Renewing the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC): Consultation at UNBC and Northern B.C. Jim Randall & Suzanne LeBlanc University of Northern British Columbia

OUTLINE  WHAT is SSHRC and why Does it Need to be Transformed?  New Vision and New Core Values for SSHRC?  Comments on Current Programs?  Comments on Suggested New Programs?  What are the Priorities?  Overview of the Consultation Process  An Interview with Marc Renaud, President of SSHRC

WHAT is SSHRC and Why Does it Need to be Transformed?  Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada  Mandate: promote and support university-based research and training in the social sciences and humanities  Also Serves Law, Education, Commerce, Fine Arts  18,000 Faculty and 40,000 Graduate Students from 90 Universities/Colleges are Eligible; Also, Researchers from NPOs/CBOs  Recent Examples of UNBC – SSHRC-funded Research: Aboriginal-University partnership for sustainable resource management, community transition in a single-industry town, emotional climate of parent-child communications, ‘transatlantic romanticism’

WHAT is SSHRC and Why Does it Need to be Transformed? (continued)  1 of 3 main Federal Granting Agencies for University-Based Research  Other Granting Agencies are Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)  2003/04 budget = $242 million; only 14% of Total $1.7 billion to all 3 Granting Agencies; NSERC = $760 mill., CIHR = $727 mill.  SSHRC Standard Research Grant Success Rate = 35-40%; NSERC = 55-65%; CIHR = 25% (but much higher $ amounts)  4A Category in SSHRC: “Worthy but no Money”

WHAT is SSHRC and Why Does it Need to be Transformed? (continued)  Types of SSHRC Programs Core Grants and Fellowships ($137 mill.) 38% of this investigator/”curiousity”-driven research Community-University Research Alliances Doctoral and Post-Doctoral Fellowships Initiative on the New Economy Canada Graduate Scholarships (M.A.) Aid to Small Universities Conference/Workshop/Congress Grants and Support for Professional Association Meetings

WHAT is SSHRC and Why Does it Need to be Transformed? (continued)  25% of SSHRC-eligible researchers from Small Universities; Receive only 10% of Funding  Percent of Grant Applications Successful: Small Univ. (27%), Medium (40.4%), Large (45.8%)  Many More 4As from Small Universities

Why Does SSHRC Need to be Transformed?  To “move beyond operating primarily as a granting agency, and to become a full-fledged ‘knowledge agency,’ one that helps establish new connections between researchers and research users and that supports research through its full cycle, from development to knowledge utilization.”  To Be More Effective in Communicating Societal Value in Relation to NSERC and CIHR  To Receive More Funding

SSHRC CORE VALUES  Existing Core Values: Research Excellence, Competitive Funding, Inclusiveness, Innovative Continuity and Accountability  Proposed Core Values: Interactive Engagement: fostering larger, ongoing linkages and interactions through a mix of partnerships that span researchers, students, fields of activity, institutions, communities, regions and countries Maximum Knowledge Impact: building greater capacity for understanding research and its applicability, thus maximizing the impact of knowledge, not just within a discipline but also in government, business and in the community.

Reforming Current Programs  Smaller "Operating" Grants to More People OR Larger Grants to Fewer People?  Special Support for Young Scholars  Support Greater Relevance, Synergy and Impact of Strategic Grants  Different or New Support for Research Communications  New or Different Support to Institutions  Development of More Collective Tools for Research

Suggestions for New Programs or Initiatives  Confederations of Learning (i.e., groupings of people with shared research interests),  more Formal Institutes focusing on cross-cutting issues of major and immediate importance (e.g., cities, governance, environment and sustainability, Aboriginal peoples) (similar to CIHR),  Knowledge Mobilization Units within universities dedicated to transferring human knowledge  Web-Facilitated Communities of Practice that will cut down on the time needed for groups to share knowledge

Suggestions for New Programs or Initiatives (continued)  Clearinghouse for Advanced Expertise  Researcher Exchange/Mobility Programs both within and across universities, government business and the non-profit sector  Enriched Postsecondary Training Environments providing additional training resources to those departments proven to be the most effective in training students,  Human Sciences Foundation that would broker or mobilize knowledge,  Develop Scholarly-Based Journals for Lay Audiences

Consultation Process and Timelines  Local Representatives for Each of 90 Universities and Colleges Consult Widely in their Communities  Reports Due at end of April  Consult with Professional Associations  SSHRC Draft Report in June (Learneds Congress in Winnipeg)  Final Report to Government by October

UNBC and Northern BC Consultation  Jim Randall Asked to Serve as Local Representative (Assisted by Suzanne LeBlanc)  Three Parts to Consultation: Face-to-Face Meetings (Faculty, Students, Community Researchers, Regions) Follow-Up On-Line Survey (Linked to Position Paper) Return Draft Report to Stakeholders for Review

 A DVD Interview with Marc Renaud, President of SSHRC, with Ann Medina, on the Transformation of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council

Survey Questions

Current Programs

Core Values

New Initiatives

Opinions towards Current SSHRC

Opinions for SSHRC Improvement

Respondent’s Circumstances

Respondent’s Comments

The End