Identity area
Type of entity
Corporate body
Authorized form of name
Office of the Vice-President, Research
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
- Office of the Vice-President, Research and Information Systems (1985 - 1990)
- Office of the Vice-President, Research (1991 - 1993)
- Office of the Vice-President, Research and Dean of Graduate Studies (1994 - 2000)
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
1985 -
History
The Office of the Vice-President Research/Information Systems was officially established on September 1, 1985. Prior to this, the Associate Vice-President, Academic, John Webster was responsible for research and information systems related tasks and correspondence.
Reporting directly to the President, the new Vice-President, Tom Calvert, supervised the Instructional Media Centre, Library, Computing Services, Animal Care Facility, and University Archives. Between 1986 and 1993 he also supervised Research Services, ‘SFU Ventures’, and the University/Industry Liaison Office. In November 1988 Calvert was also appointed the Director of the Industry/Liaison Office and held both positions until August 1990. That same year the name Office of Vice-President, Research/Information Systems was changed to Office of the Vice-President, Research.
On September 1, 1990 William Leiss replaced Calvert as the new Vice-President Research. Leiss served as Vice-President until August 1993 when he was replaced by Bruce Clayman. Clayman served as the Acting Vice-President, Research until 1994 when he was officially appointed as Vice-President, Research. In 1994 Clayman also began serving as the Dean of Graduate Studies where he handled related policy matters and external relations for the graduate studies program. Clayman served as Vice-President, Research until August 2004 and during this time continued to supervise the Library, Research Services, University/Industry Liaison Office, Animal Care Facility, the Radiation Safety Office, and the Office of Research Ethics. In September 2004, Mario Pinto was appointed as the new Vice-President, Research.
The mission of the Office of the Vice-President, Research is to act as an advocate for university research and guide policy development at the university, provincial and national levels. The Office assists faculty members in applying for research grants at all levels of funding. In September of every year the Office participates in the university orientation program coordinated by the Office of the Vice-President, Academic.
The Vice-President chairs the President's Research Grant Committee and is President of SF Univentures, a for-profit company owned by SFU and used to commercialize research results. The Vice-President also serves on numerous boards and committees in the research community.
The Office of the Vice-President, Research has produced a series of publications through the years reporting on research projects at the university including "Simon Fraser University Research" and "SFU Research Matters." The Office publishes a newsletter three times a year called "Research Links" and supports the distribution of "Research Partners" by the University/Industry Liaison Office.