DSU leaders attend summit for advancing research capacity
Delaware State University leaders recently gathered May 20-21 during Research Week for the ARC Strategic Planning Summit, a two-day event focused on strengthening institutional research capacity through strategic planning and collaboration. The summit, part of the National Science Foundation-funded ARC Playbook project, brought together faculty, administrators and research leaders to explore strategies for advancing DSU’s research enterprise and institutional transformation.
Dr. Terrell Holmes, Senior Associate Vice President for Strategic Initiatives, enlisted members involved in the University’s current strategic planning process to participate in the summit. The NIH-funded STRONG grant team, led by Multiple Principal Investigators Dr. Melissa Harrington, Dr. Lynda Murray-Jackson, Dr. Kimberley Sudler and Dr. Hakeem Lawal, also engaged STRONG working group leaders to share findings and emerging strategies for strengthening DSU’s research environment.
Attendees learned from exemplar case studies and participated in discussions focused on expanding research capacity. Keynote speaker Ms. Pamela Clarke, Senior Director of Research Development at Howard University, delivered a keynote address followed by a question-and-answer session. She discussed Howard University’s journey to R1 status and shared strategies for building partnerships that advance institutional research goals.
“The work that the ARC Project team is doing is impactful, especially for HBCUs that are on the doorstep of greatness and need research to be ramped up on their campuses to take them to the next level,” Dr. Holmes said.
Principal Investigator Dr. Kimberley Sudler described the ARC Strategic Planning Summit as “a resource with resources.”
“We put the attendees to work by having them pilot the ARC assessments and incentivized them to use the ARC Playbook tools and findings to accelerate strategies,” Dr. Sudler said.
During the summit, attendees piloted ARC assessment tools, identified research capacity challenges and developed mini-proposals outlining how they would allocate $100,000 toward initiatives designed to strengthen research capacity. Additional funding will support more mini-proposals during the third year of the project.
The ARC Strategic Planning Summit highlighted the collaboration among DSU stakeholders and demonstrated how leveraging internal and external resources can help move the University forward while strengthening the University’s research enterprise.
Panoramic Institutional Assessments: A Playbook for Advancing Research Capacity is a three-year, $3 million grant from the National Science Foundation designed to help HBCUs and emerging research institutions build research capacity. Delaware State University leads the multi-institution collaborative project, which includes Hampton University, Huston-Tillotson University, Tennessee State University and Tuskegee University.
The project team is working to answer a key research question for institutional leaders: What are the components of research capacity and the best practices for building it? The findings will extend beyond the five collaborating institutions, providing leaders with tools to assess and strengthen research capacity in ways that align with their respective research goals.
Building research capacity supports DSU’s REACH 2026 strategic plan by promoting academic excellence and engaging students in high-impact practices that contribute to student success. The Principal Investigators based the ARC Playbook proposal on a theory of change that brings together cross-functional teams to address institutional challenges through authentic strategic planning. Increased research capacity at HBCUs leads to broader participation in the research ecosystem, greater equity in addressing community disparities and a stronger, more diverse STEM workforce.
“Building research capacity is crucial for HBCUs to serve our mission of advancing educational excellence, expanding opportunity, producing knowledge that serves our communities and preparing the next generation of leaders and innovators,” said Dr. Melissa Harrington, ARC Co-PI.
To learn more about the ARC Playbook project, visit arcplaybook.org.
