Establishing Centers and Institutes
Effective: Moved to Policy Library from UPM 2.5(9)
Contact: Office of the Senior Vice President and Provost
Introduction
The establishment of a center or institute at Iowa State University requires either notification to the Board of Regents, State of Iowa, or explicit approval by the board. Any new center or institute requires approval of the president and the senior vice president and provost.
Policy Statement
Informal proposals to establish new centers and institutes may come from any group of faculty members within the university and may be discussed informally at all levels. Formal proposals are necessary for the official establishment of centers and institutes. These proposals must include a detailed description of the proposed unit, including information on who will be involved, what the vision is for the new unit, how it will be structured and how it will be funded. Formal proposals must be reviewed and approved by all department chairs involved, by all academic deans who are involved, by the vice president for extension and outreach if outreach activities are proposed, by the vice president for research if research activities are proposed, and by the senior vice president and provost. The senior vice president and provost then forwards these recommendations to the president. If the president concurs that a center or institute be established, then the office of the vice president for research works with the respective unit to meet notification and/or approval requirements set forth by the Board of Regents.
Each center and institute must provide a brief report annually. All centers and institutes are to be formally reviewed every five to seven years. If the unit is closely associated with an academic department, the center/institute review may be done in conjunction with that of the department. Other larger organizations may be reviewed independently but in a manner similar to the way departments are reviewed.