K. Professional Activities

1. Travel to Professional Meetings¹ Faculty members wishing to attend or participate in professional meetings are eligible to apply for travel grants. Funds are allocated by the dean of the faculty’s Office but application is made through the divisional offices.

The current policy on travel funding is approved by the Dean’s Advisory Council and is distributed to all faculty members in an annual memorandum from the Dean. Regulations governing participation and attendance grants are described in the annual memorandum.

2. Grant Support The Office of Corporate, Foundation, and Government Relations (Grants Office) is part of the Division of Institutional Advancement and provides the primary contact for faculty with external funding sources. The office will assist faculty members in identifying potential sources of support for research and in completing applications. The Grants Office also maintains a reference library of grant sources for both individual and institutional projects which faculty members are invited to use. For additional information about this office, including the procedure for submission of all grant applications to corporations, foundations, or state or federal government agencies, see Section V.A.

3. Council for Faculty Development The Council for Faculty Development is a faculty committee appointed by the Dean of the Faculty dedicated to the improvement of teaching and academic advising. The Council has two specific functions. First, to encourage discussion of how teaching and academic advising can be improved at Colgate. Second, to fund worthy projects for the improvement of teaching and advising. The Council may also address curricular improvement if proposed projects represent a new departure for faculty members and opportunities to increase the scope of their teaching in significant ways. The Council for Faculty Development is not directly concerned with research, as that is the special interest of the Research Council.

The Council for Faculty Development sponsors individual projects as well as programs for curricular innovation and improvement that affect a sizable number of faculty and students at Colgate. Proposals generally fall into one or more of the following categories: improvement and expansion of teaching skills; attendance at conferences or workshops outside the faculty member’s area of expertise; experiential travel related to course development; development of workshops and conferences at Colgate; and development of ideas about student academic advising.

The Council has also initiated programs to engage Colgate faculty in discussions of general intellectual, curricular, and pedagogical issues that extend across departments and divisional lines. These programs can take the form of panel discussions among faculty members, informal seminars and discussion, and two- or three-day short courses.

Major grants are considered by the Council twice a year, while smaller discretionary grants are made by the Council Chair at any time. Questions concerning the Council for Faculty Development should be directed to its chair or to any of its members.

4. Arts and Humanities Division Faculty Development Fund The Division of the Arts and Humanities has available a limited fund for members of the Arts and Humanities faculty for projects involving substantial research and professional self-development not funded by the Research Council. Support is also granted for invited participation in professional conferences and symposia not eligible for funding by the Dean of the Faculty’s Office, and library privilege fees and the acquisition of special materials. Modest subsidies for support of publication or creative production may also be requested. No applicant will ordinarily be considered whose project or proposal has already received support from the Colgate Research Council or from the Council for Faculty Development. Questions and applications should be directed to the Director of the Division of the Arts and Humanities.

5. Research Council The Research Council is a faculty committee appointed by the Dean of the Faculty to establish policies for and disburse that part of Colgate’s budget which is allocated to the support of faculty research. Members of the Council are chosen from each division to present a balanced representation of divisional and departmental interests. Questions should be directed to the Chair or to members of the Research Council.

a. Definition and scope of activities “Research” is understood by the Council to mean scholarly endeavor that has as its objective the publication of the results of that effort. In the case of visual and performing arts projects, the work is expected to be displayed through public presentation. Activities aimed directly at the improvement of teaching are not eligible for funding by the Research Council; requests for support of these activities should be directed to the Faculty Development Council (see Section III.K.3.).

Within its budgetary limits, the Council provides discretionary, student wage, and major grant funds to support research activities (e.g., research- related travel, limited purchase of equipment) and the preparation and dissemination of final manuscripts (e.g., computer loans, typing and photographic work, publication charges, reprints). The Research Council Guidelines outline the activities and items that are and are not eligible for funding. In addition, the Research Council is involved in the decision-making process for Associate Professor and Full Professor Faculty Leave support. (Faculty leaves are described in Section III.L.).

b. How and when to apply Guidelines for applying for discretionary grants, student wage grants, major grants, Associate Professor and Full Professor Faculty Leaves are distributed to all faculty members at the beginning of the academic year. Requests for discretionary funds (up to $1,500 per year as of 2016–17) and for student wages (up to 300 hours per year) may be submitted to the Chair of the Research Council in the form of a letter at any time. Applications for major grants (usually up to $7,500), Picker Fellowships, Associate Professor and Full Professor Faculty Leaves should be submitted to the Chair of the Research Council in the manner outlined in the Guidelines by the announced deadline, which is generally early in January. Funding for major grants, Picker Fellowships, Associate Professor and Full Professor Faculty Leaves is limited and based on the merit of the submitted proposal.

6. Intellectual Property The following policies apply to the ownership of patents and copyrights in works invented or created by Colgate students, staff, and faculty, including academic, library, and athletic faculty, using University funds, facilities, or other resources. The Committee on Intellectual Property oversees the policies.

a. Copyright

Ownership Traditional Academic Works. Colgate University has historically waived any copyright interest it may legally have to traditional academic works created by faculty. Examples include class notes and syllabi, books and articles, works of fiction and nonfiction, poems and dramatic works, musical and choreographic works, pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works, computer programs and educational software, but not on-line courses for credit.

Colgate University has also waived any copyright interest it may legally have to works created by students. Examples include materials produced for a class assignment or honors theses.

This policy, shared by most other colleges and universities, recognizes a long-standing tradition of encouraging scholarship and innovation in teaching. Although technological advances have changed the media in which ideas may be fixed, Colgate’s fundamental policy with regard to such works remains one in which copyright ownership shall be held by the individual(s) who create(s) the work subject to the provisions of section b.

Exceptions 

1.  Institutional Works (or Works Made for Hire). The University shall own intellectual property rights in institutional works, such as those produced in service activities, except as provided in prior written agreements. This includes works created by non-faculty employees (either staff or student employees) within the scope of their employment. However, this does not include traditional academic works created by non-faculty employees under the supervision of a faculty member in their research or teaching projects. In this case the faculty member would usually retain copyright ownership, unless the University can claim ownership rights under exception II.C. The University shall also own intellectual property rights in works created by faculty members made pursuant to a specific direction or assigned task other than normal teaching or research activities.

2. Patentable Works. Colgate’s Patent Policy will apply to encoded works or computer software where the work is developed in the normal course of the relationship between an employee and the University and where the encoded work is patentable, even if the work could also be copyrighted.

3. University-Sponsored Materials. Colgate shall own intellectual property rights when it provides substantial and specific support to a project or when substantial use is made of University resources.  The following conditions provide a useful guide:

a. Routine support available to all faculty will not generate university claims of ownership.  A traditional academic work will not be treated as "made for hire" merely because it is created with University resources, facilities, or materials of the sort traditionally and commonly made available to faculty members.  Examples of routine support include office or laboratory space, secretarial services, divisional travel grants, and access to generally available computer facilities and support.

b. Similarly, nearly routine support available to selected faculty will not normally generate University claims of ownership.  Examples of nearly routine support include sabbatical leaves, start-up funds at the time of hire, discretionary grants, student wage grants, major grants, Picker fellowships, associate professor and full professor faculty leaves and other grants from the Faculty Research Council or the Faculty Development Council.

c. Routine support available to all students will not generate university claims of ownership.  Examples of routine support include student laboratory space and access to generally available computer facilities and support.

d. Colgate will share ownership of the copyright with the author(s) when it funds specific projects with substantial grants of money or resources other than those listed above.  Prior to the project commencing there should be an agreement signed by the principal parties describing the specific expected copyrightable project and how the copyright for that product is to be shared.

4.  Third-Party Agreements. Works created in agreement with or under the sponsorship of a third party will be governed by the agreement with the third party.  The Provost and Financial Vice President & Treasurer must approve any agreement with a third party that requires the substantial use of Colgate resources. 

b. Patent Policy

1.  Disclosure.  Inventions conceived or first reduced to practice using University facilities or developed under a sponsored research agreement shall be promptly disclosed in writing to the chair of the Committee on Intellectual Property.  The inventors shall complete appropriate patent disclosure forms supplied for this purpose.

2.  Ownership

a.  All patentable inventions conceived or first reduced to practice using University facilities or developed under a sponsored research agreement, by faculty, staff or students, as well as non-employees who participate in research projects at the University, shall belong to the University.  The inventor shall assign all such inventions and any applications or patents resulting therefrom to the University.  The inventor shall execute documents of assignment to convey to the University all of the employee's interest in the invention owned by the University and cooperate and assist the University in all phases of the patent application process.  On request, each person covered by this policy will sign an appropriate agreement to implement this policy.

b.  Abandonment.  If the University cannot, or decides not to, proceed in a timely manner to patent and/or license an invention, it shall reassign ownership to the inventors upon request to the extent possible under the terms of any agreements that support or relate to the work.

3.  Exceptions

a. Third-Party Agreements.  Works created in agreement with or under the sponsorship of a third party will be governed by the agreement with the third party.  The Provost and Financial Vice President & Treasurer must approve any agreement with a third party that requires the substantial use of Colgate resources.

 4.  Revenues. Royalty distribution for patents owned by the University shall be as follows: All administrative and legal expenses incurred in connection with the patent will be deducted from the gross royalty income.  After these deductions, the royalty income is divided 40% to the inventor, 40% to the University, and 20% to the inventor's department.

Colgate anticipates that a portion of its proceeds will be used to support education or scientific research.

7. Institutional Review Board To aid in compliance with the Department of Health and Human Services Code of Federal Regulations concerning Protection of Human Subjects, in 1980, the Office of the Dean of the Faculty created an appointed committee, the Institutional Review Board, to review all research involving human subjects conducted by faculty and by students for research projects in courses or independent study at Colgate. Faculty and students seeking to conduct research using human subjects should consult the IRB web pages on Colgate’s website for current information and procedures. Research projects that require review may not commence until approval of the Board is received.

8. Animal Care and Use Committee Colgate seeks to meet the standards of the Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. Since 1986, the Animal Care and Use Committee has been composed of several faculty members of the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, a veterinarian in private practice, and a member of the Hamilton community. Any member of the faculty intending to use living animals for teaching or research must contact the Chair to submit a plan for use of animals for review by the committee. Use of animals cannot proceed until the Director of the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics is notified in writing of the approval of the plan.

9. Institutional Biosafety Committee The role of the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) is to provide advice and recommendations to the Colgate community by reviewing protocols and approving procedures that will provide for the safe conduct of teaching and research while ensuring compliance with government requirements regarding the use of biological materials.  Members of the IBC are selected for their area of expertise, and the committee includes members from the surrounding community. The IBC will meet once every semester to review protocols, and in the intervening time the IBC chair will consult with members to address questions generated from any new protocols.

The IBC can approve or disapprove protocols, make recommendations for corrective action for protocols, and facilitate development of appropriate protocols; if it is not possible to comply with regulations, the IBC will stop further teaching or research. The committee is the link between Colgate University and regulatory agencies, and reports as required to regulatory agencies.

All teaching and research with biological materials must have protocols registered with the IBC for approval and review. The includes the use of transgenic organisms, recombinant DNA, human blood or tissues, or other potentially biohazardous materials. The IBC has an overlapping role with other committees, i.e., Institutional Review Board and the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, and will communicate with them as necessary and appropriate.

10. Policy and Procedures for Responding to Allegations of Scientific Misconduct At Colgate University, we believe that honesty and integrity are fundamental values in a community dedicated to learning, personal development, and a search for understanding. Colgate University is committed to upholding the highest standards of research integrity and does not condone, nor will it tolerate, scientific misconduct by any member of the University community. While breaches in such standards are rare, they must be dealt with promptly and fairly in order to preserve the integrity of the research community and of the University.

This policy applies to allegations of scientific misconduct, which means fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in proposing, performing, or reviewing research, or in reporting research results. Research misconduct does not include honest error or differences of opinion.

• Fabrication is making up data or results and recording or reporting them.
• Falsification is manipulating research materials, equipment, or processes, or changing or omitting data or results such that the research is not accurately represented in the research record.
• Plagiarism is the appropriation of another person’s ideas, processes, results, or words without giving appropriate credit.

Policies and procedures were established by the Dean of the Faculty in February 2014 to comply with Public Health Services Policies on Research Misconduct (Federal Register 42 CFR Part 93).

A full description is found in a policy statement titled Colgate University Policy and Procedures for Responding to Allegations of Research Misconduct, available online at the Corporate, Foundation, and Government Relations website. This policy statement is updated regularly to reflect federal regulations and university policies.

11. Conflict of Interest Policy, with regard to financial and family matters, was passed by FAC on April 23, 1996, as required of institutions receiving grants from the National Science Foundation and other governmental granting agencies. A copy of this policy is on file with the Dean of the Faculty and the Office of Corporate, Foundation, and Government Relations. This policy was distributed to the full faculty in a memo dated April 25, 1996.

Footnotes

¹ A faculty member who attends one meeting and participates in another may apply for reimbursement for both meetings but total reimbursement for expenses connected with both trips may not exceed the maximum per year.