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The ARRA and Your Institution

SFSF Funds approved for these states

 

The $787 Billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) is an unprecedented effort to jump start our economy, create or save millions of jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st century. With more than $100 billion dedicated to education alone, there has never been a better time to begin projects that can help your institution withstand a tumultuous economy and get better prepared to fulfill the promise of education tomorrow.

Seeking ARRA funding

Like many of us, we suspect you may have questions about the stimulus package, whether your institution qualifies and what investments you can make with this important funding. Consider Xythos as your source for fast facts about the act and information about how you can secure funding to support IT infrastructure investments and more.

"Most grants have provisions that dictate how information is stored and retained, which essentially mandates the deployment of a content management systems."

Chris Spanuda, IT Manager, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee

State Fiscal Stabilization Fund (SFSF)

We've identified two paths from which you may be able to take advantage of ARRA funding. $39.8 Billion is devoted to public early learning, K-12 and higher education through the new one-time appropriation State Fiscal Stabilization Fund (SFSF) program. State level funding amounts have already been published so now is the time to take advantage of this opportunity and coordinate specific funding requests to your campus Office of Government Affairs. They will be able to assist you with state submissions and assurances to obtain needed funding for your institution.

Qualifying for SFSF funds

Other than limited restrictions in ARRA, institutions can use program funds for education and general expenditures. In fact, education leaders are encouraging administrators to fund and revive technology infrastructure projects that provide strategic benefits and significant cost savings - such as Enterprise Content Management (ECM) technology. Department-level file servers can be replaced with secure virtual file systems. Email based file storage and exchange can almost be eliminated. Document link exchanges can replace physical document exchanges and delivery fees. Your cost savings are measurable and immediate and the business process transformation is strategic and long-lasting and can help your institution:

• Promote green initiatives
• Expand and support distance learning programs
• Enhance continuing education
• Reduce overall operating costs

 

Other ARRA funding sources

ARRA will increase budgets for several agencies for applied research, development, demonstration and deployment of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies. Of this, $50 million is allocated for research to increase the efficiency of information and communications technology and to improve standards. Look to your Office of Sponsored Projects as many institutions have dedicated websites to assist their constituents in locating funding sources. Enterprise Content Management technologies can help streamline administrative processes and improve research program effectiveness.

"Many of the researchers have multiple roles. An employee may work at both the Medical College and the Children’s Hospital. They can access their files through the web-based interface no matter where they are. A secure web-accessible document management system was a high priority because so many users are mobile."

Chris Spanuda, IT Manager, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee

Funding by Agency

National Institutes of Health (NIH) - $10.4 Billion - link here for more information
$800 million will be provided to the Office of the Director for short-term grants with a focus on new research within existing projects and research on public and international health priorities. The other $7.4 billion will be distributed among the centers and institute of NIH and funding is available until September 30, 2010. While each institute within NIH will develop their own plan, the following mediums for distributing funding are likely to be used:

• Challenge Grants - focusing on currently intractable research problems or to jump-start emerging research.
• R01s and related research mechanisms - focusing on previously approved by not funded R01s (1,400 total) that have already been through the peer review process.
• Supplemental funding - used to expand the goals for existing projects with new cross-training positions or equipment

National Science Foundation (NSF) - $3 Billion - link here for more information
Of the $3 billion for NSF, $2 billion will be appropriated for NSF research directorates and offices with the main focus on raising success rates in ongoing and planned FY 2009 core programs. $200 million is earmarked to restart an old program through a new solicitation for repair and renovation of science and engineering facilities at institutions.

Department of Energy (DOE) - $5.5 Billion ($1.6 Billion for Office of Science) - link here for more information
Although there is no specific directive on the expenditure of these funds for research, some reports suggest that they will be used to clear the backlog of repair and construction projects at the DOE National Laboratories. DOE received 260 applications (71% from universities), requesting a total of $4.9 billion over five years.

Link here for additional agency resources and to locate research projects that qualify for ARRA funding.

Xythos can help

Xythos assists research institutions, labs, and hospitals around the world to improve collaboration, manage and secure sensitive data, reduce duplication and errors, and increase grant funding by providing:

• A secure, auditable, web-based file repository with anywhere, anytime access
• A simple, intuitive user interface that is easy for researchers to adopt
• Integrated document and records management features to track and preserve valuable research results

Contact us today

Discover how a Xythos partnership may assist your organization. Sign up for a complimentary assessment to uncover whether your institution qualifies and what investments you can make with this important funding.

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