The 2023 Region II Program Committee is pleased to invite submissions for session proposals for the in-person Region II Fall Meeting in Annapolis MD, on November 12-15, 2023.

When thinking of potential topics, please keep in mind topics related to the current challenges faced by research administrators in this new era for our field. 

If you have a topic for a session and/or would like to submit a proposal, please visit the call for proposals  page to submit the idea/proposal to the Program Committee for consideration. If you have more than one topic or session proposal, please submit a new form for each. 

The Program Committee is also inviting submissions for session presenters who would like to be paired with others for the Region II Fall Meeting. Please visit the call for presenters page to complete the needed information.  

DEADLINE FOR SESSION SUGGESTIONS/SUBMISSIONS IS FRIDAY MARCH 31

Please submit your ideas/proposals/presenters by March 31, 2023. If you have any questions regarding the Fall Meeting, please contact the Program Chair, Adriel Villegas-Estrada, at adv2007@med.cornell.edu and/or the Program Co-Chair, Charles Bartunek, at bartunek@chop.edu  

MEMORANDUM

DATE:              2/3/2023

TO:                  Business Managers/Department Chairs/Center Directors/Faculty

FROM:            Michael T. Walsh, Director, Office of Sponsored Programs

RE:                  OSP Spring Break Deadlines: March 20, 2023-March 21, 2023

_____________________________________________________________

Due to several recent inquiries on this topic, OSP is now publishing this special announcement concerning the OSP schedule for reviewing/approving proposals with deadlines to Federal, State, and Other Agencies that occur during UMBC's Spring Break this year. UMBC will be closed for a "University Holiday" on Monday March 20^th and Tuesday March 21^st and will re-open on Wednesday March 22^nd. Since UMBC is closed during these two days, OSP will also be closed and OSP personnel will not be available during the Spring Break holidays for consultation or proposal submission(s). 

Please note the following:

1.     All proposals with submission deadlines occurring on Monday March 20, 2023 and/or Tuesday March 21, 2023 must be fully routed, ready for submission, and releasedto the OSP office for final review and submission by 9 AM on Friday March 17, 2023.

2.      Thus, proposals that have a 3/20 or 3/21 submission date will be submitted on 3/17.  Therefore one must have their routing and proposal materials (SOW, budget, etc.) submitted to OSP no later than 9 AM on Tuesday March 14^th (three business days before the final submission date) for OSP review and recommendations.

This schedule is consistent with our current policy, which requires the submission of complete proposals to OSP at least three (3) business days before the agency submission deadline.

Proposals received after the OSP deadlines specified above will be reviewed on a first-come/first-serve basis and will be submitted only if time permits.  In keeping with the deadline enforcement policy of ORCA (Office of the Vice President for Research & Creative Achievement), any proposal not fully routed and ready for submission by 9:00 AM of the deadline date (3/17/23) will not be submitted to the agency. 

Best Regards,

Dr. Michael T. Walsh

Director

Office of Sponsored Programs

·     Corrected the Status of Support radio button

·     Corrected fonts and margins for compliance with NSF policy

·     Included the revision date (rev. 01/19/2023) at the bottom of each page

·     Corrected margins for compliance with NSF policy

·     Included the revision date (rev. 01/19/2023) at the bottom of each page

Office of the Vice President for Research & Creative Achievement
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
1000 Hilltop Circle
Baltimore, MD 21250
PHONE:       410-455-5636
FAX:            410-455-5550
WEB:           research.umbc.edu

This communication is to members of UMBC's Research and Creative Achievement (RCA) community that have been impacted by the power outages and water damage resulting from the December winter storm (the event). 

The Office of Research and Creative Achievement (ORCA) is providing the following information to assist the UMBC RCA community on steps to take with external sponsors. 

We realize that many, but certainly not all impacted departments and buildings are within the College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences (CNMS). The CNMS Dean's Office has already reached out to the departments in that College.

Whom do I contact? 

•  At this time, the CNMS Dean's Office is requesting that you communicate through your Department Chair if your RCA activities have been impacted.  The Department Chairs will report to the Dean, who will then inform ORCA. 
•  Other Colleges or UMBC units can reach out to their Chairs and Deans in a similar fashion, or they can email OSPA@umbc.edu.  If you reach out to the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) directly, please include your departmental or College business unit that supports your RCA activities. 
•  ORCA will follow up with those Principal Investigators (PIs) to potentially obtain additional information and discuss next steps. 
  
• ORCA will provide reports to all College Deans, Directors, unit business unit etc. regarding the impact on their respective RCA communities.  

What do we mean by impacted? 

•   Impact on Sponsor RCA activities could mean a total stoppage or delay to an active award, a needed revision to a submitted pending proposal, or a proposal submission delayed as result of the event. 

What information do we need? 

• Name of the PI, email, and phone number
• Sponsor name (i.e., NSF, NIH, DoD, NEA, NEH, Mellon Foundation, State of Maryland, etc.)
• Award or proposal information (Kuali or Sponsor Award #, project title)
• Brief (2-3 bullets) description of the actual impact on your project.  For example, "I am unable to continue working on my award", "My award will be delayed by 2 months", or "I will not be able to meet the proposal deadline." 
•   What been impacted (i.e., computers or scientific instruments have been damaged, laboratories are not accessible at the time, scientific data or research samples have been damaged or lost.) Please provide specifics.
• ORCA will follow up with those Principal Investigators (PIs) to potentially obtain any additional information and discuss next steps. 

What information is available from the Sponsors?

•  Currently, only limited information is available.  We expect to contact each sponsor independently to ascertain the steps needed depending on the extent of the impact. 
• NIH & NSF sites that lists some critical information for awards --see below.