Establishing an IU Bloomington Research Center or Institute

Guidelines and Process

The establishment of an IU Bloomington center or institute requires a proposal. IU Bloomington centers are approved by the IU Bloomington Provost and the IU Vice President for Research and report to the Vice Provost for Research. Bloomington research centers are established for two primary reasons:

  1. to allow the common pursuit of the highest quality multidisciplinary research that is focused on a research question to be considered by researchers from units across the campus; and
  2. to facilitate multidisciplinary research that will maximize the potential for attracting external funding to fully or partially support the work.

IU Bloomington research centers involve faculty from multiple schools and report to a higher level of administration within the university, not to the schools from which their faculty are drawn. Such centers are normally expected to be financially self-sufficient after a period of establishment, typically two to three years, during which one-time seed funding may be made available. However, financial arrangements for centers, such as the allocation of indirect cost recovery and the need for continued matching funds, shall be determined on a case-by-case basis.

IU Bloomington research centers are typically established for a period of up to five years and reviewed in the third year. The review committee report is considered by the IU Bloomington Faculty Advisory Committee and the Vice Provost for Research, who advises the Provost and the Vice President for Research on whether the center should continue for a period of up to five years.

IU Bloomington infrastructure centers involve faculty from multiple schools and report to a higher level of administration within the university, not to the schools from which their faculty are drawn, although in some cases faculty may report to both. Infrastructure centers may be established around a particular facility, theme, or research service where such an administratively separate concentration is advantageous for research and education. Examples are the Center for Exploration of Energy and Matter (CEEM), the Kinsey Institute for Sex, Gender and Reproduction (KI), the Light Microscopy Imaging Center (LMIC), and the Center for Survey Research (CSR). Such centers may have a component of base funding.

Guidelines for Establishment of IU Bloomington Research Center or Institute

Establishing a center

Centers and institutes may be established by submitting a proposal to the Vice Provost for Research. The Vice Provost for Research will review and initiate review by the University Faculty Advisory Committee and review by appropriate deans.

Based on the above reviews, the Vice Provost for Research will make a recommendation to the Provost and to the Vice President for Research for review. This review will ensure that the proposed center does not duplicate existing research centers. Proposals for the establishment of Bloomington centers should address all of the following:

  • Multidisciplinary components, involving faculty from at least two or, preferably, three schools
  • A clear mission based on the identified theme, facility, or service of topicality and intellectual importance with high potential benefit for research and education on the campus
  • Internal and external testimony from informed individuals and organizations to support the claims of topicality, intellectual importance, and high potential academic benefit of the center as well as its potential to attract external funding
  • Recommendations and endorsements from principal faculty members from each participating school who will be members of the center's Research Advisory Committee
  • Five-year budget plan that addresses issues of immediate and long-term sustainability. Centers should have the potential to attract adequate external funding so as to be financially self-sufficient within two years or, with extenuating circumstances, three years. Proposals must identify expected sources of internal and external funding. If self-sufficiency within two to three years is not possible, the proposal must include a rationale for why internal funding should be provided and details on the sources of internal funding available to and needed by the center
  • Endorsement by the deans of the units from which the faculty are drawn

Selection of director

  • The director should be a researcher of seniority and standing, or a person with comparable qualifications, who has demonstrated administrative experience and the ability to obtain external funding.
  • For all new and most continuing centers, a screening committee made up of one member of the Center Advisory Committee, one member of the IU Bloomington Faculty Advisory Committee, and two distinguished senior faculty in the field on which the center will focus, will review internal candidates and make recommendations to the Vice Provost for Research, who will select the director following consultation with the Provost and the Vice President for Research.
  • The director will be appointed for a three to five-year term. During the year before the last year of appointment, the center will go through a review. In the last year of the appointment, progress from the review will be evaluated to assess the potential of reappointment.
  • A director's term will generally be limited to two consecutive terms but may be extended in the interest of the center and on the recommendation of the review committee.
  • Occasionally, for some of the well-established centers, IU Bloomington will conduct a national search for a director, working with appropriate deans.

Bloomington research center committees

  • All IU Bloomington research centers will have a Research Advisory Committee made up of area experts whose charge will be to provide advice and direction concerning the center's mission and goals. The Vice Provost for Research will appoint the committee in consultation with the director, it will report to the associate vice provost for research responsible for the center. The committee will elect a chair and work with the director to develop a three- to five-year strategic plan to successfully achieve the stated mission and goals. The plan is subject to approval by the Vice Provost for Research. The committee may also choose to develop new, or revise existing, bylaws for the center. This is also subject to approval by the Vice Provost for Research. The center may recruit members from outside of IU or invite external advisors as consultants on the condition that the center has the necessary funds for such recruitment or consultation. The members of said committee will strive for appointment terms of three years for a new member and two years for a member who has been invited and agreed to a second term.
  • All centers that are jointly funded by IU Bloomington schools will have a financial oversight committee who represent schools and campus interests. This committee will be responsible for conducting an annual review of the centers goals and achievements in accordance with the center’s strategic plan and for providing budget oversight. 

Review process

Centers will be reviewed every five years if the director is continuing or in the third year of a new director's three-year appointment.

Centers will have an annual review with the Vice Provost or Research. They will be responsible for conducting an annual review of the goals and achievements in accordance with the center’s strategic plan and for providing budget oversight.

Such reviews are vital to ensuring that there is a continuing need for the center and for ensuring that the center's research, facility, or service is of the highest quality. The charge to each review committee shall be based on the key principles for establishing an IU Bloomington research center. The Vice Provost for Research can bring this review forward or delay it if there are good grounds for doing so.

Appointment of review committee

  • Reviews should be carried out by committees of three to five researchers of distinction and seniority with acknowledged substantive and relevant expertise and experience. The Vice Provost for Research is responsible for appointing review committees. The director of the center is encouraged to make recommendations for membership of review committee to the Vice Provost for Research.

  • While the composition of the committee will vary depending on the size and mission of the center under review, content experts will be selected and could include the following:

    • One to three external (non-IU) members who have acknowledged expertise in the areas of focus within the center
    • One member of the IU Bloomington Faculty Advisory Committee
    • One senior IU Bloomington faculty member nominated by the BFC Nominations Committee
    • The Associate Vice Provost for Research responsible for the center under review will be an ex-officio member of the review committee and will serve as chair of the committee.

Minoritized faculty representation and diversity of committee members will be a priority.

Review materials

Instructions regarding the creation and submission of review materials will be provided by IU Bloomington well in advance of the review. IU Bloomington will be responsible for ensuring that members of the review committee receive all materials associated with the review. The director of the center under review will provide IU Bloomington with a dossier that addresses the following:

  • justification for the continued existence and sustainability of the center
  • successes and challenges faced since the creation of the center or its last review
  • funding history and budget of the center
  • recommendations for the future of the center

Survey of the center

A survey will be developed and distributed to campus faculty to assess the reach and influence of the center as well as the need for its continuation.