Center Assessment Guidelines

The University of Missouri houses a variety of different kinds of centers: research centers, engagement centers, clinical centers, college centers, institutes, and others. In most cases, research efforts that revolve around a single faculty member, or a small number of faculty members in the same unit, would be described as a “laboratory,” as opposed to a center or institute.

The information on this page will help you understand how to establish different kinds of centers and how those centers should be evaluated. If you have any questions about centers, please contact Alex Socarides, Associate Provost for Academic Programs.

COLLEGE CENTERS & INSTITUTES

Deans and other administrative leaders can create new centers or institutes that will be internal to the college. They need to provide the Office of the Provost with an official notice of the creation that addresses the following issues:

  1. The need for this center/institute
  2. How will it address school/college and university strategic priorities
  3. The initial 5-year strategic goals
  4. The scope of the proposed center/institute and any overlap with other units on campus
  5. Director, with qualifications
  6. Affiliated faculty and staff
  7. Budget (please specify start-up and annual funds, sources of funds, and sustainability plan)
  8. Space requirements
  9. Online presence

College centers and institutes are evaluated annually by the dean. A short annual report should be sent to the Office of the Provost once it has been approved by the dean.

List of College Centers and Institutes

UNIVERSITY CENTERS

Definition

According to CRR 50.010, a Center is a formally organized unit within the University addressed primarily, but not exclusively, to the conduct of multidisciplinary research, teaching, extension, or service. It shall have the following features:

  1. A separately identifiable budget.
  2. Professional staff representing more than one academic department or discipline. Such staff shall hold full-time or fractional appointments to the Center, which may provide a portion or all of their salaries.
  3. An appointed Director, who has a defined task as administrative head of the Center. This definition of a Center does not preclude interdepartmental cooperation of a less formal nature.

Creating a University Center

A formal proposal to establish a Center is required. This proposal must include:

  1. The need for such a Center.
  2. The manner in which a Center would respond to the need described.
  3. The objectives of the Center; its value to the University community; and its anticipated role in satisfying the teaching, research, extension, or service objectives of the University.
  4. The identification of the academic departments to be initially involved.
  5. The identification of all personnel to be initially involved; a projection over a five-year period of additional personnel requirements; and a brief description of the appropriate qualifications for each additional position.
  6. An estimated budget for the first year of operation, with projections to cover each of the additional years in the first five-year period.
  7. A description of available space and equipment, or a description of space and equipment to be requested.

The proposal should be submitted through the academic department chair and, where appropriate, to the appropriate academic dean for review and approval. It should be then forwarded to the Office of the Provost, who will, upon approval, send it to the Chancellor for final review and approval.

Assessment of University Centers

University of Missouri Collected Rules and Regulations (Section 50.010) require that all established centers be reviewed every five years. The purposes of the review are as follows:

  1. To assess the center’s contributions to one or more of the university’s four missions
  2. To engage in long-term planning that supports the goals of MU’s Strategic Plan
  3. To increase administrative knowledge about the center’s mission and plans for the future
  4. To determine if the center’s activities are sufficient to warrant continuation

The center assessment report (approximately 15 pages) consists of two primary parts. Part I should assess the unit’s contributions to one or more of the university’s four missions.

Although specific information within this assessment will vary, research-focused centers should typically address the following:

  • Assessment of scholarly activity/productivity over the course of the review period (e.g., publications resulting from center activities; external grant dollars awarded to the center, including funding source)
  • Assessment of strengths and opportunities for improvement of the center, focusing specifically on its ability to enhance research activity on the campus
  • Interrelationships with other units on campus, including other UM campuses, that focus on collaborative and/or interdisciplinary research efforts
  • A summary of the budget, revenues, expenses and other financial information for the last five years

Although specific information within this assessment will vary, engagement- or service-focused centers should typically address the following:

  • Assessment of activities that connect to the engagement and/or service mission of the university (e.g., activities that promote demonstrable benefits to the state; number of clients who received services at a center)
  • Assessment of strengths and opportunities for improvement of the center, focusing specifically on its ability to enhance engagement across the state and/or provide services to the campus or broader community
  • Interrelationships with other units on campus, including other UM campuses
  • A summary of the budget, revenues, expenses and other financial information for the last five years
  • A summary of activities, if applicable, that connect to the other university missions (teaching, service, economic development)

Part II should include a summary of the center’s goals and plans for the next three to five years, including information about how those goals and plans further the campus’s strategic initiatives.

The first draft of the report is reviewed by the Office of the Provost. Typically, the center will be asked to submit a revised draft. Once approved, the review meeting is scheduled to include the center director, the dean of the school/college where the center is housed (if it is housed in an academic unit), the Provost, Associate Provost, and, in the case of a research center, the Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development. Concluding the process, the Office of the Provost will forward a formal report of the review, along with a decision to continue or discontinue, to the UM System Vice President for Academic Affairs, who will forward to the General Officers of the University.

List of University of Missouri Centers

Reports for centers in the 2023-2024 review cycle are due Feb.1, 2024. 

Please submit your report to Alexandra Socarides, Associate Provost for Academic Programs.

If you need a copy of your last review, contact Jackie Beary, Senior Program/Project Support Coordinator.