(The policies and procedures are in compliance with SFSU Academic Senate policy regarding temporary faculty, F99-160.)

Background:

The right to serve as Principal Investigator (PI) on University-based grants or contracts at San Francisco State is currently limited to tenured/tenure track faculty or individuals with an MPP appointment. Other individuals wishing to serve as a PI on a grant or contract administered by SFSU must receive approval from the Provost.

The policies and procedures incorporated in this document formalize the process for:

1. approving Provisional PI status for those individuals who are not automatically eligible to be a PI based on SFSU's current policies, and
2. reviewing these individuals for continuation of their PI status

Policy:

The individual requesting PI status must have a faculty sponsor, receive an honorific² (adjunct, in-residence, clinical or distinguished) faculty appointment, and make a formal application for PI status.

Procedures:

The application should contain the follow items:

• A complete, up-to-date curriculum vitae
• A letter of support from the faculty sponsor
• Three letters of recommendation from senior researchers in the applicant's field
• A brief description of the research/sponsored project(s) for which the applicant plans to seek external funding
• Documentation of any experience the applicant has had in managing research and grant-funded employees
• A description of how the applicant's research/sponsored project(s) serves the University's mission
• Any University resources that the applicant's project requires (e.g., space, computer resources, etc.) and how the applicant proposes to gain access to those resources.

The faculty sponsor should have experience as a funded PI, should be willing to assist ORSP in dealing with any issues that may arise related to grant activity of the proposed PI, and serve as the department/College representative for the proposed PI, if PI status is approved. The faculty sponsor should submit the application to the Chair of the Department for review and approval. The Chair will forward the application materials and his/her recommendation to the Dean of the College. The Dean will review and decide whether to endorse the application. If the Dean endorses the application, s/he will attach a letter of support and forward the application to the Associate Vice President (ORSP).

The Dean's letter of support should include a description of the resources that the College will provide in support of the applicant, and/or a request for the resources. The letter should also describe how PI status for the applicant would assist the College in meeting its goals and objectives.

At the discretion of the AVP (ORSP), a committee will be assembled to review the request for PI status. The committee will be composed of faculty/administrators (e.g. College Associate Dean) proposed by the Dean and will include faculty/administrators well qualified to evaluate the applicant's credentials and project proposal. All faculty/administrators recommended for committee service should have significant experience as a PI. The AVP (ORSP) will chair the Committee and will also make a separate recommendation.

The committee and the AVP (ORSP) should consider the following questions:

• Is the applicant competent to perform the research/sponsored project(s) proposed?
• Will the applicant contribute materially to the research mission of the University?
• Will the applicant's presence as a PI on campus contribute to the University in other ways (e.g. reputation of the institution)?
• Does the arrangement for PI status provide reasonable protections for the individual and the University against possible abuses and liabilities?

The AVP's (ORSP) recommendation to the Provost should cover the following options:

• Approve without restrictions for current and future projects
• Approve for a specific project or time period only
• Approve subject to specific conditions (e.g. involvement of tenured faculty member with experience in grants/contracts)
• Approve provisionally (for purpose of allowing a submission) subject to full review later (to be used only when there is a very high likelihood of eventual approval)
• Defer decision with a request for additional information (e.g. if file is incomplete)
• Disapprove (with explanation)

The Provost will review and consider the Dean's and the AVP's (ORSP) recommendations and either accept; request consultation with the AVP (ORSP), if there is a question regarding the category of approval; or reject the application. Prior to formally rejecting a recommendation, the Provost will consult with the Dean to discuss the reasons for considering the rejection and give the Dean the opportunity to provide additional information on behalf of the applicant. After all discussions have occurred, the Provost will issue a final written response to the AVP (ORSP), applicant, faculty sponsor, and Dean.

Continuation as a PI will be based on an annual report from the PI summarizing her/his activities. The report would consist of a short narrative of results and accomplishments and a list of publications, presentations, grant applications submitted and funded. This annual report should be sent to the Dean and the AVP (ORSP). If either the Dean or the AVP (ORSP) has concerns after reading the report, then a formal review (see below) should take place. Otherwise, a formal review of the PI status should take place every two years, at the same time as the review of honorific faculty status. These reviews are not a substitution for the reviews required for lecturers performed by the department for teaching or other assigned responsibilities.

The formal review for continuation of PI status should involve the following elements:

• A report to the appropriate Dean from the Provisional PI summarizing his or her activities as a principal investigator on the SFSU campus. This should include a statement of how those activities have supported the University's mission
• The report should be forwarded to the AVP (ORSP) along with supporting letters from the Dean of the appropriate College and the faculty sponsor for continuation of the Provisional PI status

Continuation will also depend on the continued appointment in their honorific faculty position (defined in SFSU policies of review of honorific faculty which includes a review every two years) and demonstrated competence in managing external funding.

A letter of continuation or termination of the Provisional PI status from the AVP (ORSP) will be sent to the applicant, Dean, faculty sponsor and the supporting Department Chair.

¹Submitted to Academic Affairs Council by the Principal Investigator Eligibility Task Force on September 8, 2003. Approved with revisions by Academic Affairs Council: November 10, 2003. Approved by President Corrigan: November 11, 2003.

²Policies approved March 7, 2001 (Office of the Provost and the President) for such appointments define the positions, and provide procedures for review and appointments. Click here for more information.