Retirees' Research Fund

Terms of Reference

December 2006

Rationale: A number of faculty who are retired have strong and active research programs which they wish to continue following retirement. The University recognizes this interest by providing for the appointment of Professors Emeriti and Honorary Research Professors. Retired faculty holding these appointments contribute to the academic life of the departments with which they are associated, are often noted in their fields, add to the research reputation and record of the institution, and serve as teachers, mentors and advisors to students involved with their research.

While retired professors are eligible to apply for external research funding, there remains a need to provide modest internal support to keep these research programs going.

Using the University Research Fund criteria as a model, the Standing Committee for UNB Retired Faculty and Staff recommended the following, which has been approved by the President for an initial three-year period beginning in 2007-08:

Introduction: The Retirees' Research Fund provides modest research support to eligible faculty members to enable them to continue their research activities after retirement and to prepare projects for future submission to the granting councils.

The Retirees' Research Fund is not intended to be a substitute for external funding sources and retired faculty are encouraged to find support from other sources to the extent they can.

Eligibility: Retired faculty who are Professors Emeriti (PEs) or have been appointed Honorary Research Professors (HRPs) through the process prescribed by the Vice-President Research may apply for grants from the Retirees' Research Fund.

Applicants may not hold current federal research council funding.

There is no restriction concerning the field of research that may be supported. Applicants who wish to obtain support for projects involving either human subjects or the use of animals or which may involve possible biological hazards must satisfy the pertinent university policies and procedures.

Items Eligible for Support: Grants may be requested for such items as the purchase of research equipment and supplies not provided for in departmental budgets, hiring of research assistants, especially graduate students , field trips and other travel directly related to the proposed research.

Research assistants must be paid at the rates set by Human Resources for the appropriate class of employee and must include appropriate fringe benefits.

Research travel is considered to include travel between campuses and to other universities, libraries or research centres for research purposes; and field trips for the purposes of making observations or measurements, or for data collection, etc. Travel to conferences, symposia, etc. and for attendance at special courses will be considered provided that the grantee has been invited to make a presentation or has submitted a paper or poster which has been accepted in advance by the organizing committee of the conference.

Travel expenses claims must comply with the current University regulations that govern transportation, accommodation and meal costs. Grants from the fund must not be used to provide personal remuneration for the grantee or for members of the grantee's family.

Items Not Eligible for Support: Telephone and fax charges, purchase of books already provided for by UNB libraries, periodical subscriptions, page charges for journal articles, publication support costs and purchase of computer software duplicating UNB site licenses.

Application Procedures: Applications for grants of up to $2,000 must be made using the Retirees' Research Fund form.

Applicants should note that their applications must be reviewed and signed by the Chairperson and Dean before submission to the Research Office.

Eligible retired faculty may submit only one application in each competition and all information must be contained within the form provided. No attachments are permitted. Within the same form, the applicant may request support for more than one project.

A clear statement of objective, methodologies, potential results and implications of the research should be made. All proposed expenses must be justified and sufficient detail given to enable an assessment of the merit of the proposal and the budget by the Vice-President Research.

There will be one round of applications considered each year in the fall, adjudicated by the University Research Fund committee. The closing date for receipt of applications by the Office of Research Services is November 12.

Availability of Grants: In most cases grants will be available for use immediately upon receipt of a notice of award. If review by the research Ethics Board is required, funds will be held until the Office of Research Services receives approval for the project. Grants will be made in the form of a restricted research account administered by the Office of Research Services.

Report on the Use of Grants: Each grantee will be expected to submit a brief report to the Office of Research Services concerning the use made of his or her grant within one year of receipt of the grant.

Administration of the Fund: The fund will initially consist of an annual allocation totaling $30,000. The Office of the President will provide $15,000 and the Vice-President Research a matching $15,000. Funds not granted in the year of allocation may be carried forward for awarding in subsequent years.

The selection committee must report its decisions to the President each year. The selection process and amount allocated to the fund should be reviewed after three years of operation.

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