Strategic Imperative 3: Prioritize our research enterprise by increasing investments in research and researchers, optimizing processes and recognizing and rewarding the intersection of research with teaching and service.

We aim to fundamentally stretch the boundaries of knowledge and develop groundbreaking ideas that help solve long-standing and emergent problems, create entirely new ways of thinking, or define novel areas for inquiry. At both unit and college levels, research and scholarship intersect with teaching and service and should be recognized as such in tenure and promotion processes. Research invigorates our teaching, facilitates opportunities for student training and mentoring, and feeds back into university and community interaction in the form of outreach and engagement. Our research and creative enterprises on campus will benefit from increased internal funding, new research facilities, expanded and democratized access to research leaves, administrative support, and a reduced burden from bureaucratic processes. A top priority is recruiting and retaining skilled and dedicated researchers from a range of backgrounds.