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ACCESS has undergone a makeover! Let us know
what you think about our new design and interface.
Contact Karen
Hayes (413) 545-9586 with comments
or suggestions.
Current and archived issues are now searchable by
keyword from the Research ACCESS index page.
Correction
In our recent issue
published
on February 6, 2007, there was an error in the
contact and submission information listed for two
funding opportunities: The Creative Economy
Initiatives Fund and The Science and
Technology
Initiatives Fund. Submission for both these funds
are
to be coordinated through the Office of the Vice
Provost for Research and should not be sent directly
to the President's Office. The Vice Provost's
deadlines for the concept papers and proposals are
February 26 and April 25, respectively. Submissions
should be made electronically, one file per concept
paper or proposal to Paul
Kostecki with a cc to Marla
Michel. Marla and her staff are available to help
with
the concepts and proposals upon request.
| Lab Profile: Biogeochemistry Lab |
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The newly renovated, 1,700 square foot
Biogeochemistry Laboratory serves Geosciences
faculty and students and external partners studying
the composition of the Earth’s atmosphere. The
facility enables researchers to better understand the
relationship between carbon cycling and the
evolution of the atmosphere and identify possible
hydrocarbon sources. Housed in the Morrill Science
Center, the Biogeochemistry Lab provides analytical
services to the UMass Amherst community and works
closely with the Microbiology Lab. The lab is available
for public use on a fee for service basis. Read more.
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| New Submission Deadlines for Grants.gov |
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As of October, 2007, all federal proposals must be
submitted electronically through the Grants.gov
system. In response to this, the deadline
for "complete" Grants.gov applications to the office
of Grants and Contracts Administration (OGCA) will
be 4 full working days before the proposal submission
deadline. Proposals received after the new deadline
must be accompanied by a letter of justification from
the appropriate College Dean.
The new 96 hour (4 day) requirement will provide
sufficient lead time for OGCA staff to navigate the
new technical requirements of the Grants.gov
electronic submission process and to ensure that
submission will be completed accurately and on time.
OGCA Director Carol Sprague explains that the
Grants.gov system has presented challenges to
OGCA staff and faculty during the pilot phase. “Each
agency has its own spin to the requirements of this
system and we have experienced quite a few
submission errors,” notes Carol. The new deadline
policy is not unique to UMass Amherst. “New policies
are being implemented at other universities across
the country which are anywhere from 5 to 10
working days prior to the sponsor deadline, no
exceptions," says Carol. Questions about Grants.gov
and the new submission deadline? Contact OGCA
at
(413) 545-0698.
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| UMass Makes Strides toward Effective University/Industry Collaborations |
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UMass will join the Government-University-Industry
Research Roundtable (GUIRR), a forum sponsored by
the National Academies that is working to improve
science and technology collaborations across the
three sectors. In partnership with Raytheon and
under the leadership of UMass President Jack Wilson,
UMass joins other universities and their industry
partners to discuss science and technology matters
of shared interest. UMass Amherst has appointed its
own representatives: Nick
DeCristofaro, Director of CVIP and Marla
Michel, Director of Research Liaison and
Development. Jeff Brancato and Bill Rosenberg are
the representatives from the UMass President's
Office.
UMass is particularly interested in GUIRR's recently
established University-Industry Demonstration
Partnership (UIDP). This group is developing policy
strategies and creating tools that will enhance
university-industry partnerships. Visit the
GUIRR website for more information about the
roundtable. To find out more about how UMass
Amherst is collaborating with industry, contact Karen
Hayes (413) 545-9586, Industry Liaison.
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| How to Prepare for an Audit |
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If your sponsored project came under audit review,
would you know what to do?
According to Board of Trustees Policy, the Controller
of UMass Amherst is designated as the liaison for all
audit activities that occur on campus and
coordinates all site visits and preparation of
responses to written requests for financial
information. The Controller's Office or the Office of
Grants and Contracts Administration (OGCA) is
notified in advance of any audit activity before PIs
are contacted. However, auditors or investigators
may go to PIs directly and without notice for
information or to review financial data, programs or
facilities. PIs should refer investigators to the
Controller's office or OGCA before providing access to
campus data. Questions or concerns can be directed
to OGCA
(413) 545-0698.
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| Announcements |
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Compliance Newsletter Now Available
The winter 2007 edition of the "Compliance and
Research Protection News" is now available on the
research compliance website. This edition
includes
an update on the acquisition of an electronic
protocol management system for the IRB and IACUC,
announces the spring IACUC/NSB-sponsored
speaker, has updates on what's new at OLAW, links
to new web resources for researchers working with
human subjects, and has news of pending
Massachusetts legislation that could impact
researchers who conduct research at biosafety levels
above BL2.
Research Area Welcomes New
Personnel
The
research area welcomes Alison
Bardwell as the new Supervisor for The Office of Animal Care. Alison is an alumna
of UMass Amherst, having earned an Associate's
degree in Equine Industries and a B.S. in Veterinary
and Animal Science. After working in several labs on
campus and as an animal caretaker in the Office of
Animal Care, she earned her American Association for
Laboratory Animal Science certification. She began
her new supervisor position in November. Alison can
answer questions about animal care on campus.
Contact Alison
at (413) 577-1729.
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| Resources |
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Internal Technologies Information Available on
CVIP Website
The CVIP website offers the opportunity to search
for new technologies developed at UMass Amherst
and available for licensing. The Available Technologies section of the
website provides an up-to-date listing of UMass
Amherst’s intellectual property available for
commercialization. These listings are arranged in
categories by scientific disciplines. In addition, where
possible, CVIP has provided links to information about
the technologies and to specific inventors associated
with the invention as well as links to their
departments. Questions about the available
technologies service on the CVIP website? Contact
Maryanne Laukaitis (413) 545-3606.
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| Events |
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February 23: INFORMS spring 2007 Speaker
Series launches with "Competition and Efficiency on
Congested Networks," a talk by Professor Asu
Ozdaglar of the Department of Electrical Engineering
and Computer Science at MIT. 11 AM in Room 112
ISOM. Open to the public. View the entire series
schedule here.
February 26: The Environmental Institute's
Spring Lecture Series begins with "The Future of
Food Systems: Global to Local" by Molly D. Anderson,
research coordinator for the Farm and Food Policy
Project. 3:30 PM Cape Cod Lounge, Student Union.
Open to the public. Click here for the entire series
schedule.
March 21: The Early Stage Life Sciences
Technology Conference will be held at Harvard
Medical School in Boston from 1 PM - 7 PM. This is a
technology showcase forum developed through the
Massachusetts Technology Transfer Center (MTTC).
To register, go to the conference website.
March 29: The Digital Quadrangle Series
presents “Showcasing Research & Teaching in the
21st Century: A Digital Approach” featuring NASULGC
Vice President for Academic Affairs David
Shulenburger. This is also the official launch of
ScholarWorks@UMassAmherst, the new digital
repository for campus researchers and scholars.
Sponsors of this series are the UMass Amherst
Libraries, Office of Research, Graduate School, and
Center for Teaching. 1 PM – 4:45 PM Cape Cod
Lounge, Student Union. Click here or contact Marla
Michel (413) 577-0092 for more information.
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| New Faculty |
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In this issue of ACCESS, we welcome new faculty to
the College of Natural Resources and the
Environment.
Michelle DaCosta, Plant Soil and Insect
Sciences. Research interests: turf physiology
Geunhwa Jung, Plant, Soil and Insect
Sciences. Research interests: genetics; disease
resistance.
Jesse
Mager, Veterinary and Animal Science.
Research interests: Epigenetic reprogramming and
regulation of mammalian genomes; genome
imprinting; germ cell and pre-implantation
development; developmental biology.
Christian Rojas, Resource Economics.
Research interests: industrial organization; applied
microeconomics; experimental economics.
Patrick Schloss, Microbiology.
Research interests: soil microbial ecology;
phylogenetic and functional biogeography.
John Spraggon, Resource Economics.
Research interests: experimental and environmental
economics.
Kimberly
Tremblay, Veterinary and Animal
Sciences. Research Interests: Early Mouse
Developmental Biology; Liver and Pancreas
Organogenesis and Morphogenesis; Identification and
Manipulation of Organ Progenitor Cells.
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| OGCA Histograms |
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OGCA processed 160 proposals for a total of
$20,025,075 in December 2006. In January 2007,
OGCA processed 181 proposals for a total of
$27,711,171. How does that stack up against last
year and previous months? Have a look at the histograms to find out.
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Staff Profile |
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Managing a Customer-Focused Patent
Prosecution Process
As the manager of operations and patent
administration for the campus’s office of
Commercial Ventures and Intellectual Property
(CVIP),
Lyne
Laliberté wears many hats. She is responsible for
overseeing the patent prosecution process, managing
the patent and agreements files and ensuring that
things run smoothly in the CVIP office. Lyne is the
liaison to the patent law firms hired by CVIP and
works with the firms and Principal Investigators (PIs)
to address outstanding issues and to bring the
patent applications to the next level in the
prosecution process. Lyne believes that customer
service is at the heart of CVIP and that a large part
of her job is to deliver quality service. "We want
faculty to feel comfortable coming to CVIP and
submitting their invention disclosures," notes Lyne.
Read more.
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