Why is it important for faculty and staff to engage in sponsored research? Simply stated, because sponsored research plays an increasingly large and important role in advancing the University's mission.

Historically, Eastern Michigan University has been committed to preparing people to become productive and effective citizens. Providing an exceptional learning environment has always been central to this goal. As an integral part of its educational charge, the University has steadily encouraged efforts to promote scholarly investigation and develop new technology. To help faculty and staff gain outside support for research, the University created the Office of Research Development (ORD).

What does ORD do?

ORD assists faculty and staff in obtaining external funding for research and special projects that will expand the body of knowledge and also enhance the teaching and learning climate on the EMU campus. ORD stimulates proposal development through notifying faculty and staff about funding opportunities in two main ways:

• SMARTS, a completely automatic user-controlled delivery of programs that you indicate you wish to receive information about.
  
• SPIN, which stands for Sponsored Programs Information Network.
  
  

ORD facilitates proposal development through a variety of other pre-award and post-award services, including regularly scheduled workshops conducted by ORD staff on different aspects of grant writing. ORD staff help to draft proposals, prepare budgets, and give support and advice during the life of the project.

ORD officers and Grants Accounting (a unit of EMU Accounting) are in a special position to ensure that project directors are aware of particular state and federal mandates for grants and research, as well as with internal EMU policies for facilitating investigation with funder money. They provide training and advice that enable projects to proceed smoothly from start to finish--invaluable assistance for the protection and satisfaction of everyone involved.

What are the benefits of sponsored research?

The importance of externally funded research for the University community cannot be overemphasized. First, expanding the body of knowledge is inherent in the mission of Eastern Michigan. In this way, EMU is like other major universities. Eastern's faculty, like those elsewhere, should be thinking thoughts that produce new knowledge, and then devising ways of getting these new ideas out to the world where they can do some good.

Second, research enhances the atmosphere for learning for both faculty and students. For the teacher, research is career development at its most basic, local level. Such inquiry adds variety to daily work, and those faculty who engage in investigation are very often the better teachers. They not only bring new knowledge to their instruction, they also pass along to their students the enthusiasm that comes from making their discoveries. Such love of learning is contagious. It spreads from faculty to students, and then back again. Thus faculty researchers serve as role models for learning through inquiry and investigation. The student also gets the immediate benefit of the new information acquired and, in addition, often has the valuable experience of engaging in the discovery process itself.

For the researcher, beyond the sheer joy of learning and of making important, new discoveries, comes the sense of doing a job well and of having benefited the public good. It feels good to do good. Sponsored research also gives one a chance to realize long-held dreams. ("Something I've always wanted to do is....") Another special satisfaction comes from knowing that people in the larger community value one's ideas, and, because they recognize their significance, have given money to implement them.

Sponsored research fosters opportunities for new professional friendships on and off campus while the project is proceeding and afterward as well. A job well done leads to greater recognition of one's expertise and ability both on campus and beyond. Such investigation promotes collaborative working relationships between faculty and staff locally, especially when the project involves more than one campus unit, as it often does. In addition, it links the investigator with people who have similar interests in the larger professional community and lays the foundation for generating offshoot proposals within the wider network. Sponsored research also gives faculty and staff greater autonomy, in particular through the released time that the project supports.

Grant-getting enhances the reputation of Eastern Michigan University, as well as that of the grantee. It attracts talented faculty and students to the institution and brings money into the University that will foster more research and in turn increase the possibilities for more grants. And so it goes. One grant leads to another. Success brings more success.

For example, equipment purchased from grant money for specific research usually becomes the property of the University when the grant is finished. This equipment not only makes it possible for the investigator to complete the project already underway but can also be used in teaching and for more research. For a variety of reasons then, externally funded research is highly rewarding both for the researcher and for the Eastern Michigan University community.

Are you a first-time applicant? Here are some tips.

There's money out there--$600 billion annually--for the getting. You can tap into it. Keep in mind that:

• Competition is fierce, so you need a vision, a good idea to investigate.
• You need to know the rules of the game. They're in this handbook.
• Social benefit is a primary funding consideration. Organizations want their money to advance the public good.
• The most critical element needed for success is a well-written proposal. You can have the greatest idea in the world, but if you don't write it up effectively, it will likely fall by the wayside.
• Last -- be patient and persistent. You, too, can be successful. Go for it!