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Week of October 17-21

2022

Weekly Communications Update: We want to hear from you!

If you have questions, comments or recommendations for how we can improve the Weekly Communications Update, or you would like to make a request to have specific information or topics shared with faculty and academic program personnel, please provide feedback via this Google form.

Along with the Weekly Communications Update, faculty and department heads should visit the provost’s website frequently for new and updated information impacting the academic community. All employees of the university should read their VTx Daily email for important university articles, videos, announcements, and resources.

University Libraries: New guidance for making taxpayer-funded research freely available

University Libraries at Virginia Tech is continuing to assess guidance released this summer by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) that will make taxpayer-funded research immediately available at no cost to the public. The new guidance, presented in an August 25 OSTP memo, called on all federal agencies to create policies that eliminate the current 12-month waiting period for access to articles and data of federally-funded research.

Key guidance points in the OSTP memo address the following:

  • Covers all federal agencies and departments, which is an expansion from the 20 agencies covered under the current policy.
  • Ensures that research publications are machine-readable so they’re more useful to researchers and the public through text and data mining, computational analysis, and other technologies.
  • Extends the current policy’s scope to include research articles and data, peer-reviewed book chapters, editorials, and conference proceedings.
  • Calls for underlying data of published research conclusions to be made immediately available.
  • Calls for the use of persistent identifiers for all research outputs.

The forthcoming policy changes will take effect no later than December 31, 2025. University Libraries is well positioned to fully support Virginia Tech researchers and scholars as federal agency open publishing policies are developed and implemented over the next few years.

University Libraries is a vocal advocate for increasing public access to data and research to expand and elevate the impact of Virginia Tech’s faculty and student scholarship. They maintain the university’s open scholarship repository VTechWorks and the university’s Open Data Repository.

Library faculty consistently provide workshops, consultations, and other resources on topics related to copyright, data management and sharing, open publishing support, and research impact.

Information on the OSTP guidance and updates on the policy changes will be posted to the University Libraries website as soon as it is available.

Equity and Accessibility: Learn to manage workplace conflicts with OEA trainings

The Office for Equity and Accessibility (OEA) invites Virginia Tech faculty and staff to participate in interactive conflict resolution trainings. Through work with individuals, small groups, and university departments, OEA helps community members transform challenging interactions related to identity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility into opportunities for growth, connection, and dialogue.

Three customizable conflict resolution trainings are available upon request:

  • "Moving from Conflict to Collaboration” teaches participants to use active listening, open-ended questions, brainstorming, and other skills to transform conflict into meaningful conversation and cooperation. 
  • The mindfulness-based conflict coaching system “Dis-Solving Conflict from Within” helps participants use self-inquiry to address conflict and respond to it with strength, clarity, and ease. 
  • In “Compassionate Communications,” employees learn to identify and engage with feelings and needs to create more productive and compassionate day-to-day work interactions and build a more equitable, effective, and collaborative work community.

Employees may also schedule conflict coaching sessions with experienced trainers, facilitated mediation between parties in conflict, or group conflict facilitations designed to build consensus and create inclusive cultures.

OEA maintains confidentiality for issues that arise in conflict resolution sessions, with exceptions for threats of harm and allegations of abuse, neglect, or discrimination.

To schedule a conflict training, coaching session, mediation, or group facilitation, employees should email Henry Yampolsky, assistant director for education, outreach, and conflict resolution, or visit the OEA Workshops and Trainings website.

Research Development Series: NSF Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships

The Office of Research and Innovation is hosting a seminar for faculty at all stages of their career to learn about the National Science Foundation (NSF) Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships and how it can support current and future extramural funding. Guest speaker Erwin Gianchandani, NSF’s assistant director for technology, innovation, and partnerships, will discuss the new mission of the directorate and the growing portfolio of funding opportunities in the context of three focus areas during the seminar:

  • Fostering Innovation and technology ecosystems 
  • Establishing translation pathways 
  • Partnering to engage the nations diverse talent

This Research Development Series seminar will take place on November 10 at 4:00 p.m. at the Virginia Tech Research Center’s Executive Briefing Center in Arlington. The event is free to attend, but registration is required for in-person or Zoom participation.

NSF launched its Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships in March 2022. As NSF’s first new directorate in 30 years, it aspires to accelerate the development and deployment of use-inspired, translational technologies, and solutions that meet societal and economic needs; drive the creation of new, high-wage jobs; and strengthen the nation’s international competitiveness.

The Research Development Series is designed to help faculty in their journey to increase the scope and impact of their research, creativity, and innovation portfolio. With events focused on different facets of sponsored research, from sponsor-specific perspectives to how to work with partners, this webinar series is intended to answer researchers' biggest questions and enlighten scholars at every step in their career.

For more information on this and other Research and Innovation events, please visit their Events and Programs website.

ICYMI: Online tutorials on revised university shared governance system

Virginia Tech’s governance system is a shared process of decision-making concerning policies and institutional operation with representation of constituent groups at all levels who have a voice in shaping the university. This system requires an informed and knowledgeable community and allows for transparent, comprehensive, and open communication amongst governing bodies and the campus community.

To assist faculty and staff in understanding Virginia Tech’s revised shared governance structure and how it serves stakeholders across the university, the Office of Policy and Governance has created a series of self-paced online tutorials that outline the history of and guiding principles for effective governance, and the role that faculty, staff and student representative bodies play in the process.

The tutorial modules, which run from three to 20 minutes, are as follows:

In addition to the online tutorial modules, Policy and Governance offers a Governance 101 resource with information on structures and procedures as well as links to the contributing shared governance bodies, resolution tracker, and how to get involved in the shared governance system.

The Office of Policy and Governance is continually assessing and improving its resources for serving the university community. As the new governance system is implemented, they welcome feedback on these tutorials and ideas for creating additional ones.

For more information or to access these valuable resources, please visit Virginia Tech’s shared governance system website.

Additional Resources and Updates

If you have comments or recommendations for how we can improve the Weekly Communications Update or suggestions for specific information and topics that should be shared with faculty, staff, and academic program personnel, please provide them through this Google form or email Provost Communications.

Please visit VT Ready and the Provost’s website frequently for new and updated university information. All members of the campus community should also read their VTx Daily email for further important updates, notices, and resources.