|
by Valerie Shore
Scarth
The University of Victoria has its first director of research services. Dr. Rachael Scarth, formerly associate dean (research) of the University of Manitoba’s faculty of agricultural and food sciences, assumed the new position on Sept. 1.
As director, Scarth manages operations for all research support services at the university. She’ll also be contributing to strategic planning for the office of research services.
The office assists faculty in securing and administering research grants, contracts, and creative awards and in meeting their regulatory responsibilities in support of research. The office is the point of contact for the federal granting councils, government ministries, foundations, associations and industry.
In 2005-06, UVic received more than $80 million in external grants, notes Dr. Richard Keeler, associate vice-president research. At the same time, the number of agencies that the research services office works with now number in the hundreds and reporting requirements are becoming significantly more complex.
“For these reasons, we searched for and found someone with both research and research administration experience who could bring substantial new capacity and capability to our operations,” he says.
The growth in research opportunities is both a benefit and challenge to UVic faculty and the university’s research administration, says Scarth. “The office of research services has an excellent rapport with the research community it serves, and my goal is to ensure that this continues as the research enterprise of the university grows.”
Scarth’s area of research specialization is plant breeding and genetics, especially in oil crops such as canola and rapeseed. She joined the University of Manitoba’s department of plant science in 1983, shortly after earning her PhD from Cambridge University. She hopes to eventually resume her research interests at UVic.
First, though, she’s intent on getting acquainted with her new university—and West Coast life. “This was our family’s first move in 17 years, from the dry, hot Prairies to what we had anticipated as the cool, wet West Coast. We arrived in early August and were surprised by the long stretch of hot, dry weather that greeted us!”
For more information on the office of research services, visit www.research.uvic.ca/.
|
