Research Policy & Advisory Committee – Annual Report – 2025-2026

Members:

Name	Rank	Department	Div	E/A	Term Ends	Email
Anne Kissack	AS	Office of Research	–	A	2028	kissacka@uwm.edu
Bonita Klein-Tasman	FAC	Psychology	SS	E	2028	bklein@uwm.edu
Jacob Rammer	FAC	Biomedical Engineering	PR	A	2028	jrrammer@uwm.edu
Troy Skwor	FAC	Biomedical Sciences	PR	E	2028	skwor@uwm.edu
Viktorija Bilic 1	FAC	Translation and Interpreting	AH	E	2027	bilic@uwm.edu
Rhina Ghose	FAC	Industrial & Manufacturing Engineering	SS	E	2027	rghose@uwm.edu
Vipavee Thongpriwan 2	AS	Nursing	–	E	2027	thongpri@uwm.edu
Melissa Tesch	AS	Biomedical Sciences	–	A	2027	mmriter@uwm.edu
Victoria McCoy, Chair	FAC	Geosciences	NS	E	2026	mccoyv@uwm.edu
Joshua Mersky	FAC	Social Work	PR	E	2026	mersky@uwm.edu
Marie Sandy 4	FAC	Administrative Leadership	PR	A	2026	sandym@uwm.edu
Jerald Thomas	FAC	Computer Science (GFC Rep)	PR	A	2026	jeraldlt@uwm.edu
Ali Abedi	Vice Provost	Office of Research	x-o	o	2026	abedia@uwm.edu
Bryan Porter	Dean	Graduate School	x-o	o	2026	porterb@uwm.edu
Samantha Westcott	AS	Sponsored Research	x-o	o	2026	westcots@uwm.edu

Charter:

A3.7    Research Policy and Advisory Committee

The Research Policy and Advisory Committee (RPAC) advises University leadership on research and graduate education policy, procedures, and infrastructure. It recommends resource allocation, reviews research units for effectiveness and alignment with UWM’s mission, and oversees policy related to mandated review boards.

1. Membership. The committee is composed of the following members:
   1. eight faculty members, as follows:
      1. six elected Faculty members, at least one from each Division;
      2. two faculty members appointed by the Chancellor;
   2. three academic staff members, as follows:
      1. one elected academic staff member who is engaged in research activities;
      2. two academic staff members appointed by the Chancellor;
   3. one representative of the Graduate Faculty Committee;
   4. three ex-officio and non-voting members, as follows:
      1. the administrative Director of sponsored research;
      2. the Vice Provost for Research or designee;
      3. the Dean of the Graduate School or designee.
2. Functions.
   1. On its own initiative or in cooperation with other Faculty committees, advises the Chancellor, the Provost, the Faculty Senate, and the University executive office in charge of research (e.g. Vice Provost for Research), and the University executive office in charge of graduate education (e.g. Dean of the Graduate School) on matters of research policy, procedures, and infrastructure to promote and advocate for growth of research, graduate education and scholarship at UWM.
   2. Recommends overall allocation of resources for research at UWM, and reviews the operation of all University research units, in order to determine whether the programs and activities are both effective and consistent with the mission and research goals of the University.
   3. Recommends and reviews overall University policy governing all mandated review boards within UWM (e.g., Institutional Review Board for the Protection of Human Subjects, Institutional Safety and Hazards Committee, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee)
   4. Monitors activities of the Institutional Review Board (IRB) through annual review of the IRB’s policies and procedures, workload, and actions on protocols submitted to the IRB.

Meetings:

September 2025:

• Orientation for new RPAC members
• Overview and discussion of the Office of Research 2025 priorities

October 2025:

• Discussion of the Policy on Research Misconduct
• Approval of the Revised Policy on Research Misconduct

November 2025:

• Discussion on how to change the indirect cost-share model for research to better incentivize research at UWM

December 2025:

• Research Information Technology Presentation
• Scott Genung and Dan Siercks shared the work that’s happening within Research Computing and the Research IT Subcommittee.
• Updates from the Office of Research about the work they are doing on faculty workloads and a new model for determining and sharing indirect costs

January 2026:

• Discussed updates to the number of proposal submissions and research expenditures at UWM
• Office of Research Development is working on a podcast to promote faculty publications
• Discussion – IACUC, IRB, Institutional Biosafety Committee, and Radiation Safety Programs

February 2026:

• Discussed the Research Center/Institute Review policy
• Discussed the RPAC response to the Center for Gravitation, Cosmology and Astrophysics Report

March 2026:

• No meeting

April 2026:

• The Office of Research updated us on various external funding priorities
• Discussion of who would consider being chair for next year

May 2026:

• Chair election for 2026-2027 academic year
• Discussion of RPAC priorities for 2026-2027 academic year