In this issue
Research highlights | Innovation spotlight | New awards | Unsung heroes
Faculty kudos | Research development | Nuts & bolts | Events
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Building a culture of recognition |
A colleague who recently joined the university from out of state told me he was surprised to be so impressed by the high quality of research, scholarship and creative activity happening at KU. This was not meant as a slight, but rather an indication that our Midwestern humility keeps us from tooting our own horn as often and as loudly as we should.
 Jayhawks Rising proposes at least one remedy for that modesty: Building a support system that helps KU researchers gain recognition for their myriad contributions and achievements.
Self-promotion does not come naturally to many of us, and the nomination process for prestigious national and international awards can be time-consuming, intimidating and mysterious. That’s why I was delighted to announce this week that we have hired KU’s first Director of Faculty Recognition & Awards. Robin Lehman will work closely with campus partners to lead a data- and equity-informed strategy for increasing awards and recognition for researchers throughout their careers. Having a full-time staff member devoted to this effort will allow KU to gain and sustain momentum — and to ensure equitable recognition for faculty from groups traditionally under-rewarded in academia.
Each of you also plays an important role in helping us build a culture of recognition at KU. I encourage you to invest in your colleagues by submitting nominations, writing letters of support, and mentoring them along their scholarly journeys so they are well-positioned for accolades. That includes internal recognition opportunities that we will begin announcing next week, such as the Higuchi-KU Endowment Research Achievement Awards, the Steven F. Warren Research Achievement Award, and the KU Research Staff & Postdoctoral Achievement Awards.
Let’s flood the review committees with nominations that reflect the breadth and depth of research excellence across the University of Kansas.
Rock Chalk,
Simon
Simon Atkinson
Vice Chancellor for Research
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Ana Motta, herpetology collection manager at the KU Biodiversity Institute & Natural History Museum, is digitizing amphibian specimens to make them accessible to anyone with internet access.
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“These days, if you are not able to use digital technology, you are not able to utilize many services in society, whether cultural, social, civic or others. Women transitioning from incarceration face significant challenges in this area,” said Hyunjin Seo, Oscar Stauffer Professor of Journalism & Mass Communications.
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Joanna Slusky, associate professor of molecular biosciences, created a new computational biology method that has revealed more than 270,000 previously unidentified proteins that could interest vaccine researchers.
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| "When we think of theatre as a vehicle to talk about the human condition, hip-hop is a part of that story,” said Nicole Hodges Persley, professor of American studies and African & African-American studies.
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“Equipping the future generation of military and civilian leaders with essential skills in cyber and EMS security through experiential learning is becoming more crucial in our interconnected society,” said Fengjun Li, KU professor of electrical engineering & computer science.
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Erik Scott, associate professor of history and director of the Center for Russian, East European & Eurasian Studies, is studying how past policies on defectors still shape migration and refugee policies today.
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The past year has been a rebuilding journey for the KU Center for Technology Commercialization team, but we have emerged more committed to our mission of fostering innovation, creating long-term value, and driving innovation toward impact. Along with our partners in the KU innovation ecosystem, we look forward to refocusing our efforts to better serve you. Here are some highlights of things to come at KUCTC in FY 2024 and beyond:
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- Improving operations – Improving consistency, streamlining processes and reducing barriers for our innovators and partners
- Focusing on engagement – Enhancing opportunities to collaborate with faculty and colleagues in the KU innovation ecosystem
- Creating value – Identifying avenues for helping to improve the discoveries, innovations and opportunities that come to KUCTC
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As we start this new chapter, we invite each of you to connect with us. Your insights and feedback are invaluable as we collectively shape the future of technology transfer at the University of Kansas.
Clifford Michaels
Executive Director
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KU researchers are studying cybersecurity best practice, monitoring ice shelf stability, evaluating transitional services for Kansas youth with disabilities, developing real-time flood mapping tools, and more — all with the aid of external funding awarded in July.
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Behind every successful award are staff members who help investigators identify opportunities, prepare and submit proposals, manage finances and compliance, and more. They are the unsung heroes of KU research, greasing the wheels of innovation and discovery.
In each issue of KU Discoveries, we shine a spotlight on a staff member deemed particularly outstanding by colleagues. Click the button below this month's story to nominate a deserving candidate from any unit on campus.
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Archivist helps researchers, students see into the past |
Sarah D’Antonio Gard | Senior Archivist | Robert J Dole Institute of Politics
When researchers study history, they rely on primary source material to inform their work. Without archivists like Sarah D’Antonio Gard, these documents would not be available.
Gard is the senior archivist and head of collections at the Robert & Elizabeth Dole Archives & Special Collections. She has worked at the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics, which houses the collections, since January 2012.
“Sarah is the conduit for researchers and the super interesting yet vast Dole Congressional Archives. Even if researchers are unsure what connections they will find, she assists with keyword search, database assistance, and also a caring smile if they come to visit in person,” said Julie Clover, public education manager at the Dole Institute.
“Sarah’s 11 years of knowledge as an archivist here at the Dole Institute is essential for a well-utilized collection,” Clover said.
Following his last presidential campaign in 1996, former U.S. Sen. Bob Dole donated his congressional papers to KU. The collection of documents spans more than 35 years of American history and includes items such as constituent letters, speech transcripts, draft legislation and more. The papers were housed in KU’s Spencer Research Library until the Dole Institute opened in 2003. In 2017, Sen. Elizabeth Dole donated her career papers, which span her public service as commissioner on the Federal Trade Commission, U.S. Secretary of Transportation, U.S. Secretary of Labor, president of the American Red Cross, and a U.S. senator representing the state of North Carolina.
Gard and her colleagues ensure these documents remain available for future generations to see. She oversees the storage space in the Institute’s basement, which is kept at specific temperatures and humidity levels to slow the aging of the paper. She also leads a team of two assistant archivists and several student assistants in digitizing these collections so those who cannot travel to Lawrence can still learn from the archives.
When researchers do visit in person, Gard makes sure they have what they need to complete their work.
“Sarah is extremely responsive and helpful. I don't work with primary source documents like this in my own research, and so her expertise was crucial,” said David Slusky, professor of economics.
Slusky takes students in his first-year seminar to learn about the history of American health care policy. Gard and her colleagues pull boxes of documents on then-Congressman Dole’s vote on the 1965 Social Security Amendments that established Medicaid and Medicare. The archives team also created a webpage for the class showcasing a survey of different document types related to the vote.
“Multiple students in the class ended up working for the Dole Institute, both on the archival side with Sarah and on the events side with her colleagues,” Slusky said. “I am so appreciative for the warm and welcoming environment she created for these new students during the very beginning of their time at KU.”
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- James Blakemore, associate professor of chemistry, received the June 2023 Sutton Family Research Impact Award.
- Grace Falk, recent graduate of the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita, earned the Lawrence E. Lamb Prize for Medical Research, one of the most prestigious prizes awarded by the KU School of Medicine.
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Bozenna Pasik-Duncan, professor of mathematics and courtesy professor of electrical engineering & computer science, had an award named after her by the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers.
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New Faculty Research Development Award |
This award program is designed to help new faculty accelerate their scholarship and start building a sustainable research program soon after their arrival on campus.
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Amount: Up to $8K / Up to $20K | Deadlines: Oct. 1 + March
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AAI's Arts & Humanities Grants |
The purpose of the grant program is to foster deeper ties between arts and humanities, as well as education and social sciences. Proposed projects must connect to one of the Achievement & Assessment Institute' areas of focus.
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Thinking Big: NIH Funding for Complex Projects & Programs |
Join former NIH program directors now working with The Conafay Group for a presentation that aims to demystify the larger grant mechanisms the National Institutes of Health uses to build productive, longer-term collaborations. You should come away with a realistic understanding of how to work toward these larger awards.
Thinking Big: NIH Funding for Complex Projects and Programs
Friday, Sept. 15 | 12 – 1 p.m.
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Getting started as a new-to-KU researcher |
The KU Office of Research is here to support your successful research program at KU. We will be your partner throughout the grants life cycle while ensuring you have the tools to meet research integrity requirements. And if your KU research yields innovations for the marketplace, we will help you navigate the commercialization process.
Learn about the teams within the Office of Research that can help you get started and sustain your success throughout your KU career.
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Thursday Research Topics for 2023-24 academic year |
Sessions will run from 11 to 11:45 a.m. on Zoom. Use the dropdown menu on the registration page to select the date for each event you would like to attend.
Cost Accounting Policy & Expenditure Categories
Thursday, Sept. 7 | 11 – 11:45 a.m.
Contact Jessica Johnson Webb if you would like to submit advance questions. And don't forget to register for upcoming presentations:
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- Oct. 5: RPPRs and other reporting basics
- Dec. 7: Basic project accounting
- March 7: Other support/current & pending and biosketches
- April 4: Research administration systems at KU
- June 6: Customer service
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September is annual conflict of interest and time commitment reporting month |
On Sept. 7, you will receive an email from disclose@certify.ku.edu that provides a link to KU's new COI system, myDisclosures, and asks you to complete your disclosure profile update (a new term equivalent to submitting a COI certification). The new system does not contain disclosures from last year, so you will need to enter any previous disclosures that are still current.
Sept. 30 is the due date for submitting your disclosure profile update in myDisclosures.
If you have questions about what needs to be disclosed, register to attend our Conflict of Interest Reporting Forum at 2 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 7. The webinar will include a tour of myDisclosures.
Questions? Please contact COI staff at coi@ku.edu.
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Questions? Comments? Content suggestions?
Mindie Paget | Office of Research | mpaget@ku.edu
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KU Office of Research
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