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Chancellor's Faculty Excellence Program

Selected Proposals and Cluster Areas

In February 2012, seventeen proposals, some of which were combined, were selected for funding in the following twelve cluster areas:

Read Provost Arden's 2/15/12 announcement about the selected proposals and cluster areas.

Overview

At the Chancellor’s Forum on September 28, 2011, the Chancellor announced a faculty-hiring program to be known as the Chancellor’s Faculty Excellence program. A $5 million fund has been set aside to partner with the academic colleges to bring either individual scholars or small groups of scholars (clusters of up to 3 faculty) to campus in strategically important areas. Emphasis should be given to attracting groups of scholars who have diverse disciplinary skills representing more than one academic department and preferably college.

Key elements of this program will be as follows:

  • Groups of faculty should prepare brief proposals (less than 5 pages) to attract leading scholars to campus in areas of emerging strength and high potential impact.
  • Submissions should be reviewed at the college level and be accompanied by a letter of support from the relevant dean(s).
  • Proposals should contain proposed estimated hiring budgets including expected salary and start-up costs and the time frame over which such commitments are sought.
  • College letters should include a statement of where the submission fits into the college’s strategic plans, an assessment of priority and the level of college matching funds proposed.*

Proposals should be submitted to the Office of the Provost by December 5, 2011, and will be evaluated by a committee composed of one faculty or administrative representative from each college and co-chaired by Terri Lomax, Vice Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Economic Development and Duane Larick, Senior Vice Provost for Strategic Initiatives. Recommendations will pass to the Provost for further review and subsequently to the Chancellor for final decision regarding full or partial funding.

In evaluating the submissions, priority will be given to several criteria. These include:

  1. Submissions targeting tenured or tenure-track faculty that are engaged both in active research programs and undergraduate or graduate instruction.
  2. Submissions that include cluster hires of individuals who can share resources and physical infrastructure.
  3. Submissions that proposes hiring a senior investigator (Associate Professor or above) capable of leading a field of study across campus.
  4. Submissions that propose hires that align with the strategic research priorities of the University, (health and well-being, educational innovation, energy and the environment and safety and security).
  5. Submissions that are interdisciplinary in nature and preferably represent more than one academic college.
  6. Submissions in which significant cost sharing by the academic units (up to 50%) is proposed.*

* See 11.10.11 Update below

Update - 11.10.11

Per the provost, college letters should clearly indicate which proposals are the highest priority and have the support of the college. However, letters do not need to include the amount of matching funds available in support of a proposal. The proposal review committee will ask for college funding information after a review of all proposals submitted.

Related Links and Documents

Proposal Selection Committee

Members

Duane Larick (co-chair) - Senior Vice Provost for Strategic Initiatives and Dean of the Graduate School

Terri Lomax (co-chair) - Vice Chancellor for Research, Innovation, and Economic Development

Meredith Davis - Professor, Graphic and Industrial Design, College of Design

Rob Dunn - Assistant Professor, Biology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Lance Fusarelli - Professor and Director of Graduate Programs, Leadership Policy and Adult and Higher Education,
College of Education

Christine Grant - Associate Dean of Faculty Development and Special Initiatives, College of Engineering

Antony Harrison - Professor, English, College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Hasan Jameel - Professor, Forest Biomaterials, College of Natural Resources

Jorge Piedrahita - Professor, Molecular Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine

Abdel-Fattah Seyam - Professor, Textile and Apparel Technology and Management, College of Textiles

Dan Solomon - Dean, College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences

Richard Warr - Associate Professor, Business Management, Poole College of Management

Meetings

  • Monday, December 12, 2011
  • Tuesday, December 20, 2011

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Frequently Asked Questions

What are appropriate expenditures of Faculty Excellence funds?
Appropriate expenditures of Faculty Excellence funds include salary, start-up costs, rent for non-university owned buildings, and user fees on shared equipment.

Are Faculty Excellence funds recurring or one-time?
The $5M commitment for the Chancellor’s Faculty Excellence Program is primarily recurring. For example:

Salary and benefits: If three new tenured/tenure-track (T/TT) faculty are hired effective July 1, 2012 @ $80,000 each, then $240,000 plus associated fringe benefits of $62,817 will be transferred to the college on a recurring basis ($302,817).  The salary funds and associated fringe benefits will be prorated based upon the effective hire date.

July 1, 2012 Effective Hire Date: 
$5,000,000  - Chancellor’s Faculty Excellence Program Fund
($  302,817) - Total recurring costs associated with hiring 3 T/TT faculty @ $80,000 ea + fringe benefits 
$4,697,183  - Remaining recurring balance to allocate

Start-up: A portion of the $4,697,183 remaining balance may be allocated to support start-up costs associated with the three new faculty hires.  Most likely, these allocations will be made on a one-time basis.

$4,697,183  - Recurring balance
($   700,000) - One-time start-up costs for 3 newly hired T/TT faculty
$3,997,183   - Remaining balance for FY 2012-13

Using the example above, beginning July 1, 2013, the recurring $4,697,183 would be available to allocate during FY 2013-14 because only $302,817 was allocated on a recurring basis.

Will there be another call for Faculty Excellence proposals sometime in the future?
This is the first step in implementing one of the strategic plan’s highest priorities – hiring tenured and tenure-track faculty.  While we will continue to seek the appropriate support for another round of Faculty Excellence proposals, there are no plans for another round at this time.

What can be included as a cost match by the supporting college(s) in the budget?
Cost match can include faculty salary or additional faculty lines, laboratory and computer equipment costs, rent for non-university owned buildings, user fees for shared equipment, postdoc and technician salary, and graduate student support.

Can joint appointments be proposed?
Yes, as long as there is support from the participating departments and/or colleges.

Will proposals be considered that request support for mid-level and junior faculty to enhance an emerging area of strength, or is this opportunity only for senior level faculty?
Proposals should demonstrate the cluster’s ability to help realize the high potential of an emerging strength at NC State.  If that is demonstrated through the hiring of mid-level and/or junior faculty, the proposal will be considered.

Can Faculty Excellence funds be used as a retention tool?
Retention of key faculty remains a priority at NC State.  While adding early- or mid-level faculty to complement the expertise of an existing senior investigator might aid in retention, that is not the primary focus of this funding.  Retention will be addressed using the existing faculty retention process.

When are proposals due to the colleges for review?
Each college is developing their own review processes and deadlines in advance of the provost’s December 5 due date. Please contact  your department head and/or dean as soon as possible for the specifics in your college. If you are working on a proposal with faculty in other colleges, please make sure they also consult with their department heads and/or deans regarding college-specific processes and deadlines.

How will cross-college proposals be coordinated?
Ideally, cross-college proposals should be submitted to all colleges involved for review. Deans should also be notifying and communicating with one another when cross-campus proposals are identified.

Will selected proposals be implemented as submitted?
The review committee will evaluate the merit of individual proposals in the context of our existing capacity along with other Faculty Excellence proposals. It is possible that the review committee will recommend modifications to optimize the benefit to the University.  It is also possible that, prior to final selection, the Chancellor or Provost may ask for changes to a proposal.

Can we include figures and tables in the proposal?
Yes, feel free to include figures, tables, and drawings in the five-page proposal limit.

Who is on the committee that will evaluate proposals after they are submitted to the Provost’s Office?
The provost formed a committee composed of one faculty or administrative representative from each college and co-chaired by Terri Lomax, Vice Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Economic Development and Duane Larick, Senior Vice Provost for Strategic Initiatives. Full list of committee members

How many and what types of proposals were submitted?
Over 70 proposals from faculty in all 10 colleges were submitted to the Office of the Provost. See list of submitted proposals for more information

What criteria will the committee use to evaluate the submitted proposals?
In keeping with the chancellor's and provost's vision for the Faculty Excellence Program, the committee will evaluate the proposals based on the following factors:

  • Ability to achieve national eminence
  • Aligned with Strategic Priorities and/or cross-cutting platforms
  • Real interdisciplinarity
  • Building on an existing strength (or strength of the existing assets)
  • Proposed faculty engaged both in research & teaching of proposed topic
  • Ability to attract funding
  • Share resources and physical infrastructure
  • Spans multiple colleges
  • Balanced hiring plan with clear leadership

When will successful proposals be announced?
A specific date has not been set, but it is anticipated that announcements will be made in early 2012.

Other questions?
If you have additional questions about the Faculty Excellence that are not answered here, please contact:

  • Terri Lomax, Vice Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Economic Development
  • Duane Larick, Senior Vice Provost for Strategic Initiatives and Dean of the Graduate School

Questions may also be submitted to provost_web@ncsu.edu.

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