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University of Wisconsin–Madison

University Research Council Working Document

At a future date, to be decided by the VCRGE and the University Committee (UC), the UC and Senate will incorporate URC functions into FP&P. Until then, the UC will serve as the Ad Hoc shared governance body for the VCRGE. Shared governance responsibilities include:

  • Approving policies governing five-year reviews for VCRGE Centers to ensure that Centers remain at the leading edge of new discoveries. Members of the governance committee will participate in and have responsibility for providing advice to the VCRGE regarding the outcome of Center reviews.
  • Review and approval of the establishment of new, and closing of existing, VCRGE centers.

Function

The primary function of the University Research Council (URC) is to provide advice and consultation to the leadership team of the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Education (VCRGE) regarding the research enterprise on campus. Topics for discussion include, but are not limited to:

  • Strategic planning to maximize the research productivity of the faculty and to support highly innovative, transformative research.
  • Advice regarding allocation of flexible resources, such as support of research competitions, matching funds for grants, funding for recruitment and retentions, and honoring research contributions.

An additional function of the URC is to provide advice and consultation on VCRGE research centers. Centers play a vital role in facilitating interdisciplinary research on campus that pushes the frontier of knowledge and the training of the next generation of outstanding scholars.

The URC is expected to bring faculty views and opinions to the VCRGE’s attention. In turn, members are responsible for assisting the Office of the VCRGE in helping to communicate the research resources of the VCRGE office.

Structure

The members of the URC will include representation from the four divisions, and will include faculty, academic staff, and classified staff. URC members are expected to represent the interests of the university community at large.

The URC will be chaired by the VCRGE and the VCRGE will be the spokesperson for the URC.

Members of the VCRGE’s research leadership team (i.e., the Associate Vice Chancellors for Research from the four divisions, the Associate Vice Chancellors for Research Policy, and the Dean of the Graduate School) will participate in URC meetings as ex officio nonvoting members.

Decision Making Process

The URC and the VCRGE will work together toward consensus. Policy recommendations will be decided by a majority vote of the URC.

The URC will follow open meeting rules when it assumes governance or policy making responsibilities.