Dear Faculty and Staff Colleagues,

We write to update you on several significant issues related to actions taken by the federal government in recent weeks, share how we are planning to contend with potential impacts, and to reiterate our ongoing commitment to our mission.

RESEARCH FUNDING AND ADMINISTRATION

 We have seen a significant reduction in new awards to UConn and UConn Health from federal agencies so far this calendar year. Typically, we would expect to receive a combined new award total of approximately $38 million through February; this year, we have received approximately $24 million during this time period.

We are receiving questions with respect to the expenses of research staff and research-focused graduate students should this persist. Administrative and academic leadership teams continue to work actively to plan for contingencies in affected areas. We will provide specific guidance on this issue to the deans and are also working with them on mitigation strategies.

We are seeing significant changes to the administration and funding from many of our federal sponsors to include USAID, Sea Grant/NOAA, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Energy (DoE), and the Department of Education (DoEd).

Additionally, there have also been leadership changes at agencies which focus on high-risk, high-impact technology translation such as DARPA, ARPA-E, and ARPA-H.

The reduction of indirect cost returns from NIH to academic institutions — which would reduce the current negotiated, approved rates for UConn and UConn Health from 61% and 66% respectively to 15% — remains on hold after a federal judge temporarily blocked it from taking effect.

RESEARCH FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

We are a public, R1 land, sea, and space grant university. Our mission is based on serving the needs of our communities, providing excellent education, and advancing the causes of research and scholarship to bring about positive impacts statewide, nationally, and globally. We provide the R&D needed by our industries, including defense/national security, finance, insurance, biotech, and health sectors. Our mission is not going to change.

At the same time, we understand that every change in administration comes with challenges and opportunities as there are priorities that every new administration would like to enact which may differ from the previous administration. Knowing that, we have adjusted with every new administration.

Areas that we believe the new administration will concentrate on are below. These are the fields that are most likely to be prioritized to receive federal support and thus represent the most significant funding opportunities for faculty in the coming years.

• Energy independence
• AI and quantum technologies
• Defense, national security
• Manufacturing, supply chain, and project management
• Healthy living
• Cancer
• Genetics/genomics
• Technology development/deployment in all areas of R&D
• Workforce development
• Community impact through broadening participation in higher education, R&D, innovation, entrepreneurship

In anticipation of this new landscape, OVPR has been working non-stop since Nov. 6 and has been engaged daily with the Office of the Provost, Governmental Relations, and the General Counsel. We are also briefing UConn’s senior leadership team, research deans, center and institute directors, and our faculty/staff task forces on a weekly basis.

What can you do:

• OVPR has created task forces focused on helping investigators pursue non-federal sources of research funding, supporting the UConn research infrastructure during these volatile times, and strategic communication to advocate for the value of research in our society. If you would like to join a task force, e-mail research@uconn.edu
• Keep us updated on anything you may be hearing, also via research@uconn.edu.
• Visit our FAQs page, which is regularly monitored and updated: research.uconn.edu.
• Please remain connected, help and support each other, be kind to each other.

“DEAR COLLEAGUE” LETTER AND EXECUTIVE ORDERS

On Feb. 14, the U.S. Department of Education released what is known as a “Dear Colleague letter” to educational institutions with guidance regarding federal laws that prohibit discrimination. On March 1, the department followed-up with an FAQ on the letter.

The core message of the Dear Colleague letter is that educational institutions must fully comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin. As with all state and federal laws, UConn has always continually worked to ensure we are in compliance with Title VI, and that remains the case today. In fact, UConn has long had an appointed Title VI Coordinator in the Office of Institutional Equity. UConn’s OIE and ODI train, educate, and address issues on matters related to discrimination on the basis of many factors, and not just those under Title VI, but all applicable federal law.

The letter states: “… colleges, universities, and K-12 schools have routinely used race as a factor in admissions, financial aid, hiring, training, and other institutional programming.”

In each of these areas, we believe the university is compliant with the law, including following the recent Supreme Court decision surrounding the use of race in admissions.

The letter also states: “…many American schools and universities even encourage segregation by race at graduation ceremonies and in dormitories and other facilities.”

UConn does not encourage segregation and while there are numerous affinity groups on campus and related programming, events, activities, and housing, none are in violation of Title VI provided that, regardless of the affinity group who may be the organizers or audience, the programming, events, activities, and housing are open to anyone — meaning no one is excluded on the basis of race or any other aspect of identity.

As always, should the university identify an area where we need to make a change or an adjustment to ensure legal compliance, we will do so.

If you have questions about Title VI and UConn’s obligations under it or want to ensure that language, programming, or practices in your area are compliant with it, please contact equity@uconn.edu. Please do not make changes to the language, programming, or practices without consultation.

In addition, UConn is home to an Office of Diversity and Inclusion, cultural centers, and learning communities. Their existence and programming are compliant with the law and consistent with UConn’s overall mission as a Land Grant institution created to expand access and opportunity and to serve all people from every walk of life.

COMMUNICATIONS

We have also been working with offices of research in the Northeast and beyond as well as the Council on Governmental Relations, the APLU, and other national entities. We are receiving strong support from state leaders, our federal governmental relations representatives in Washington, and Connecticut’s congressional delegation. UConn leaders are also in close, regular contact with our colleagues at other institutions and contacts within the federal government.

Finally, as we have seen in recent weeks, Executive Orders and other directives have been released by the federal government at a fast pace. In at least one case, a directive was rescinded a day later and in other cases, they have been the subject of legal action that has in some cases prevented them from taking effect.

In this very hectic and unpredictable environment, once something is released the relevant UConn leaders and offices immediately begin the process of analyzing it to determine its meaning and potential impact on the university. This involves not only working with colleagues at UConn, but consulting with colleagues at other institutions, and state and federal contacts. Often the meaning and impact of something is not clear or immediately understood.

This work is time-consuming, and accuracy is critical. On occasion, even after a thorough analysis has been conducted, clear answers and understanding have not been forthcoming. When we believe we have solid answers and information, we want to share it with the community. In the interim, as this analysis is taking place, it may appear that maybe nothing is happening, when in fact, considerable work is taking place behind the scenes.

In addition, we are also offering faculty and staff the opportunity to ask questions of and hear directly from leadership during upcoming bi-weekly check-in meetings beginning this Friday at noon. It will be available on livestream to faculty and staff at all campuses. Please email your questions in advance or during the session to communications@uconn.edu with the subject line: “Questions for Leadership.”

These issues are of the utmost importance to UConn and we want to share accurate information as soon as we can, but must be deliberate in doing so. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Sincerely,

Anne D’Alleva
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs

Pamir Alpay
Vice President for Research, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship

Nicole Gelston
General Counsel

Jeffrey Hines
Interim Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer