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Transformative Research and Creativity

Transformative Research and Creativity

Research, discovery and creative activity are critical to the vitality and national reputation of our campus. The translation of research into application and practice benefits our state through innovative solutions to pressing problems and helps drive economic development. Our campus has long been recognized for the significant and transformative impact that community-engaged research and public scholarship can have on the metropolitan Indianapolis region, and it is important to maintain this strength even as we build our research profile in other areas. Successes in this area will be measured through increases in R&D expenditures; increased sponsored research support from federal agencies, foundations, industry and government contracts; and increased dissemination of research produced by faculty as well as by undergraduate and graduate students.

Goal 1: Increase Research Productivity by Expanding and Diversifying High-Impact and Translational Research Areas

High-impact research involves areas of focus that equip IUI faculty and students the potential to generate new knowledge, contribute to social well-being and expand economic development that will improve the lives of individuals and communities in meaningful ways. Supporting the translation of research and creative activity into practical applications and commercial products that can be used in the real world is essential for encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship and driving economic and social growth.

Multi-disciplinary collaborations. Foster multi-disciplinary collaborations within and across all schools on campus, including the School of Medicine, to engage in high-impact research that will attract large-scale funding.
Translational research. Expand efforts to translate research and creative activity to the public through a shared commitment to disclosure and licensing of inventions, discoveries and innovations; entrepreneurship and commercialization; and partnerships with key constituencies.
Culture of positivity. Enhance communication about research and creative activities that engage faculty, staff, students and the broader community thereby, fostering a culture of positive influence.

Increase annually the number of externally sponsored research proposals submitted by faculty to 1000.
Increase number of funded externally sponsored research annually ($57.1 million as of Spring 2023).
Increase percent of tenure-track faculty with external research funding to 50%.
Grow research funding activities for the new joint (IU/Purdue) biosciences engineering institute.
Increase patent applications and licensing of discoveries to increase revenue annually (FY22 – 43 applications, six licensing agreements, $26,173 licensing income).
Refine the research strategic communications plan as IUPUI transitions to IUI.

Goal 2: Enhance Community-Engaged Research and Public Scholarship

Enhancing community-engaged research and public scholarship at IUI will lead to more equitable and high-impact research by involving communities and the public in the research process, making research findings more accessible and understandable, and promoting public benefit deriving from the research.

Boosting credibility. Increase recognition of IUI as a center for community-engaged research and public scholarship to enhance the reputation of the campus and university.
Community engagement. Develop internal capacity for community-engaged research and public scholarship to address the community’s needs and priorities.
Sharing academic knowledge. Promote research and scholarly dissemination through high-quality peer reviewed outlets.

Receive Carnegie Elective Classification for Community Engagement in 2026.
Double the number of dossiers annually reviewed by the Public and Engaged Scholarship Review Committee.
Increase the number of tenure-track faculty conducting community-engaged research with external research funding (baseline established by 2024).
Increase in number of faculty promotions based on community-engaged research and public scholarship to 6%.
Increase the number of books published to the top 50% of peer group.
Increase the number of peer-reviewed published articles to place IUI in the top 50th percentile.
Increase citation count to the top 50% of peer group.

Goal 3: Strengthen Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Across the Research Enterprise

Strengthening DEI across the research enterprise at IUI will involve creating a more inclusive and equitable research culture that values and supports individuals from diverse backgrounds and experiences. It will also position us well to diversify the pipeline of postdoctoral fellows and faculty who will contribute to the creation of knowledge and creative activity in the future.

Reflect the community. Ensure the leaders of research and research development reflect the diverse characteristics of our students, with an emphasis on hiring and advancing individuals from historically marginalized groups to help advance knowledge, promote equity and improve educational outcomes for all students.
Campus support. Expand campus support for community-engaged, participatory research and translating research into practice, with a focus on supporting researchers and historically marginalized communities. Align curricular offerings with workforce demands with a particular focus on accelerated degree programs.
Inclusive environment. Build inclusive and equitable environments on campus that support a diverse group of researchers.
DEI values. Become a global and national leader in forging policy and culture changes that center diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, accessibility, belongingness (DEIJAB) values in the research enterprise.

Reduce faculty turnover for early-career tenure-track and non-tenure-track faculty (current attrition rate is 12.5%).
Increase number of tenure-track promotions with DEI pathway.
Establish baseline data and progressively increase, by 10% per year, the number of research projects that engage with communities of color as a primary focus.
Create a formal document that defines scholarly values in the context of DEIJAB.
Establish baseline data and progressively increase, by 10% per year, the number of proposals with a significant DEIJAB element at the core of the work proposed.

Goal 4: Enhance Support for Faculty Excellence in Research

By supporting faculty excellence in research, IUI can help to advance knowledge, improve education, enhance competitiveness and drive economic growth.

Pathways to success. Create clear and achievable pathways for success for early career faculty through strategic hiring of diverse, high-quality faculty who are supported by structured developmental mentoring, equitable access to resources to support funding success pre and post award, and protected time.
Faculty retention. Enhance retention efforts for mid-to-late career faculty, ensuring there are multiple ways of defining and articulating scholarly impact and that research funding is more flexible and easier to secure and manage. Lead peer institutions in terms of mental health, wellness and adaptive educational experiences to help ensure students are better equipped to manage the demands of academic life.

Reduce faculty turnover for early-career tenure-track and non-tenure-track faculty (current attrition rate is 12.5%).
Increase levels of job satisfaction by IUI faculty as reported through Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Ed (COACHE) Faculty Job Satisfaction survey.

Transformative Research and Creativity