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Faculty in Residence (FIR) Program

The LORL Faculty in Residence (FIR) Program provides support to faculty from colleges and universities in the LORL Academic Network to pursue research in Harrisburg while on leave or sabbatical on topics having direct relevance to state policy issues and problems.

Program Objectives

The Faculty in Residence Program is intended to achieve the following objectives:

• Provide resources in Harrisburg to Resident Faculty from the LORL Academic Network, including office space, office equipment and supplies, postage, duplication, clerical help, telecommunication support, and limited assistance with professional printing and research-related travel expenses;
• Assist Resident Faculty with contacting state personnel and accessing state data resources;
• Offer advice and counsel to Resident Faculty regarding the quality and limitations of state information resources needed for proposed studies, the nature and functions of agencies involved and other appropriate information;
• Create a formal issues referral system for researchers to query LORL concerning issues on which state policy makers would like further analysis and study;
• Supply LORL with updates and preliminary findings of ongoing research projects as they are available that LORL can summarize, aggregate and distribute in informal newsletters to interested legislators and staff;
• Provide professional-quality studies to be published in policy issues of the journal COMMONWEALTH, or informal LORL publications.

Program Structure and Guidelines

Application Procedures

• The Faculty in Residence Program is open to tenure-track faculty and dissertation-stage doctoral candidates at institutions in the LORL Academic Network.
• Application must be submitted no later than three months before the projected start-date of the residency period and must be accompanied by a proposal describing the research project to be conducted during the leave, including the amount of time in Harrisburg required to complete the research, a curriculum vita, and a statement from an appropriate official at the home institution stating that the applicant has been granted leave for the time period specified.
• Faculty in Residence appointments may be made at any time during the calendar year.
• The maximum duration of an appointment is one calendar year.
• The number of Faculty in Residence at any point in time is determined by the number of qualified applicants and available resources.
• An appointment as Faculty in Residence may be terminated at any time with 30 days notice by the appointee, the home institution, or by the Executive Director of LORL.

Selection Procedures

• Applicants are screened by the University Committee for Research Liaison, LORL's academic advisory committee representing member institutions in the LORL Academic Network.
• Selection criteria include:
  • the quality and feasibility of the proposed research project;
  • the project's direct relevance to present or future state policy needs;
  • the applicant's qualifications, as reflected by previous research and publications in the issue-area, courses taught, and other information submitted with the application; and
  • the need for Harrisburg residence to conduct the research.
• Applicants are rank-ordered by the screening committee.
• Appointments are made from top to bottom on the list. The number of appointments at any point in time depends upon available resources.
• The Appointment Contract will enumerate the resources that LORL will make available to the appointee. The resources may include office space, office equipment and supplies, postage, duplication, clerical help, telecommunication support, and may in limited instances include support for printing final reports and/or limited reimbursement for in-state travel from Harrisburg essential to the successful completion of the sabbatical research. Approval in advance by the Executive Director of LORL is required for specific expenditures of funds for printing and mileage.
• Applicants must agree as part of the Appointment Contract to provide LORL with a written summary(s) of the research suitable for publication in a LORL research publication or for submission to the journal COMMONWEALTH.

Confidentiality/Disclosure/SecurityRestrictions

• All Faculty in Residence must agree formally to comply with all confidentiality, security, disclosure and record-keeping regulations that apply to regular LORL staff.