Cal Poly Pomona ARI Policy

Aims of the ARI

The primary goal of the Agriculture Research Initiative at Cal Poly Pomona is to stimulate and enhance research in agriculturally-related areas (see below). The ARI provides mechanisms through different grant categories by which research capacity is established in new investigators and enhanced in faculty with established programs.

ARI funding is to promote research that leads to regional and national recognition of excellence and expertise in an investigator's research area. Peer-reviewed publications are viewed as the method by which to establish a record and enhance the ability of obtaining competitive external funding.

The ARI encourages collaboration among different Colleges, Universities, government agencies and industry. This encourages multi-disciplinary approaches, which are increasingly viewed by granting agencies as desirable; and these grants are often given higher rankings by Federal funding agencies.

The following research areas are supported by the ARI:

1. Genomics and Future Food and Fiber Production.
2. Food Safety.
3. Improving Food, Nutrition, and Communities for Better Human Health.
4. Agricultural and Food Security.
5. Agricultural Opportunity and Rural Prosperity.
6. Natural Resources and Environmental Quality.
7. Animal and Plant Biosecurity.
8. Plants and Environmental Adaptation.
9. Managed Ecosystems.
10. Soils and Soil Biology.
11. Watershed Processes and Water Resources.
12. Air Quality
13. Improving Human Nutrition for Optimal Health.
14. Human Nutrition and Obesity.
15. Epidemiological Approaches for Food Safety.
16. Animal Reproduction.
17. Animal Growth and Nutrient Utilization.
18. Animal Genomics
19. Animal Genome Reagent and Tool Development
20. Animal Protection.
21. Functional Genomics of Agriculturally Important Organisms.
22. Integrative Biology of Arthropods and Nematodes.
23. Arthropod and Nematode Gateways to Genomics.
24. Biology of Plant-Microbe Associations.
25. Biology of Weedy and Invasive Plants
26. Plant Genome, Bioinformatics, and Genetic Resources.
27. Genetic Processes and Mechanisms of Crop Plants.
28. Developmental Processes of Crop Plants.
29. Biochemistry of Plants and Plant Symbionts.
30. Markets and Trade.
31. Rural Development.
32. Improving Food Quality.
33. Biobased Products and Bioenergy Production Research.
34. Improved Utilization of Wood and Wood Fiber
35. Engineering for Agriculture and Food Systems.
36. Water
37. Policy Areas

Types of Funding Available

Competitive Research Grants
Research will be supported that is fundamental or mission-linked , and that is conducted by individual investigators, co-investigators within the same discipline, or multidisciplinary teams. Matching funding is required and a copy of the matching funding proposal must be submitted with the ARI Standard Research Grant proposal.

Career Enhancement / Seed Grants
This funding category will be used to fund established scientists to obtain preliminary data in areas that are fundamentally different from their past research. It is expected the scientist will use these data in an extramural competitive grant during the next funding cycle. Senior faculty are eligible if the proposed project is a new area of interest. These awards are targeted at $5,000 but may be up to $10,000 if warranted.

Bridge Grants
Bridge grants are designed to assist faculty to sustain and enhance important collaborations and activities that might lead to future program success or success in obtaining other grants. Bridge grants will be awarded to individuals that have had a grant rejected from a Federal or State funding agency during that funding cycle. These grants will be used to bridge gaps in funding and the PI is expected to submit during the next funding cycle.

Capacity Building

• Equipment.
  A description of the research project(s) for which the equipment will be used and how the equipment will fit into or enhance the research program and allow the applicant(s) to become more competitive for future funding is required. A description of similar or complementary equipment available to the PI and why the requested equipment is necessary is also required. PIs are encouraged to provide evidence of institutional commitment for operation and main of requested equipment among faculty are encouraged; however, it must be evident that the PI is a principal user of the requested equipment. These awards are not intended to replace requests for equipment in individual research projects. Rather, they are intended to help fund items of equipment that will upgrade research infrastructure. Within the college, matching funds may be requested from the ICR account as well. The equipment awarded belongs to the ARI and the College of Agriculture . Some National granting programs require match. The ARI can be used as the matching source for these grants.
• Computer equipment may qualify as capacity building only if needed as an integral part of the proposed project; for example to be used as a controller for an instrument; computer modeling. Not allowed are typical desk-top computers used primarily for administrative or teaching purposes.
• Modest remodeling to increase research capacity in existing facilities.

Meetings / Symposiums
A modest amount of money will be available for support of meetings and symposiums that will lead to exchange of scientific information, methods, or developing policies that impact agriculture. An assessment of the program that is amenable to statistical analysis and publication will be required for funding support.

ARI Faculty Release / Overload Compensation Policy - Effective FY 07-08

Definitions:

Overload compensation (per Cal Poly Pomona Policy): Compensation of a maximum of 10 hours per week during the academic year . An overload exists only if the faculty is teaching 12 WTU's in a given quarter.

Release time: WTU's purchased (bought out) by faculty member from gifts, contracts and grants.

Reassigned time: WTU's purchased with state general funds. Reassigned time is provided by the University, Dean and Department Chair.

9 month appointment: Contract period is the academic year (3 quarters); does not accrue vacation.

12 month appointment: Contract period is 12 months; accrues vacation.

For 9 Month Appointments:

ARI funds:
1. can be used for release time of up to 12 WTU's per quarter depending on department policies (i.e., DRTP criteria).

2. can be used for overload compensation only if the faculty is teaching 12 WTU's.

3. can be used for summer salary up to ten weeks (50 days, or 400 hours).

4. can be used for winter break salary up to two weeks (10 days, or 80 hours).

5. cannot be used to purchase both release time and overload compensation.

6. cannot be used to purchase overload compensation if the faculty has reassigned time.

For 12 Month Appointments:

ARI funds:

1. can be used to purchase release time up to 12 WTUs per quarter depending on department policies (i.e., DRTP criteria).

2. cannot be used for overload compensation at anytime during the calendar year.

Budget Revision Policy - Effective FY 06/07

A budget revision is required if more than 10% of the total budget is being redirected.

A Project Director is only allowed two budget revisions in one year.

All budget revisions must be approved by the campus coordinator.

Review of Grant Proposals

Proposals will be reviewed by a set of reviewers (minimum of one primary and one secondary) who will present their written reviews and recommendations to the entire Research Committee according to the criteria below. The full research Committee will make final rankings and funding level. Reviewers may be Research Committee members or may be selected from Cal Poly faculty other qualified faculty in other Universities and Colleges.

Reviews will be returned to the principal investigators with the panel summary and verbatim comments of the primary reviewers. In the case a proposal is not funded, the ARI encourages resubmission. The resubmitted proposal will contain a section in which the PI specifically addresses the reviewers comments.

Evaluation Criteria:
The review panel shall take into account the following factors:

• Matching funds are required for standard research grants.
  ARI will match 80% of direct costs of the matching grant. Qualifying matching funds may come from any Federal agency, California state government (excluding general funds), industry or private funding. Award letters from the funding agency are required before funds will be released by the ARI. Matching funds will qualify if received within six months of the start date of the ARI fiscal year. If the source of matching funds is from an off-campus source then a form must be filled out and signed by the off campus Co-PI and the on-campus PI. This form is available on the ARI website.
• Scientific merit of the proposed research including:
  1. Novelty, innovation, uniqueness, and originality;
  2. Importance to CA agriculture;
  3. Conceptual adequacy of the research;
  4. Clarity and delineation of objectives;
  5. Suitability and feasibility of methodology including identification of potential problems, description of suitable alternative methods and appropriate statistical analyses;
  6. Demonstration of feasibility through preliminary data;
• Qualifications of investigators and adequacy of existing facilities:
  1. Qualifications of applicant to conduct the proposed project, including performance record;
  2. Demonstrated awareness of previous and alternative approaches to the problem identified in the proposal (Background, rationale and significance sections);
  3. Adequacy of available or obtainable support personnel, facilities, and instrumentation.
• Planning and administration of the proposed project, including:
  1. Time allocated for systematic attainment of objectives;
  2. Planned dissemination of information over the duration of the project.
• In addition to the application criteria above, applications considered for bridge grant support will also be judged based on:
  1. The potential that further funding will sustain and enhance multidisciplinary collaborations and activities that might lead to future program success or success in obtaining other grants;
  2. Sufficient progress on the original grant, demonstrated with a progress report;
  3. Sufficiently addressing concerns raised by review of the rejected or not funded renewal grant application.
• In addition to the application criteria above, resubmitted proposals will also be judged based on the adequacy of the principal investigator in addressing the weaknesses identified by the reviewers. It will be mandatory that concerns of the reviewers be addressed.
• Primary reviewers will make an overall evaluation of the proposal and assign the proposal to a category: Excellent (fundable at level requested); Good (Fund with modification, perhaps not at the level requested); Fair (major revision required, fund at seed level, consider revision at next submission); Poor (not fundable).
• Primary reviewers will evaluate each proposal by the above criteria and offer a summary of the strengths and weaknesses (with suggestions on how to fix by revision) of the proposal.

Funding Cycles

• Calls for proposals, reviews and dissemination of awards will be as stated on the website. Matching fund award letters must be provided to the Campus Coordinator by 1 October. Project Directors that are not able to provide a letter will not be considered for funding. Pending the availability of funds not disbursed during the first (and primary) funding cycle, the ARI Committee will consider a second round of funding during the January review of the next FY funding cycle. That is, proposals will be considered and reviewed up to twice per year only.
• The ARI requests that a statement be included in any publication crediting the ARI for funding. The language suggested is "This work was supported by the California Agriculture Research Initiative grant number xx-x-xxx-xx." The grant number will be included in the award letter to the project director.