Space Policy

Classroom, Office, Research and Support

Purpose: In order to more effectively manage space utilization within the College of Pharmacy with respect to departmental/center and faculty needs related to office, office support, classroom (lecture and laboratory), conference, research (basic and clinical) and research support space, the college has implemented a new space policy that supersedes all former polices both written and unwritten within the college.

College Space: College office, laboratory, conference, classroom and support (office and re- search) space is allocated to the college by the Vice President for Health Affairs. College space allocation is determined primarily based on overall research, teaching and service needs of the college and is negotiated with the Dean or designee(s) on an annual basis. The primary bench- mark for research space within the HSC is extramural dollars brought in by individual units.

Departmental Space: Departmental office, laboratory, conference and support (office and re- search) space will be negotiated between the respective departmental chair and dean or their de- signee(s) and will be based on faculty and staff density as well as graduate and research activity within a given department. To the extent possible, all departmental space will be provided in an uninterrupted, proximal nature to maximize continuity. A formal review of departmental space (current and future) will be done annually with the dean’s review of the departmental chair.

University Center Space: The College of Pharmacy has established that all university centers will be housed within a given department within the college and will not be considered separate units within the college. All university center (research, teaching or service) office, laboratory, conference and support (office and research) space will be negotiated by a given director with the appropriate departmental chair and dean or their designee(s). Space allocation will be based on faculty and staff density as well as graduate and research activity. To the extent possible, center space will be provided in an uninterrupted, proximal nature to maximize continuity. Although center activity will be reviewed on an annual basis, a formal review of center space (current and future) will be conducted every 5 years to conform with both state and university guidelines.

Faculty Space: The college’s policy is that space, be it office, support, classroom, conference or research is subject to the productivity of the faculty member and is not an entitlement to an indi- vidual faculty member. Every faculty member will be allocated sufficient office space, be it private or shared, to complete their professional duties related to teaching, research and service. Further, this office space will be located, to the extent possible, close to the departmental office(s) in which their appointment(s) resides. This location of a given faculty member’s office will be at the discretion of the departmental chair in consultation with the dean or their designee(s).

Shared support, classroom (both lecture and laboratory) and conference space will be available to all faculty members in the college. Functional research space is an exceptionally valued commodity within the College of Pharmacy, the Health Science Center and University. Thus, research space will be allocated and utilized to the maximal benefit of the College at all times and will be based on the following criteria for any given research program.

The principal criterion/benchmark upon which research space will be based is extramural dollars garnered to support a given faculty members research program. Consideration will also be ad- dressed based on the specific type of research a faculty member conducts (bench or wet lab versus desk or dry lab). The range of annual funding (dollars/sq. ft.)* that is expected by individual COP faculty members for FY 2008-2009 is:

• $150-$450/sq. ft. ($300 average benchmark) for bench or wet lab type research.
• $300-$700/sq. ft. ($500 average benchmark) for desk or dry lab type research.

The lower value of the range will be used to reduce individual research space if all other research productivity measures (see below) are also found unsatisfactory following review by the respective faculty member’s chair in consultation with the dean or their designee(s).

The upper value of the range will be used to negotiate for additional space if all other research productivity measures (see below) are found satisfactory following review by the respective fac- ulty member’s chair in consultation with the dean or their designee(s).

Extramural dollars brought into a given research program will not be the only criterion or benchmark used to evaluate a given faculty member’s productivity. The following additional criteria or benchmarks will also be used to evaluate a given faculty member to support their continued space allocation:

  • Peer-reviewed publications, presentations, and any associated intellectual property activity.
  • Number and type of personnel directly associated with the faculty member’s program.
  • Support services necessary to complete research activities.
  • Special equipment needed to complete program (mass spectrometers, NMR).
  • Special procedure rooms (surgery, tissue culture, radioactive, temperature, and dark).
  • Clinical and animal housing/testing rooms.
  • Source of funding and role (e.g. PI, Co-PI, Investigator or Consultant) an individual faculty member plays on grants/contracts.

These additional criteria will be useful for evaluation of given faculty member in the event that they fall below the average $$$/sq ft but do remain within the range for their respective type (wet lab versus dry lab).

All research space will be allocated based on the above-mentioned criteria and on a rolling three year average of activity of a given faculty member within the College of Pharmacy. Individual research space will be determined in consultation with a faculty member’s departmental chair. To assure that individual faculty members are apprised of the status of their research space allo- cation, a statement to this effect should be included in the chair’s annual evaluation letter. Final authorization of research space will reside with the dean or their designee(s).

Sufficient functional research space is an important determinant for all new faculty members within the college. Thus, initial (start-up) research space will be determined by the new faculty member and their chair, in consultation with the dean or their designee(s), and will be commensurate with the new faculty member’s needs.

Overall current/critical needs for research space within the college will be the primary bench- mark for the determination of reallocation of research space. The respective department chair will be consulted at all times through the reallocation process.

* research (wet and dry) funding mean values for FY 2003-2004 were established by determination of the average of the 1, 3 and 5 year averages in extramural support/individual laboratory space in sq ft for the most active re- searchers in the COP. The range for wet lab research was established by removable of “extreme” numbers (both lower and upper) from the active researchers and then rounding the numbers accordingly. The range for dry lab re- search was established empirically based on the overall mean funding level.