciences and physical sciences and a passion for technology commercialization, will work closely with the Executive Director, Dr. Erin Overstreet, and the seasoned licensing team to enhance technology licensing marketing efforts for USC inventors. In addition to creating marketing materials and executing campaigns, the interns will gain hands-on training in three key licensing areas:
- Patentability Analyses: Assessing the potential for patent protection.
- Market Analysis: Investigation of market size, dynamics, and unmet needs.
- Agreement Negotiation: Drafting and negotiating intellectual property agreements, such as Confidential Disclosure Agreements (CDAs) and Industry Investment Agreements (IIAs).
We hope that you will have a chance to meet them. Please read their bios here.
HUMAN RESEARCH PROTECTION PROGRAM: We have completed our first round of Progress Updates. Thank you to everyone who participated in this process so far. If you have received a Progress Update request and your study remains active, please make sure you take the time to complete the process. This effort is allowing us to gain a more complete picture of the number of active expedited and exempt studies underway at USC. To date, we have been able to close over 10,000 studies. The majority of these have been inactive for years. For more information regarding our Post Approval Monitoring process, please look at our website.
DEPARTMENT OF ANIMAL RESOURCES: Per Diem Announcement: After a careful review of the current costs to provide animal care, per diem and service rates will be increasing 2%, effective July 1, 2024. A table identifying new rate(s) by species can be located on the DAR website. We understand that budget adjustments can be challenging, and we want to assure you that this decision was made after careful review and consideration. A per diem rate analysis was performed in 2023 that showed a significant under recovery of the costs to provide the materials, supplies, equipment, and services of the trained, certified, and licensed DAR staff. The revised rates reflect increased costs of animal care and our commitment to maintain the highest standards of welfare for animals involved in research. Please find details regarding the DAR cost structure and rate analysis here as well as the proposed 5 year rate schedule.
We believe this change will enhance our ability to provide the best possible care for our research animals, which is essential for the integrity and success of our research programs. Our goal is to ensure that you have the necessary resources to continue your valuable work without compromising on animal welfare. If you have any questions or need further clarification on the new per diem rates, please do not hesitate to darbo@usc.edu.
Upgrades in Animal Facilities: Essential upgrades are underway at our animal facilities including the ZNI Bulk Sterilizer replacement project. The project will start May 20, 2024, and end on August 9, 2024. While we anticipate some disruptions to operations, we aim to minimize these by scheduling work during off-hours whenever possible. DAR staff will monitor noise and vibrations during the project and promptly address excessive disturbances with the contractors.
Ongoing construction activities in the various rooms of RRI are being communicated to stakeholders regularly with lookahead schedules; noise and vibration are also being monitored.
The HMR freight elevator modernization project (4/22/24-8/5/24) is still ongoing with utilization of the elevator platform when requested. DAR has worked diligently to ensure that research projects continue without interruption or significant delay.
Resource Guide: check out the DAR-Quick Guide on Overcrowded Cages on the DAR website. PIs can encourage their staff to utilize this valuable resource to avoid overcrowded cage notices, animal welfare issues, mismating, genetic contamination, and separation fees.
For additional resources, contact information, training videos, and answers to FAQs, please visit https://dar.usc.edu/
Monthly updates are archived here.