Guidelines for Academic Centers & Institutes

 

Guidelines for Academic Centers & Institutes

Introduction

Miami University establishes Centers and Institutes to facilitate research, public service, and educational initiatives that cross disciplinary, departmental, and/or divisional boundaries. They are essential to the University’s mission of advancing knowledge and learning at the highest level and serving the public good.

Centers and Institutes provide opportunities to explore interdisciplinary collaborations within Miami and often benefit from partnerships with external organizations. The work of Centers and Institutes enhances Miami’s strengths and expands its research and educational horizons by drawing together faculty, scholars, staff, students as well as external audiences (e.g., community members, scholars from other institutions) for academic inquiry, problem-solving and training. All Miami Centers and Institutes advance the mission and values of the University.

Definitions

Centers are typically organized to conduct research or provide a specific educational or public service, usually focused on a specific interdisciplinary theme or topic. They may involve faculty from one or more departments and divisions, but also may include individuals from within the same department or division of the University. Because centers are meant to be flexible units, their scope, their mission and their size vary considerably. Centers may be involved in the offering of continuing education activities related to its area(s) of interest, community outreach, service learning or clinical services. The “center” structure may facilitate efforts of the college or university to obtain extramural funding in specific areas. 

A Center serves as a formalized link between the academic and professional communities in the area(s) of focus. It is most often housed within traditional administrative structures, such as a department or a division. However, in rare cases some Centers can reach across several divisions and report directly to a Vice President or the Provost. A “Center” is not involved in the independent offering of credit course or degree programs. 

Research Centers are specifically focused on research, while Service/Consultation Centers are usually focused on providing an academic or public service, such as faculty development, program evaluation/assessment, connecting with community stakeholders, or tutoring. 

Centers may hire and appoint staff members but not faculty. Faculty may have appointments in Centers and Institutes but only in addition to their appointments in academic departments.

A new Center requires the initial approval of the relevant supervising administrators (e.g., Department Chair(s), Dean(s), Vice President).  A formal application should be prepared and submitted to the Provost and Council of Academic Deans for official approval.   “Named” centers (i.e., those that are established in the name of a person or organization and are typically based on a gift) must also be approved by the Naming Committee within Advancement, the Vice President for Advancement, the President, and University’s Board of Trustees. 

Institutes share the Center’s focus on research, provision of opportunity for interdisciplinary activity, involvement in continuing education activities, value in facilitating efforts to obtain extramural funding, advancement of diversity and equity principles, and service as a link between the academic and professional communities. 

An institute, however, is a far more formalized structure and may be equivalent to an autonomous unit within the internal structure of the college or university such as a department or division. However, it can also be housed within a division (but not a department).  It may, unlike a “Center,” be involved in the offering of credit-bearing courses and may offer degree programs and formal credentials. An Institute may also include a number of centers or laboratories within it, and may also be involved in community outreach or clinical services. 

Institutes may hire and appoint staff members. Faculty may have appointments in institutes (with the approval of the relevant Department Chair, Dean and Provost) but these are typically done in addition to their appointments in academic departments.

All Institutes must submit a formal application which must be approved by the Provost and Council of Academic Deans. The Director of an Institute or Center that is housed within a division is appointed by the Dean, while Directors of Institutes or Centers that are at the university level are appointed by the Vice President (if the VP is the direct supervisor) and Provost. 

Additional information can be found below:

Center Established Guidelines

  • These establishment guidelines apply to any Center that is a group of academic specialists organized under external funding to achieve particular research, educational, diversity and inclusion, or public service objectives.

    1. A Center may not use the name, image, or likeness of Miami University, nor any representations or aspects of the brand without approval.
    2. A new Center must be approved by:
      • Developing an initial application that includes statement of objectives (including how the center will advance diversity and equity), identifying and justifying an initial set of faculty participants that merit recognition, outlining anticipated activities and providing justification for organizing as a center (see application details below)
      • Obtaining approval of the Department Chairs involved and the Academic Dean(s) who will be administratively responsible for the center
      • Showing how the Center will be organized—although participants may be housed in several academic divisions, a single Dean must have oversight authority
      • Gaining approval of the Provost who will gain advice and approval from the Council of Academic Deans
    3. Existing Centers must submit annual assessment reports to the supervising Dean or Vice President and Office of the Provost; and Centers may, at the request of their supervisor, undergo a formal review no more than once every five years.
    4. A Center must operate within the policies and procedures of Miami University. It is not an independent agency or autonomous administrative unit.  This includes adhering to guidelines developed by University Communications and Marketing on brand, image, and likeness as well as adhering to all policies relating to personnel.
    5. Unless the Center is a service- and consultant-oriented Center for the benefit of the University, the University normally will not use internal funds to operate, hire, or provide space for a center. Whatever regular Miami personnel, spaces or funds are associated with a center simply represent the aggregation of the participants' times, spaces, and funds.
    6. With Miami's endorsement, a Center may (and is expected to) apply for external funding which may be used for personnel, space, or programs of the Center.
    7. Persons occupying positions funded from external sources have no guarantee of continuing employment at Miami University. Appointment letters offered to these persons will specify that the appointment carries no reappointment or tenure commitment by virtue of its association with the center.
    8. Each Center must submit an annual assessment report to the supervising administrator (Chair, Dean, etc.) (and copying the Senior Associate Provost).  The report should include a summary of income and expenditures. 
    9. Centers may undergo a formal evaluation no more than once every five years.  The formal evaluation will follow the evaluation procedure described below and be overseen by the supervising Dean or Vice President.

Institute Establishment Guidelines

  • Institute establishment guidelines apply to any Institute that is a group of academic specialists organized to promote external funding and to achieve collaborative research or public service objectives. Such Institutes define areas of research and public service focus and have value in identifying and giving significant visibility to interest clusters and establishing them as collaborative units.

    1. Institutes may not use the name, image, or likeness (any aspect of branding) of Miami University without approval and are expected to adhere to all policies and guidelines developed by University Communication and Marketing once approved to use the name, marks, brand, images, and so forth.  Institutes must also adhere to all policies relating to personnel.
      1. A new Institute must be approved by:
      • Developing an initial application that includes a statement of objectives, identifying and justifying an initial set of center participants that form a cohesive collaborative unit, outlining the anticipated increase in activities, and providing justification for organizing as an Institute (see details below)
      • Obtaining approval of the Department Chairs, involved Center Directors, and the Academic Dean(s) who will be administratively responsible for the Institute
      • Showing how the Institute will be organized—although participants may be housed in several academic divisions, a single Dean or Vice President must have oversight authority
      • Gaining approval of the Provost after the latter has received advice and approval from the Academic Deans
    2. All Institutes must submit an annual assessment report to the supervising administrator (Chair, Dean, etc.) (and copying the Senior Associate Provost).  The report should include a summary of income and expenditures. Institutes may undergo a more formal evaluation at the request of the supervising administrator (Dean, Vice President) or Provost no more than every five years.
    3. An Institute must operate within the policies and procedures of Miami University. It is not an independent agency or autonomous administrative unit.
    4. The University normally will not use internal funds to operate, hire, or provide space for an institute beyond any initial “seed” funding, if any, approved by the Provost. Whatever regular Miami personnel, spaces or funds are associated with an Institute simply represent the aggregation of the participants' times, spaces, and funds.
    5. With Miami's endorsement, an Institute may and should apply for external funding which may be used for personnel, space, or programs of the Institute or the Centers contained in the institute.
    6. Persons occupying positions funded from external sources have no guarantee of continuing employment at Miami University. Appointment letters offered to these persons will specify that the appointment carries no reappointment or tenure commitment by virtue of its association with the institute.
    7. Institutes must undergo a formal evaluation no more than once every five years.  The formal evaluation will follow the evaluation procedure described below and be overseen by the supervising Dean, Vice President or Provost.

Initial Application and Approval of Centers and Institutes

  • Requests to establish Centers or Institutes shall be made to the Provost by the Dean or Vice President of the division in which the Center or Institute is located or proposed to be located or by the Center or Institute Director or other supervising administrator (in consultation with the relevant Dean or Vice President). 

    Applications for new Centers and Institutes shall include:

    • Name of Center/Institute: Note: The name should convey the unit’s focus clearly, even to those outside the field. If the proposed name is similar to that of another unit (an existing department, academic program, division or center/institute), a letter of endorsement from the existing unit with the similar name should be appended to the proposal.
    • Name of the Department or Unit in which the Center/Institute will be housed.
    • Name and title of the person(s) proposing creation of the Center/Institute.
    • The Institute/Center type (research, service/consultation) that is requested.
    • Description of the mission of the Center or Institute and its unique value to the University, including clear distinctions from other existing centers or institutes as well as its alignment with the University’s mission and strategic plan.  If not already included in the mission, please also include an explanation of how the Center or Institute will promote diversity, equity and inclusion.
    • Objectives and Metrics: Indicate the objectives you hope to achieve over the next five years.  Include concrete metrics to be used to evaluate the Institute or Center’s viability after the five-year period.
    • Organization: Provide information on the director position and other administrators, staff and faculty involved in the unit.  Include a description of the faculty and the qualifications needed to be involved in the unit.  Provide an organizational chart to display lines of authority, administrative control, etc.  Be sure to include a description of the advisory board, including its mission, size, method of selection and length of terms. Indicate student involvement, if any.
    • Budget and External Funding: Provide at least a three-year budget which includes estimated expenditures per year with revenue sources and projections. Include estimated fiscal resources and potential sources of funding (e.g., state, private, endowment, grant, contract, other).  Describe the space and equipment needs and a description of how they will be met (could be included in the budget).
    • Additional Information: Programs, activities of the unit as well as other information that does not readily fit into the above categories.  Institute applications should include a description of the advisory board (mission, function and proposed composition).
    • Personnel: One-page bios of individuals involved in the unit
    • Appendices, including letters of support from appropriate Department Chair(s), Dean(s), external partners, etc.

Changes to Centers and Institutes

  • Requests to make a substantive change to an existing Center or Institute shall include a rationale for the change, an explanation of how the proposed change will improve the effectiveness of the entity, a description of how the change advances the University’s strategic plan, and the budgetary implications of the change.  Substantive changes include:

    • Renaming the Center or Institute;
    • Revising the mission or purpose;
    • Reorganizing or restructuring the Center or Institute (e.g., altering the reporting relationship, combining two or more Centers or Institutes into one, creating umbrella structures, splitting a Center or Institute into two or more separate units);
    • Making significant changes to the activities of the Center or Institute.
Proposals for significant changes to a center or institute should be submitted to the direct supervisor (Chair, Dean, or Vice President) and copy the proposal to the Provost.

Additional Consideration

  • Personnel

    Director

    Each Center or Institute must have a Director who manages the unit. The Director is responsible for managing the Center or Institute finances and staffing. The Director also manages the day-to-day operation, including administrative review of expenditures and ensuring that a Miami website is created and updated regularly.

     

    The Director position may be filled through a formal search process or through appointment by the Director's direct supervisor. The selection process should be determined when the Center or Institute is established, and may later be revised.

     

    Center and Institute Directors must receive an annual performance evaluation. For Center & Institute Directors who are also faculty, the annual performance evaluation should include a review of their administrative performance.

     

    The use of alternative or inflated titles, like “Senior Director” or “Executive Director” should be avoided except where a clear rationale is present, in line with common practices at peer institutions, for a strategic purpose, approved by the Provost.

    Faculty

    Faculty members associated with a Center or Institute will retain all rights and privileges of appointment in their home academic unit. All salary, promotion, and tenure considerations will be made by their home department and academic division within the regular review and evaluation process.

    Faculty with a joint appointment in a Center/Institute and an academic unit will hold their tenure in an academic unit.

    The home academic unit’s annual review of faculty associated with a Center/Institute should include contributions of the faculty member to the Center/Institute.  A faculty member’s research, teaching, and service contributions to a Center/Institute should also be considered in their promotion and tenure decisions.  One means of doing this is for the Center/Institute Director to document the faculty member’s contribution in a letter to be included in the annual review. A faculty member who serves as the Center/Institute Director can request a letter from the unit supervisor (e.g., Department Chair, Dean, Vice President) to include in the annual review materials.

    Staff

    Classified and non-classified staff may be assigned to a Center or Institute.  Any staff position supported completely or partially by soft funds (e.g., an externally-funded grant) is dependent on the availability of those funds.  Each staff member must receive an annual evaluation from the Center/Institute Director or other Center/Institute supervisor.

    Governance

    The governance of a Center/Institute is the responsibility of the Director, acting in consultation with the Department Chair, Dean, or other university administrator to which the Center is responsible.  The Center/Institute should report to the supervisor at the lowest organizational level who can make those decisions required for the ongoing activities of the unit. Operational direction should come from the Director. Where Center/Institute activities are conducted entirely within one department, the Director could report to a department chair. Where all activities exist within a single division, the Dean or Vice President of that division will be the responsible individual. Where more than one division is involved, the responsibility for final decisions related to activities is the administrator to which the unit reports with the advice and counsel of the Academic Deans of the involved divisions. The governance of each Center/Institute shall be described in the initial proposal.

    Accountability

    To ensure that Centers and Institute as well as colleges and departments receive credit for activities, the following guidelines are defined. 

    • Teaching credits and associated student credit hours should be directly assigned and reported as belonging to the academic units of the faculty members who teach the classes. In the case of team-taught classes, the credit should be appropriately divided between the units of the collaborating faculty.
    • Externally-funded awards should be reported through the departments of the PIs and Co-PIs while the centers/institutes should be able to report awards on projects that involve that center/institute with full disclosure that these expenditures have been reported elsewhere. Externally-funded awards will only be credited to the Center/Institute if the center/institute is listed on the proposal routing form in Cayuse at the time of submission.

    Facilities & Administration (F&A) Distribution 

    Recovered F&A is distributed to all units involved in an externally-funded project.  F&A will be only be distributed to Centers/Institutes who have negotiated an F&A Distribution with the Dean and Vice President for Research & Innovation, and are listed on the proposal routing form in Cayuse. Recovered F&A can assist the unit in becoming financially self-supporting.

    Advisory Boards 

    Institutes are required to have an advisory board, and Centers are strongly encouraged to have an advisory board.  The advisory board should include internal faculty and administrators and external representatives.  Board membership should be inclusive and in line with University values and priorities.  The advisory board members shall be approved by the appropriate Center or Institute governance representative (Chair, Dean, Vice President) listed in the Governance section.

    In order to benefit from the expertise offered by an advisory board, such boards should meet a minimum of once per year.

Official List of Centers & Institutes

  • Approved Centers and Institutes appear on a publicly-available website: https://miamioh.edu/about/centers-institutes/index.html. This list of official centers and institutes is maintained by the Office of the Provost and provides a single point at which Miami faculty, staff, and students may learn about the breadth and depth of center activity and consider opportunities to collaborate or coordinate efforts as appropriate. The list is also a reference to verify the formal legitimacy of a Center or Institute and its connection to Miami University.

Review of Centers & Institutes

  • Annual Reports

    Centers and Institutes should prepare annual assessment reports and submit to their direct supervisor (e.g., Chair, Dean, Vice President, Provost) and copied to the Senior Associate Provost.  The Senior Associate Provost will provide a template for the reports which can be used as a guide.  At a minimum, reports should include the following:

     

    Center or Institute Name:

    List name of your unit (center, office, institute, etc.)

    Reporting Cycle:

    List the prior academic year.

    Organizational Structure:

    • Director Name:
    • Other Faculty & Staff Involved & Roles
    • Advisory Board: Mission and Names

    Unit Mission:

    Copy your mission below.

    Website URL:

    Strategic Goals: 

    Please provide 2-3 goals that you want to achieve to advance your unit’s mission.  Create goals that have measurable outcomes or metrics. Example:  One goal could be: “Increase participation in our unit’s programs” which can be measured by tabulating attendance at your programs.

    Alignment with Mission and Strategic Plan:

    Provide a brief statement of how your goals align with Miami’s mission and/or Miami’s strategic plan (MiamiRISE) goals.

    Planned Action Steps:

    Briefly list the steps you will take to achieve your goals.  These can just be bullet points.

    Using the example above, one action step might be to create a social media site to better market your programs.

    Metrics:

    Create a concrete metric that will demonstrate that you have achieved each strategic goal. You should also include a deadline for when you anticipate achieving the metric.

    Using the same example goal as above, a metric could be “Achieve a 10% increase in participation in our programs by fall 2024.”  And the method would be taking attendance at each event.

    Progress Made on Goals Since Last Report:

    Note: This section would likely be completed after the first year.  

    Here, you would summarize in one or more paragraphs and/or tables the action steps you took since the last report as well as the data collected relating to metric which some context for the data (noting that you are making progress and why OR noting that you are not moving along as well as you anticipated and why).

    Plans for Next Reporting Cycle:

    If you have achieved your goals, you could use this section to articulate new goals for the upcoming reporting cycle.  Or if you want to continue working on the same goals, you could focus this section on what your new action steps might be.  Or, if you want to adjust your metrics, you could explain what the new metric is and why you are adjusting it.  Bullet points are perfectly acceptable here.

    Budget:

    Please include estimated expenditures for the year with revenue sources and projections. Include estimated fiscal resources and potential sources of funding (e.g., state, private, endowment, grant, contract, other).  

    Formal Periodic Evaluation

    The supervising Dean, Vice President or Provost may request a formal review of the Center or Institute.  The formal review should not occur more than once every five years to ensure viability and need for continuation.

    To maintain university-wide consistency, the supervisor will collaborate with the Office of the Provost to facilitate the reviews.  

    In addition to completing an institute or center summary data sheet (Appendix A), the Center or Institute prepares a concise, self-study report (less than 5 pages) for the review.  If the Center or Institute has recently prepared a review document for its sponsor or other agency, that report may replace the self-study report.  

    The self-study report should contain the following, at a minimum:

    • Director and administrative staff
    • Reporting lines (department head, dean, etc.)
    • Faculty, students, and academic units that are involved with the unit
    • Outcomes related to diversity, equity and inclusion
    • Funding received (a summary is acceptable instead of a detailed report)
    • Description of the advisory board
    • Performance against metrics set at center or institute establishment, or last three- or five-year review.
    • The metrics to be used to evaluate the unit’s feasibility at its next five-year review.
    • Anticipated needs (space, equipment, staff) over next five-years.

    The Center or Institute submits the self-study report up through its reporting line. The Dean or Vice President, if appropriate, and the Office of Provost designee will each review the self-study and submit recommendations regarding the Center or Institute to the Provost. 

    Below are criteria that may be considered in the review:

    Start-Up (basic expectations if review occurs in first five years of the unit’s history)

    Standard (expectations if review occurs five or more years after the unit has been founded)

    Exemplary (expectations for an outstanding unit)

    Center
    • Focus on interdisciplinary topic/theme
    • Topic/theme does not significantly overlap or duplicate those of other centers
    • Name is transparent, concise and aligns with mission
    • Clear mission
    • Clear reporting line to department or division
    • Director position and responsibilities articulated
    • Roles, responsibilities of faculty involved in center defined; plan for providing evaluations of faculty in place
    • Advisory Board and charge in place
    • Annual evaluation and assessment of center plan in place with targeted outcomes to be achieved within 5 years
    • No credit-bearing activities; no faculty lines housed in center
    • Budget plan in place with promise of sustainability
    • Annual reports submitted
    • Activities of center align with mission
    • Assessment plan implemented; five-year target outcomes achieved
    • Evidence of advisory board meetings held at least once a year
    • Director, faculty and staff annual evaluations conducted
    • Budget plan in place; expenditures remain within allocated budget
    • Evidence of purposeful use of resources aligned with mission
    • Meets all “standard” criteria
    • Evidence of outstanding outcomes (e.g., net revenue generation, awards or commendations, successful receipt of grants or extramural funding)
    • Evidence of fiscal sustainability

    Institute
    • Focus on interdisciplinary topic/theme
    • Topic/theme does not significantly overlap or duplicate those of other institutes
    • Name is transparent, concise and aligns with mission
    • Clear mission
    • Clear reporting line to department
    • Director position and responsibilities articulated; staff positions clearly articulated
    • Faculty positions housed within Institute are articulated and plan in place for evaluation and promotion; responsibilities for other faculty associated with Institute and evaluation plan are articulated
    • Charge and plan for advisory board in place
    • Annual evaluation and assessment plan in place
    • No credit-bearing activities; no faculty lines housed in center
    • Budget plan in place with promise of sustainability
    • Annual reports submitted
    • Activities of center align with mission
    • Assessment plan implemented; five-year target outcomes achieved
    • Evidence of advisory board meetings held at least once a year
    • Director, faculty and staff annual evaluations conducted
    • Budget plan in place; expenditures remain within allocated budget
    • Evidence of purposeful use of resources aligned with mission
    • Meets all “standard” criteria
    • Evidence of outstanding outcomes (e.g., net revenue generation, awards or commendations, successful receipt of grants or extramural funding)
    • Evidence of fiscal sustainability

Discontinuation of a Center or Institue

  • When faculty support for a Center or Institute no longer exists, if there is no interest among the faculty in participating in or leading the Center or Institute, or when a Center or Institute is no longer financially viable as judged by the appropriate Dean, Vice President or the Provost, the Center or Institute should be formally discontinued. 

    A Center or Institute may be discontinued through the review process; or the Director of the unit may propose the termination. 

    Requests to deactivate Centers or Institutes shall include a rationale for the deactivation of the unit, a detailed statement of the financial condition of the Center or Institute, a prospectus for fulfilling any contractual obligations of the center/institute, and a plan for phasing out the activities of the Center or Institute, including any recommendations for continuing activities of the deactivated center/institute through other organizational units of the University. 

    If there is a disagreement relating to the discontinuation of a Center or Institute, the Director may make a formal request to the Provost that the procedure described in Section 8.A. of the University Senate Bylaws “Guide for the Consolidation, Partition, Transfer, or Elimination of Academic Divisions, Departments, or Programs,” be implemented.  

    When discontinuing a Center or Institute, consideration should be given to the termination or transfer of any contractual obligations; the employment status of any employees; the transfer of any capital equipment or space, and the transfer or reassignment of any funds, including foundation accounts.