A process for revising the university’s Strategic Research Plan (SRP) has been approved, and will assist members of the Senate Advisory Research Committee (SARC) in establishing a framework for determining the strategic research direction of the university. Input from Faculties, individual researchers and other constituencies will play a key role in the revisions.

“Broad consultation including input from staff, undergraduate and graduate students, post-docs, as well as our research partners and external stakeholders is essential for accomplishing our ultimate goal – a Strategic Research Plan that will support and enhance the research endeavours and aspirations here at Queen’s,” says Vice-Principal (Research) Steven Liss.

The new five-step SRP revision process, approved yesterday at Senate includes:

• establishing a Research Community Committee (RCC) to gather suggestions from Queen’s researchers, including faculty, staff and students,
• consulting faculties to provide input on the RCC’s suggestions,
• seeking broad community consultation and feedback through Town Hall meetings, a web forum, and soon-to-be-launched social media channels,
• drafting a first version of the SRP that will be widely disseminated for input, and
• creating the penultimate draft that will help guide the university’s research initiatives in the coming years.

The process coincides with the work of the Academic Plan Task Force (APTF). The revised SRP will be informed by the AP, and both processes will be informed by the other to ensure a convergence of research aspirations for the university as defined in the two plans, and the consistency of the SRP with the overall values of the academic community including both teaching and research.

Queen’s University is a top ranked research intensive university, equally committed to excellence in education, and the SRP reflects the university’s commitment to advancing our reputation while responding to the challenges of a changing research and innovation landscape. The ability to advance strengths and develop strategies for emerging areas to create and respond to new opportunities will be guided by a renewed SRP. The current Queen’s SRP was first established in February 2003 and was updated in January 2006.

It is expected that the review process will take place over a 12-14 month period. The current Queen’s SRP is available on the VPR Website.