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Clustered & Connected Program

The Clustered & Connected Hiring Program (CCP) is designed to recruit and hire some of the best and brightest minds of varying backgrounds and experiences in select fields to The University of Texas at San Antonio to join in efforts to address some of today’s most significant challenges.

Through funding provided by the UT System Regents’ Research Excellence Program, UTSA will be able to hire approximately 40 new faculty positions over the next several years. The program’s intent is to attract new, mid- to senior-level faculty owho will add expertise in research areas that will enhance competitiveness, help solve societal needs and advance the university’s capacity to meet UT System and state goals as outlined by the Texas Legislature.

This program is a collaboration between Academic Affairs and the Office of Research.

2024 Clusters – Funded Proposals

The CCP process engages current UTSA faculty members to propose concepts for the concurrent hiring of multiple positions across colleges. The goal is to form transdisciplinary teams of leading or promising scholars to augment existing expertise. In February 2024, the university announced a call for proposals for transdisciplinary cluster hires. Out of 29 proposals submitted, six were selected to receive institutional support.

AI systems are transforming all sectors of society with their explosive development and have potential for substantial economic growth and innovation. AI-powered communities bring new challenges and opportunities. A few of the vexing grand challenges in advancing AI systems are: an ability to generate human-aware solutions that are inclusive, deployment on untethered platforms for dynamic and rapid decision making, robust learning from new behaviors throughout their lifetime, and solutions that are consumable by all humans. These challenges are further amplified by disciplinary specific approaches to AI development, deployment, and research methods that lack convergent science. AI challenges span all areas of engineering and computing, as well as cognitive science, psychology, biology, ethics, and mathematics to name a few.  

With the MATRIX Consortium’s commitment to nurturing transdisciplinary research and a broader national agency to develop science without walls, we are at a critical juncture to build AI capacity at UTSA. By recruiting strategically in the four core thrusts in MATRIX, each addressing a grand challenge, we provide a fertile ground where scientific endeavors can thrive without disciplinary silos, propelling us towards groundbreaking discoveries and innovations.

Individuals advancing the program:

  • Dhireesha Kudithipudi, Robert F.McDermott Chair in Engineering, electrical and computer engineering
  • Paul Rad, associate professor, computer science

Colleges: Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design, College of Sciences, College of Liberal and Fine Arts

UTSA aims to hire 5 associate or full professors in this cluster.

View the job posting for the Artificial Intelligence Cluster

This cluster is a combination of Brain Health and Trauma Research that responds to the key cross-cutting priority areas that promote brain health across the life span. This cluster hire seeks to capitalize on the existing strengths of faculty within the four colleges while expanding key faculty positions to fill critical gaps that will propel scientific knowledge.

Individuals advancing the program:

  • Jenny Hsieh, The Semmes Foundation Endowed Distinguished Chair in Cell Biology, neuroscience, developmental and regenerative biology
  • Nancy Cheak-Zamora, professor, public health

Colleges: College of Sciences, College for Health, Community and Policy, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design, College of Education and Human Development

UTSA aims to hire 5 associate or full professors in this cluster.

View the job posting for the Brain Health Cluster

The human microbiome is the microbial community that lives on and in the human body, composed dominantly of bacteria, but it also includes fungi, protozoa, archaea, and viruses. Recent research has made it clear that the microbiome plays a role in many disease conditions that previously were somewhat mysterious, including neurological disorders like Parkinson’s disease and autism spectrum disorder, and cancers such as colorectal cancer. Understanding exactly how the microbiome contributes to neurological and gastrointestinal disorders, cancer, and the antibiotic resistance crisis is a grand challenge that requires transdisciplinary collaboration among microbiologists, immunologists, neurobiologists, biochemists, computer scientists working with Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI), and exercise physiologists (Kinesiology) who work with distinct populations.

Individuals advancing the program:

  • Karl E. Klose, Robert J. Klebert, Jr. and Helen C. Kleberg College of Sciences Endowed Professor, molecular microbiology and immunology

Colleges: College of Sciences, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design, College for Health, Community and Policy

UTSA aims to hire 3 associate or full professors in this cluster.

View the job posting for the Microbiome and Human Health Cluster

Now is the time for UTSA to deepen its investment in space sciences and technology and establish itself as a key leader in South Texas and beyond. On March 26, 2024, Governor Abbott challenged academic institutions in Texas to create a space degree to help prepare the workforce in Texas. We’re proposing a Space Science & Technology, and Human Performance Cluster to address national needs and Gov. Abbott’s call to "strengthen Texas’ proven leadership in civil, commercial, and military aerospace activity and enhance the state's position in aeronautics R&D, astronautics, space commercialization, and space flight infrastructure."

Individuals advancing the program:

  • Christopher S. Combs, Dee Howard Memorial Endowed Faculty Fellow in Mechanical Engineering
  • David Silva, professor, physics and astronomy
  • Sandor Dorgo, professor, kinesiology

Colleges: Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design, College of Sciences, College for Health, Community and Policy

UTSA aims to hire 5 associate or full professors in this cluster.

View the job posting for the Space Cluster

UTSA requires educational excellence in STEM fields (e.g., climate change, artificial intelligence, advances materials, biomedicine, and data science among others), this cluster hire proposes to optimize graduate programs in interdisciplinary STEM education to ensure STEM success in higher education.

Individuals advancing the program:

  • Alex Mejia, associate professor, biomedical and chemical engineering and bicultural-bilingual studies
  • Erika Tatiana Camacho, Manuel P. Berriozábal, Ph.D. and María Antonietta Berriozábal Endowed Chair, professor, mathematics

Colleges: Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design, College of Sciences, College of Education and Human Development

UTSA aims to hire 3 associate or full professors in this cluster.

View the job posting for the STEM Education Cluster

UTSA continues to grow its reputation as a Tier 1 Research Institution. Assessing aspirational peers, a strategic imperative for growth and with high potential for success is in the area of Materials Science and Engineering. Recognizing this need, there is a team of faculty across COS and KCEID aiming to make transformative progress by establishing connections in Materials Science and Engineering. This initiative signifies a critical step towards standalone Ph.D., M.S. and bachelor’s degree programs in Materials Science and Engineering at UTSA. The spirit of the cluster is to bring faculty members to UTSA who research cross-disciplinary materials and materials phenomena. The new faculty hired on this cluster will complement existing Materials Science and Engineering efforts at UTSA and bolster UTSA’s capabilities and readiness to develop interdisciplinary degree programs in Materials Science and Engineering.

Individuals advancing the program:

  • Elizabeth Sooby, associate professor, physics and astronomy and mechanical engineering
  • Shrihari Sankarasubramanian, assistant professor, biological and chemical engineering
  • Ruyan Guo, Robert E. Clarke Endowed Professor, electrical and computer engineering

Colleges: Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design, College of Sciences

UTSA aims to hire 5 associate or full professors in this cluster.

View the job posting for the Transdisciplinary Materials Research Cluster


2024 CCP Proposal Process

  Objectives:

  • Encourage and foster collaboration among our strong, existing faculty within, or across, the identified cross-cutting areas that enhance research visibility and competitiveness.
  • Enable collaborative opportunities that broaden and deepen existing, recognized expertise and create new links among them to enhance UTSA’s national profile.
  • Advance research capacity, competitiveness, success and progress towards the outcomes described in President Eighmy’s Vision and Strategic Plan for UTSA.
  • Enable the campus to devote a critical mass of faculty to convergent, transdisciplinary knowledge areas that are not solely addressed through existing departmental/college structures.
  • Bring diverse backgrounds and perspectives together to increase and enrich collaborations across traditional disciplinary and ideological divides
  • Strengthen existing curricular offerings on the undergraduate and graduate levels, and create opportunities for new offerings and programs, which link to identified opportunities and needs.
  • Advance the impact of UTSA programs by addressing society's needs, connecting with industry, government and institutional partners, and engagement with our communities.

Evaluation Criteria:

  • Ability to enhance national/international pre-eminence and campus leadership in a priority area. Why does this cluster specifically make sense for UTSA?  How will this cluster advance UTSA’s competitive position compared to other universities across the nation who have existing programs or expertise in this area?
  • Concretely link outstanding departments/disciplinary capacity across colleges to advance excellence to realize the goals in President Eighmy’s Vision and Strategic Plan for UTSA.  How will this cluster help UTSA reach its strategic destinations?  How will the cluster broaden our research impact outside traditional disciplinary areas at UTSA?
  • Demonstration of transdisciplinary collaboration and convergent approaches.  What grand challenges will this research cluster team be able to address?  How does this cluster bring together and deepen relationships of disparate areas of expertise at UTSA that would not normally team?
  • Diversity in backgrounds and perspectives that will enrich collaborations across traditional disciplinary and ideological divides.  What new ideas can be fostered by the different backgrounds hired for this cluster?
  • Ability to increase external sponsored support to meet the federal funding goals for the next 10 years.  What are the targeted solicitations, funding agencies, impactful publications and outcomes that will raise UTSA’s research reputation in a way that is currently not possible without this cluster?
  • Commitment to share extant resources, take advantage of existing core facilities, and augment the facility infrastructure that supports research. Addresses infrastructure gaps that would be needed for the cluster hire’s success.  What current resources and facilities would this cluster use in a unique way?  What new infrastructure (provide details and rough cost estimates) would be needed to support this cluster?
  • Inclusion of multiple units and at least two colleges. 
  • Demonstration of a clear, hiring plan, and attendant 3–5-year research and teaching plan, collaboratively developed by deans that meets the programmatic goals and addresses institutional priorities to advance academic excellence and UTSA’s competitive position relative to other universities.

Cross-Cutting Priority Areas:

Proposals from cross-cutting priority areas are highly encouraged, though proposals from other research areas also are welcome.

  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Advanced Materials
  • Biomedicine
  • Climate including Disaster Risk and Resilience
  • Cybersecurity for Future Systems and Connectedness
  • Data Science
  • Human Optimization and Performance
  • Hypersonics
  • Material Science for Energy Efficiency and Storage
  • Next Generation Technology Systems (IoT, advanced wireless, etc.)
  • Quantum Information Science and Engineering
  • Space Science
  • Trauma Research and Combat Casualty Care

Proposal Process:

  1. Groups of proposing faculty (with one faculty specifically identified as lead, and team members stated) should prepare brief proposals (no more than 5 pages) describing the following and considering the evaluation criteria listed above:
    a) the grand challenge
    b) national funding opportunities for convergence research/scholarship
    c) evaluation of UTSA’s competitive position, including past funding successes and impactful research either in the targeted grand challenge area or in a supporting area
    d) hiring concept and rationale
    e) hiring plan to attract connected/clustered hiring of 2 to 5 leading or promising scholars to campus that addresses the CCP objectives and criteria, with rough estimates of required new infrastructure to support these hires and the cluster team
    f) fit with existing UTSA scholars, centers/institutes and infrastructure, and g) plan to link proposed hires and existing faculty into functioning teams to advance UTSA’s competitiveness and realize the intended success.

    CCP proposals can put forward tenured/tenure track proposed hires at any level (senior, mid-career, early career TT, or mixed), depending on the current faculty composition and the goals and opportunities of the proposed cluster. Proposals are to be submitted via email to Academic Affairs (provost@utsa.edu). Proposals are due April 1, 2024.

  2. In addition to the CCP concept and rationale, proposals should provide the expected appointment structure (e.g., joint/cross/single departmental appointment), estimates of faculty salary and shared/ individual start-up costs for each hire, a draft advertisement that might be used to attract the connected/clustered faculty, and the proposed transdisciplinary search committee (e.g., composed of faculty across UTSA).

    The proposing faculty group must have supporting signatures of the cognizant college dean(s) and the respective department chairs for consideration of alignment with college hiring needs and budgetary priorities (matching funds) in the development of the CCP proposal. Deans also are encouraged to communicate with one another to hone these cross-campus proposals via the Deans Transdisciplinary Research Council (TRC).

Evaluation & Selection:

CCP proposals will be reviewed and prioritized by the College and University leadership, using the program objectives and evaluation criteria listed above. Depending on how many proposals are submitted, a two-stage selection process may be used that includes presentations by the proposing faculty. The resulting prioritization and recommendations will be discussed with Deans, with final decision regarding proposal selection made by the President, Provost, and Vice President for Research. The merit of individual proposals will be reviewed in the context of our existing capacity, along with other submitted proposals. Please note that as a part of the review process, leadership may recommend modifications to CCP proposals in order to optimize the benefit to the University, and further changes to proposals also may be sought prior to initiation of the search process.

Deans, Department Chairs and the Proposing Faculty Group will be notified of the outcome of the proposal review. For those concept proposals selected to proceed, Department Chairs will then enter the approved positions into the Academic Affairs position request portal to initiate the search process.

Timeline:

  • Anticipate up to 40 new hires
  • February 2024 - Launch the Cluster and Connected Request for proposal process
  • April 1, 2024 - Proposals due
  • May 2024 - Selection of clustered areas
  • August 2024 - Post and advertise searches following the faculty hiring process

National conversations are centered around solving vexing, complex problems - the seemingly intractable grand challenges – focused on societal needs. The National Academies, federal agencies, national foundations and other entities call for Convergence Research, that is the integration of knowledge, methods, and expertise from different disciplines and the formation of novel frameworks to catalyze scientific discovery and innovation to address these challenges.  A similar and complementary approach has been undertaken by the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities to align and connect research outcomes for societal benefits (http://www.aplu.org/projects-and-initiatives/research-science-and-technology/hibar/index.html). The National Science Foundation, for example, has identified Convergence Research as having two primary characteristics:

  • Research driven by a specific and compelling problem. Convergence Research is generally inspired by the need to address a specific challenge or opportunity, whether it arises from deep scientific questions or pressing societal needs.
  • Deep integration across disciplines. As experts from different disciplines pursue common research challenges, their knowledge, theories, methods, data, research communities and languages become increasingly intermingled or integrated. New frameworks, paradigms or even disciplines can form sustained interactions across multiple communities.

From its inception, the convergence paradigm intentionally brings together intellectually-diverse researchers – not only researchers in science, engineering, business, and medicine, and also social scientists, humanists, artists, and scholars beyond - to develop effective ways of communicating across disciplines by adopting common frameworks and shared languages, which may, in turn, afford solving society’s most pressing problems.

A few examples of convergent, transdisciplinary approaches include developing new biotechnologies and drugs to treat or prevent disease; pushing the boundaries of space and novel materials to defend our country or ethically harvesting information to secure our way of life while valuing privacy; advancing the human condition through education or policy to address social and economic disparities; stewarding our environment while extracting valuable resources. The Big Ideas funding opportunities issued by the National Science Foundation are examples of this approach at the federal agency level. Addressing these grand challenges requires hiring strategies that connect, cluster and cut-across disciplinary divides to enable true transdisciplinary innovations.

Institutional excellence historically has been measured by faculty – their research, scholarship, and creative works, such as in books, journal articles, and performances, as well as by the impact of faculty work - reflected in nationally competitive honors and awards, citations, and federal grants. With a comparatively smaller number of tenured and tenure-track (T/TT) faculty at UTSA, in this era of national grand challenges and the need for convergence research to address them, the path forward to meet the growth targets in research capacity set out by the UT System and State goals and to provide the kind of faculty-intensive, engaged student experience for which UTSA aspires is not simply adding faculty by replacement or rote formula.

Rather, for UTSA to advance institutional excellence and enhance its stature, one tactic with demonstrated effectiveness is to intentionally tie together faculty expertise through simultaneous connected or clustered faculty hiring to bolster our transdisciplinary capabilities by linking our strengths and approaches. By utilizing a connected and clustered hiring approach, significant impact can be realized more quickly by better aligning our capabilities with federal priorities and enabling collaboration among the full range of our faculty to create a new whole that is greater than the sum of its disciplinary parts.

Finally, UTSA is increasingly recognized as a national player and academic destination for “cyber-intensive/big data” capabilities, where many of our faculty and accompanying academic programs utilize data analytic/digital/computational approaches. This broad space is of critical national need and is relatively more wide-open, as there are comparatively fewer universities competing relative to more established disciplinary areas. As an Emerging Research University without long standing, well known track records of expertise, we have the opportunity to further advance our overall academic reputation by intentionally spreading these digital/computational/data analytic capabilities and distributing our signature expertise across our campus programs. This tactic has the added advantage of leveraging the shared connections to the greater benefit of the whole, and enhancing alignment with the needs of our industry, governmental and community partners.

With these investments, the goals of the Clustered & Connected Hiring Program (CCP) are to:

  • Increase the number of outstanding T/TT faculty with nationally/internationally recognized capabilities in departments to enable convergence research that is truly transdisciplinary, contribute to a high quality student experience, and advance engagement with our stakeholders;
  • Expand UTSA’s capacity to address society’s grand challenges, enhancing our competitiveness for, and alignment with, federal, foundation and industry research opportunities;
  • Increase the institutional key performance indicators (KPIs) and impacts of faculty scholarship, including partnership opportunities locally, nationally and internationally.
  • Broaden UTSA’s signature “big data/cyber-intensive” capabilities in digital/computational/data analytics across more disciplinary areas and connect those utilizing these approaches to further deepen UTSA’s reputation and capabilities.

The CCP is designed to recruit and hire some of the best and brightest minds of diverse backgrounds and experiences in select fields to The University of Texas at San Antonio to join in efforts to address some of today’s most significant challenges. The intent is to attract groups of scholars who will add depth and expertise in specific areas, who will connect the efforts of our existing faculty to enhance our competitiveness to address national societal needs, and who will advance the University’s capacity to meet UT System and State goals. Part of the Strategic Investment Fund created under the new Incentivized Resource Management budget model, fund has been dedicated to partner with the academic colleges to recruit and hire small, strategic groups of new scholars (connected or clustered faculty of 2 to 5 members) to campus as a part of this program.

National conversations are centered around solving vexing, complex problems - the seemingly intractable grand challenges – focused on societal needs. The National Academies, federal agencies, national foundations and other entities call for Convergence Research, that is the integration of knowledge, methods, and expertise from different disciplines and the formation of novel frameworks to catalyze scientific discovery and innovation to address these challenges.  A similar and complementary approach has been undertaken by the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities to align and connect research outcomes for societal benefits (http://www.aplu.org/projects-and-initiatives/research-science-and-technology/hibar/index.html). The National Science Foundation, for example, has identified Convergence Research as having two primary characteristics:

  • Research driven by a specific and compelling problem. Convergence Research is generally inspired by the need to address a specific challenge or opportunity, whether it arises from deep scientific questions or pressing societal needs.
  • Deep integration across disciplines. As experts from different disciplines pursue common research challenges, their knowledge, theories, methods, data, research communities and languages become increasingly intermingled or integrated. New frameworks, paradigms or even disciplines can form sustained interactions across multiple communities.

From its inception, the convergence paradigm intentionally brings together intellectually-diverse researchers – not only researchers in science, engineering, business, and medicine, and also social scientists, humanists, artists, and scholars beyond - to develop effective ways of communicating across disciplines by adopting common frameworks and shared languages, which may, in turn, afford solving society’s most pressing problems.

A few examples of convergent, transdisciplinary approaches include developing new biotechnologies and drugs to treat or prevent disease; pushing the boundaries of space and novel materials to defend our country or ethically harvesting information to secure our way of life while valuing privacy; advancing the human condition through education or policy to address social and economic disparities; stewarding our environment while extracting valuable resources. The Big Ideas funding opportunities issued by the National Science Foundation are examples of this approach at the federal agency level. Addressing these grand challenges requires hiring strategies that connect, cluster and cut-across disciplinary divides to enable true transdisciplinary innovations.

Institutional excellence historically has been measured by faculty – their research, scholarship, and creative works, such as in books, journal articles, and performances, as well as by the impact of faculty work - reflected in nationally competitive honors and awards, citations, and federal grants. With a comparatively smaller number of tenured and tenure-track (T/TT) faculty at UTSA, in this era of national grand challenges and the need for convergence research to address them, the path forward to meet the growth targets in research capacity set out by the UT System and State goals and to provide the kind of faculty-intensive, engaged student experience for which UTSA aspires is not simply adding faculty by replacement or rote formula.

Rather, for UTSA to advance institutional excellence and enhance its stature, one tactic with demonstrated effectiveness is to intentionally tie together faculty expertise through simultaneous connected or clustered faculty hiring to bolster our transdisciplinary capabilities by linking our strengths and approaches. By utilizing a connected and clustered hiring approach, significant impact can be realized more quickly by better aligning our capabilities with federal priorities and enabling collaboration among the full range of our faculty to create a new whole that is greater than the sum of its disciplinary parts.

Finally, UTSA is increasingly recognized as a national player and academic destination for “cyber-intensive/big data” capabilities, where many of our faculty and accompanying academic programs utilize data analytic/digital/computational approaches. This broad space is of critical national need and is relatively more wide-open, as there are comparatively fewer universities competing relative to more established disciplinary areas. As an Emerging Research University without long standing, well known track records of expertise, we have the opportunity to further advance our overall academic reputation by intentionally spreading these digital/computational/data analytic capabilities and distributing our signature expertise across our campus programs. This tactic has the added advantage of leveraging the shared connections to the greater benefit of the whole, and enhancing alignment with the needs of our industry, governmental and community partners.

With these investments, the goals of the Clustered & Connected Hiring Program (CCP) are to:

  1. Increase the number of outstanding T/TT faculty with nationally/internationally recognized capabilities in departments to enable convergence research that is truly transdisciplinary, contribute to a high quality student experience, and advance engagement with our stakeholders;
  2. Expand UTSA’s capacity to address society’s grand challenges, enhancing our competitiveness for, and alignment with, federal, foundation and industry research opportunities;
  3. Increase the institutional key performance indicators (KPIs) and impacts of faculty scholarship, including partnership opportunities locally, nationally and internationally.
  4. Broaden UTSA’s signature “big data/cyber-intensive” capabilities in digital/computational/data analytics across more disciplinary areas and connect those utilizing these approaches to further deepen UTSA’s reputation and capabilities.
  • Ability to enhance national/international pre-eminence and campus leadership in a priority area. Why does this cluster specifically make sense for UTSA?  How will this cluster advance UTSA’s competitive position compared to other universities across the nation who have existing programs or expertise in this area?
  • Concretely link outstanding departments/disciplinary capacity across colleges to advance excellence to realize the goals in President Eighmy’s Vision and Strategic Plan for UTSA.
  • Demonstration of transdisciplinary collaboration and convergent approaches.
  • Diversity in backgrounds and perspectives that will enrich collaborations across traditional disciplinary and ideological divides.
  • Utilization of “cyber-intensive” digital, analytic and/or computational approaches that broadens our capabilities and leverages local, state and national partnerships.
  • Ability to increase sponsored/foundation/industry funding to meet UT System/State goals
  • Commitment to share extant resources, take advantage of existing core facilities, and augment the facility infrastructure that supports research. Addresses infrastructure gaps that would needed for the cluster hire’s success.
  • Inclusion of multiple units and at least two colleges
  • Demonstration of a clear, inclusive hiring plan, and attendant 3-5 year research and teaching plan, collaboratively developed by deans that meets the programmatic goals and addresses institutional priorities to advance academic excellence and UTSA’s competitive position relative to other universities.
  • Broadening participation & improving P-20 education in computer science through social-digital design
  • Advancing finance with privacy and security in the Blockchain Era
  • Forecasting our human futures through integrated computational humanities
  • Sustainable Smart Cities through human-cyber-physical systems
  • Precision “neuroengineering” through biosystem modeling, drug delivery and therapeutic interventions
  • Using Cloud and Digital tools for Integrated Media through connecting communication, arts, culture and marketing
  • Windows on the Universe – uncovering the nature and behavior of matter and energy
  1. Groups of proposing faculty (with one faculty specifically identified as lead, and team members stated) should prepare brief proposals ( no more than 3 pages) describing: a) the grand challenge, b) national funding opportunities for convergence research/scholarship, c) evaluation of UTSA’s competitive position in the area d) hiring concept and rationale, e) hiring plan to attract connected/clustered hiring of 2 to 5 leading or promising scholars to campus that addresses the CCP objectives and criteria f) fit with existing UTSA scholars, and g) plan to link proposed hires and existing faculty into functioning teams to advance UTSA’s competitiveness and realize the intended success.

    CCP proposals can put forward tenured/tenure track hires at any level (senior, mid-career, junior TT, or mixed), depending on the current faculty composition and the goals and opportunities of the proposed cluster. Proposals should be submitted by email ( provost@utsa.edu) to Academic Affairs by TBA DATE.

  2. In addition to the CCP concept and rationale, proposals should provide the expected appointment structure (e.g., joint/cross/single departmental appointment), estimates of faculty salary and shared/ individual start-up costs for each hire, a draft advertisement that might be used to attract the connected/clustered faculty, the suggested venues in which to advertise to maximize impact, and the proposed transdisciplinary search committee (e.g., composed of faculty across UTSA).

    The proposing faculty group must consult with the cognizant college dean(s) and the respective department chairs for consideration of alignment with college hiring needs and budgetary priorities (matching funds) in the development of the CCP proposal. Deans also are encouraged to communicate with one another to hone these cross-campus proposals via the Deans Transdisciplinary Research Council (TRC).

CCP proposals will be reviewed and prioritized by the College and University leadership, using the program objectives and evaluation criteria listed above. Depending on how many proposals are submitted, a two stage selection process may be used that includes presentations by the proposing faculty. The resulting prioritization and recommendations will be discussed with the Vice President for Research, with final decision regarding proposal selection made by the President and Provost. The merit of individual proposals will be reviewed in the context of our existing capacity, along with other submitted proposals. Please note that as a part of the review process, leadership may recommend modifications to CCP proposals in order to optimize the benefit to the University, and further changes to proposals also may be sought prior to initiation of the search process.

Deans, Department Chairs and the Proposing Faculty Group then will be notified of the outcome of the proposal review. For those concept proposals selected to proceed, Department Chairs will then enter the approved positions into the Academic Affairs position request portal to initiate the search process.

Transdisciplinary Research Council (TRC)

Bernard Arulanandam, Chair
Interim Vice President for Research, Economic Development and Knowledge Enterprise
JoAnn Browning

Dean, College of Engineering

Margo DelliCarpini
Dean, College of Education and Human Development

Rhonda Gonzales
Interim Dean, College of Liberal and Fine Arts

Dean Hendrix
Dean of the Library

Ambika Mathur
Vice Provost and Dean, Graduate School

John Murphy
Dean, College of Architecture, Construction, and Planning

Lloyd Potter
Interim Dean, College of Public Policy

Gerry Sanders
Dean, College of Business

Heather Shipley
Senior Vice Provost and Dean, University College

David Silva
Dean, College of Sciences


Contact

Please feel free to submit questions or input to provost@utsa.edu.