CIC Highlights 2009-10
"Across the CIC, collaborations are deeper, more sophisticated, and more consequential
than ever— but in many ways,we've just started to tap its potential." –Kim Wilcox,
Provost & Vice President for Academic Affairs,Michigan State University
Promoting Research
CIC members engaged in $7 billion in research in 2009-2010. In the past year the
CIC sent a delegation to explore expanding existing research relationships in India;
while in Africa, faculty members from three institutions are collaborating on a
multidisciplinary project. CIC members also sponsored the Virtual School to educate
researchers at the frontiers of petascale computing-enabled science and engineering.
The CIC disseminates information about member research discoveries via the BigScience
Newswire, which aggregates the latest research news and distributes it via multiple
online channels.
Saving Money
By pooling together the purchasing power of 12 universities, CIC members achieve
significant savings. The Purchasing Directors managed more than 12 group contracts
for commodities such as lab supplies and dorm mattresses, resulting in more than
$5.6 million in savings for participating universities in 2009-10. Strategic co-investment
in licensing allowed CIC libraries to save $5.48 million, a savings of 25 percent,
also in FY 2009.
Increasing Academic Opportunities
The CIC’s electronic distance learning initiative, CourseShare, delivered 38 classes—including
18 less commonly taught language courses—in 2009-10. CourseShare has “graduated”
from the pilot stage into a full-fledged program that continues to add capacity.
The Summer Research Opportunities Program (which will celebrate its 25th year in
2010- 11) featured a diverse cohort of 450 outstanding students who immersed themselves
in research experiences on CIC campuses. Collaborative study abroad initiatives
saw a 17 percent jump in student participation, serving more than 860 students.
CIC Highlights 2009-10
"(The CIC is) a terrific opportunity for discussion and collaboration among colleagues
— and in some cases, competitors — to share a common understanding and to make everyone
more efficient and effective." – University of Minnesota Provost Tom Sullivan, in
the Minnesota Daily
Building Technology Infrastructure
In 2010, a major system upgrade to the CIC OmniPoP fiber network collaboration included
doubling its Internet2 bandwidth capacity to 20 gigabits per second—giving faculty
and researchers twice the connectivity to each other and to key network research
hubs around the world. The CIC progressed in efforts to facilitate access to shared
online resources by allowing individuals from members universities to use local
campus logins, or federated identity and access; it successfully federated access
to TeraGrid, a NSF-funded nationwide network of highperformance computing centers.
Investing in the Library of the Future
Under the direction of the CIC library directors, the Center for Library Initiatives
is a national leader in developing ways to procure, store and view library content.
The library directors have committed to coinvest funds strategically to build a
collective digital library, ensuring that all faculty and staff have access to the
same body of material. The coordinated group purchasing allows every CIC member
library to expand collections beyond what each library would be able to do on its
own. The funding commitment for co-investment has doubled starting in 2010-11.
Looking Ahead: New Member to CIC = Increased Collaboration Opportunities
The CIC will welcome the University of Nebraska-Lincoln as its 13th member on July
1, 2011. A timeline detailing the CIC's efforts to integrate UNL into the consortium,
as well as a list of frequently asked questions, is available at www.cic.net/nebraska.
This event represents an opportunity to evaluate the CIC's development as well as
a celebration of accomplishment and impact. The year 2010-2011 will be one of growth,
increased opportunity and rejuvenation.
Message from the CIC Chair and CIC Director
A significant common thread all CIC universities
share is their commitment to extensive research activity and engaging both undergraduate
and graduate students in the process of discovering and disseminating new knowledge.Member
institutions engage in $7 billion of funded research each year, and CIC initiatives
provide a backbone of support for the educational and research environment.
A main objective of the CIC's new strategic directions for 2011-14, recently approved
by the Provosts, is to seize upon collaborative opportunities in the research arena.
The CIC is stepping out from its behind-the-scenes efforts of the past. Increasing
collaborative research opportunities is imperative for member universities to remain
at the forefront of innovation and discovery, as well as teaching and learning.
These activities will enhance the CIC's nationally renowned portfolio of dynamic
programs and initiatives in areas including course and infrastructure sharing, joint
purchasing, cooperation among our libraries, collaboration on international and
study abroad opportunities, minority student recruitment/retention, and leadership
development programs.
Collaboration isn't easy. It takes hard work, cooperation, and a shared sense of
purpose. Within the CIC, the value of collaboration makes it worth the effort today—as
you see in this document as we present the CIC highlights of 2009-10—and for years
to come.
Rodney A. Erickson
Executive Vice President & Provost, Pennsylvania State University
Chair, Committee on Institutional Cooperation
Barbara McFadden Allen
CIC Director
The CIC is the nation’s premier higher education consortium of top-tier research
institutions, including the Big Ten Conference members and the University of Chicago.Through
collaboration CIC members save money, share assets, and increase teaching, learning
and research opportunities.
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