Research Release Funds and Process
Effective July 1, 2025
Key Contacts
If you have any questions, please contact the Manager, Accounting & Financial Analysis overseeing research release in the Finance Office.
Applicability
Faculty members charging academic year salary to a grant or contract, releasing general education fund salary and fringe.
Policy Purpose and Description
The purpose of this policy is to define the amount of research release given back to a department for faculty members who charge academic year effort to a grant, reducing the amount of salary and fringe the college expends on general education funds (GEF).
Definitions
Research Release: Faculty with external grant funding may post academic year effort to their grants up to their respective research effort allocations. Grant funds will be used to pay the corresponding effort of their academic year salary. There is no reduction in teaching or service loads of the faculty posting effort to the grant. Any reduction in teaching load would require a course buyout (see course buyout policy) and follow a separate process. The college will then return a portion of the released funds back to the faculty to spend on research-related expenses.
Policy for Research Release
Research release returned to the department will be capped at 40% of the faculty member’s academic year salary. The college will return the released salary back to a research release account but will retain the full fringe. The faculty member may use the funds in this account for research-related activities (e.g.- RA support, summer salary, course buyout, P&S support, or general expenses such as lab supplies or computers). Funds must be spent in either the year in which they are released or the following fiscal year. Carryover will not be allowed past one additional fiscal year after the research release funds are generated.
Grant support staff will enter the grant effort information into the CLAS Research Release application to notify CLAS Finance staff that salary is being released and to indicate how these funds should be allocated.
Forms
Frequently Asked Questions
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Related Information
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