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Research Space Governance

Estimated Reading Time: 20 Minutes
November 13, 2025  Operations

ERIK, Governance, 10/13/2025

Policy

With the guiding vision of The Ohio State University as the model 21st-century public, land grant, research, urban, community engaged institution, the Enterprise for Research Innovation and Knowledge (ERIK) seeks to foster the highest level of interdisciplinary research and creative expression and to train and empower the next generation of scientific leaders within its collaborative and interdisciplinary environments. Similarly, ERIK is committed to creating and sustaining dynamic infrastructure that supports operational and research excellence, effectiveness, and growth. ERIK demonstrates its leadership and further supports these missions via effective space utilization, acting responsibly and transparently, and maintaining accountability. Under this policy, the Vice President for Research and Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives (or designees) have the right and authority to control the administration, allocation, appropriate use of, and access to space for its employees and research space and core facilities under ERIK ownership.

Purpose of the Policy 

To describe the policies and procedures related to:

  • space allocation and governance in ERIK-administered research buildings, e.g. the Pelotonia Research Center (PRC) and the Energy Advancement and Innovation Center (EAIC)
  • assignment, renovation, repurposing, conversion, or construction of space to/for ERIK units, centers, institutes, and cores.   

Policy Details

I. Governance

  1. ERIK will foster the highest level of interdisciplinary research, creative expression, and administrative or operational support activities within its spaces.
  2. ERIK-administered space is managed by the Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives (or designee).  
  3. Joint use of space is encouraged whenever reasonably possible to maximize effective space utilization and/or interdisciplinary research.
  4. No space assignment is permanent. The duration of space assignments may vary at the discretion of ERIK in consultation with applicable university administrators and Deans.  
  5. All space assignments are subject to annual review.  
  6. For any space that is covered by a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and vacated before the MOU term ends, that space cost remains the responsibility of the funding College/Unit unless or until the MOU is modified and approved by all parties.  
  7. Vacated space without an active MOU may be assignable by ERIK.
  8. The Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives (or designee) will designate a Building Coordinator for any building infrastructure issues related to ERIK-administered buildings.  

II. Research Space

  1. ERIK-administered research space is expected to generate and grow robust, high-quality research programs in alignment with any theme of respective buildings.
  2. An ERIK Space Governance Committee (SGC) will further manage ERIK-administered research space
    • The SGC is chaired by the Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives or as designated by the Vice President for Research.
    • The SGC is otherwise constituted of representatives from disciplines with significant space allocations in ERIK-administered buildings, core laboratory directors or administrators, and may include other ERIK administrators. SGC will include representatives from all Colleges that have faculty within ERIK-administered space.  
    • Members are appointed by the Vice President for Research to a two-year term, which may be renewed with no limits.
    • The SGC reviews space requests, oversees space assessments and reallocation, and hears dispute cases.
    • The SGC makes space allocation and dispute recommendations to the Vice President for Research, who has final decision authority.
  3. Assignment and reassignment of space is expected to promote interdisciplinary research or the clustering and sharing of research space among groups of faculty working in related areas, and/or requiring access to similar types of specialized equipment.
  4. Researchers, research staff, and trainees may be removed from space if engaging in behavior inconsistent with university culture or values.
  5. Any signage erected in the building or in the assigned space is expected to comply with and University Signage Standards and building standards set by ERIK, and any deviations require prior ERIK approval.
  6. Reconfiguration of floor plans will not be allowable in the first five years following building activation post new construction, with the possible exception of supporting a core laboratory.  

III. Record-keeping and Reporting

  1. All space records will be maintained within ERIK via the Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives (or designee) and/or the SGC. 
  2. Space record information includes the following information on all laboratories and offices:
    • Room number
    • Name(s) of occupant(s)
    • Research Program or Purpose
    • Date assigned
    • Period of assignment
    • Projected date for review and reassignment
    • Funding College/Unit MOUs
  3. The Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives (or designee) will be responsible for maintenance of ERIK space data within the university’s SIMS system in collaboration with Planning and Real Estate’s Facilities Information and Technology Services team.
  4. The SGC Chair will provide an annual report to ERIK and SGC of all research space assignments, including the space record information noted above. 
    • Annual statements will be provided to all investigators with assigned space.  The statement will include total square footage, room numbers and a three-year average funding calculation.  
    • Each investigator will have ten (10) business days to review this information  in consultation with the SGC. 

IV. Shared Services and Core Laboratories

  1. ERIK assigns space for shared services and core laboratories in alignment with its mission and with input and guidance from the SGC.
  2. Shared services and core laboratories will serve a broad audience of Ohio State researchers, including but not limited to researchers who are residents in ERIK-administered buildings.  
  3. Access to facilities, service, and instrumentation in the core laboratories must be available to all Ohio State researchers and may be made available externally on a fee-for-service basis.
  4. Core laboratories within ERIK-administered buildings are considered part of a broader university core laboratory system; as such these cores will work synergistically with other cores in terms of service offerings, rate/fee structure, and administration.  In particular:
    • Core laboratories within ERIK-administered buildings will not unnecessarily duplicate capabilities found in other cores on campus
    • Collaborations with other cores (e.g. for transportation or processing of samples) will be established by ERIK and maintained for compliance, financial sustainability, etc.
  5. Core laboratories within ERIK-administered buildings will administratively report to ERIK or have measures in place to ensure ERIK oversight of operations and financial sustainability.
  6. Core space and the equipment and materials therein must adhere to all health and safety regulations and procedures, as defined by Environmental Health and Safety (EHS).

V. Operating Costs and Funds Usage

  1. To support the interdisciplinary mission of ERIK-administered buildings, occupants may share the costs for IT management, building staff, shared common spaces and shared research equipment.  These costs will be outlined in the MOUs.
  2. Actual operating costs will be adjusted annually based on the University’s POM cost model and on actual personnel and services costs.   
  3. Tenants will be financially responsible for maintenance, repair and any damage to instrumentation and materials in their assigned space.
  4. Ongoing support for shared infrastructure will be through specific user fees as outlined in the MOUs. Fees will be escrowed and funds distributed based on demonstrated need for new technologies, to support aging infrastructure, by multiple investigators across disciplines within a building (e.g. for purchase of shared equipment, equipment maintenance, core services improvements) or in service of broader district needs. Decisions will be advised by the SGC, and final decision authority resides with the Vice President for Research.  

VI. Research Funding Metric

  1. It is expected that researchers occupying space in ERIK-administered buildings contribute to teams that have robust and sustained external funding, in keeping with the university’s goals for research growth. For early career, unfunded investigators, a clear plan for a robustly funded program is expected.
  2. A research funding metric will be applied beginning in Fiscal Year 2026. Thereafter, the SGC will review this metric with occupants annually. Faculty occupants will be required to submit an annual Space Review Report that lists all current funding and all research space occupied by them and their personnel.
  3. It is understood that the research funding metric will be applied with flexibility to support the interdisciplinary mission of ERIK-administered buildings. Exceeding the metric doesn’t imply additional square footage will be provided to an individual researcher or research team. Neighborhoods with research funding that falls below the space research funding metric may be asked to reduce space usage.
  4. The metric for the PRC will be applied at the neighborhood level rather than at the individual researcher level. 

VII. Physical Space Modifications

  1. Renovation, repurposing, conversion, and construction of space to/for its units, centers, institutes, cores, and building occupants will be governed by ERIK.
  2. The ERIK Infrastructure team serves as ERIK’s single point of contact for capital and non-capital project request entry via Adaptive.
  3. Requests for all infrastructure modifications, including space studies and small projects, must be submitted in writing for written review/approval prior to any change being made.
  4. To align with the university process, ERIK will consider capital project requests in the second quarter of each fiscal year via submission of center/institute annual reports and/or via written request. Off-cycle requests may be accepted as prescribed by an awarded, federally-funded grant or similar funding mechanism

Procedure

I. Space Assignment

  1. ERIK recognizes the university’s physical infrastructure as a vital resource for enhancing and accelerating the effectiveness, productivity, and impact of our research community.  This finite resource must be managed responsibly to advance the ERIK mission and promote the strategic priorities of ERIK units and the university at large. Specifically, ERIK seeks to:
    • Provide administrative, operational, and financial management oversight that promotes and achieves fiscal responsibility.
    • Invest in emerging technologies to promote further research growth.
    • Review productivity, availability of resources, and ensure appropriate space levels within and between units.
  2. Priority will be given to requests and projects:
    • That provide essential or specialized capabilities that are required to promote and conduct research across multiple units/colleges.
    • That expand capabilities in areas of strategic research importance to the university or those targeted for growth.
    • That do not duplicate existing university or commercial infrastructure.
    • That have a sound and compelling long-term fiscal sustainability model.
    • That are prescribed by an awarded grant but may not meet other stated criteria.
    • Align with University strategic research priorities.

II. Resesarch Space Assignment

  1. Assignment of research space will be made based on the following priorities and considerations:
    • The degree to which the space will be used to conduct transformational, interdisciplinary research and creative expression aligned with key strategic research areas.
    • The degree to which the research teams using the space will be able to attract, sustain, and cultivate external support for the activities.
    • The degree to which the research outcomes are expected to lead to opportunities for translation into the clinic, the community, and/or to innovation, intellectual property, licensing, and commercialization.
    • The degree to which the research teams using the space are promoting and encouraging interdisciplinary discovery to their constituents, research trainees, and the broader Ohio State research community.
  2. The relative weight applied to these criteria may be different based on the building or floor of the assigned space, in keeping with the space goals; for example, some research in the PRC is aimed at a life and health sciences themes, while the EAIC has an emphasis on translational research leading to commercial impact. Space assignments will not be exclusively formula-driven; rather, they will be based on interpretation of all substantiating information relevant to a researcher’s (or research team’s) contributions toward the mission.
  3. In assigning core spaces, priority will be given to core laboratories:
    • That support the ERIK mission and provide essential capabilities that are required to conduct research within multiple research neighborhoods in the building or district in which they are located.
    • Whose facilities have specialized space needs that are unique, and that the building or district in which they are located provides. 
    • That serve a broader number of researchers across multiple disciplines and colleges.
    • That expand capabilities in areas of strategic research importance or those targeted for growth.
    • That have a sound and compelling financial sustainability model.
  4. Vivarium space assignment 
    • Vivarium capacity will be approximately equally divided amongst the number of wet laboratories within the building (i.e. 14 within the PRC) with available cages assigned to each floor based on the proportion of the laboratory occupied. 
    • Each floor’s neighborhoods will appoint a leader to represent their interests and serve as a consultant to the Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives and Animal Care and Use Program teams for determining relative priority of assignments. 
    • Extra available cages (i.e. those allocated to a wet laboratory in which researchers utilize species requiring housing in another vivarium or do not participate in animal research) may be temporarily reallocated by the Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives (or designee) in consultation with the Senior Director of the Animal Care and Use Program and floor leaders. Such reassignment will be temporary, lasting for up to one year and expiring at the start of each academic year. 

III. New Space Requests

  1. Requests for new space assignments should be made in writing to the SGC and outline the proposed space need, its intended use, and how it aligns with the missions and priorities listed above.
  2. Review of requests for additional space may include an on-site evaluation by members of the SGC. The committee will report its evaluation and recommendation for space allocation to the Vice President for Research. If approved, the space request will be documented as either a new MOU or a modification to an existing MOU. In nearly all cases, the requester assumes financial responsibility for the POM-plus rate of the assigned space for the respective building.
  3. All requests for space for new faculty recruits must be submitted to the ERIK by the appropriate College and department chair(s) following the procedure above for new space requests. Failure to recruit and inhabit the allocated space in a timely manner may lead to re-allocation of the space by ERIK.

IV. ERIK Staff Work Space Assignments

  1. Work space will be provided to ERIK offices and its units to adequately support their core missions and functional needs, should be used to maximum functionality and efficiency, and will follow the “Guiding Principles for ERIK Work Space Assignment.”  
  2. Shared venue space will similarly be provided and may follow building-specific shared space use guidelines.   

V. Faculty Office Assignments

  1. It is the goal of ERIK to equitably assign faculty office space on the research floors of ERIK-administered buildings.
  2. Assignments are based on need, funding, service to the building, and activities of the researcher based on the following priorities:
    • Principal Investigators who have laboratories on the same floor and have active laboratory programs as demonstrated by active extramural funding.
    • Principal Investigators who have laboratories in the same building and have active laboratory programs as demonstrated by active extramural funding.
  3. Principal Investigators who retain private offices in another location on campus will not be allocated an office in ERIK-administered buildings.
  4. Offices may be shared due to space constraints.
  5. In most cases, private office space for visiting scholars is not available in the ERIK-administered buildings and office space accommodations should be arranged in consultation with the sponsoring PI and department/unit.

VI. Work Space for Research Staff, Trainees, and Students

  1. Shared space will be proportionally allocated to each research group per the terms of an MOU.
  2. Not all staff and learners will have their own private space. Desk space, cubicle space, and access to shared areas may be allotted to laboratory managers, research scientists, research assistants, research associates, postdoctoral trainees, graduate students, other student trainees, and visiting scholars at the discretion of the managing faculty member in consultation with the SGC and/or as defined in an MOU. These staff are assigned private, shared office, or cubicle space only in cases that are well-justified.
  3. Shared cubicle space will be designated for fostering scholarly collaboration among researchers. These areas are not to be used to house administrative space for lab managers/coordinators. Availability in these areas will be based on PI funding and productivity metrics as outlined in guidelines above. Additionally, cubicle space will be allocated among PIs. Cubicle space will be reviewed annually.
  4. Cubicles vacated within an MOU period are the responsibility of the funding College, vacated cubicles without an active MOU will be assignable by the ERIK. If space is requested for junior staff, a short paragraph justifying the assignment should be provided along with the request.

VII. Annual Review of Research Space Allocation and Metrics

  1. The SGC will review all space assignments regularly. Mid-year reviews may occur as needed. To facilitate review, faculty will be required to submit an annual Space Review Report that lists all current funding and all research space occupied by them and their personnel.
  2. To encourage the highest level of interdisciplinary research, all metrics will be measured and tracked by neighborhood teams rather than by individual faculty members. Using the first two years post-building activation (e.g. FY24 and FY25) as benchmark years for funding, there will be an expectation that extramural funding increase each year beginning in FY26.
  3. Research Space Metric
    • A neighborhood’s research space metric is determined by averaging the active, external and/or peer-reviewed funding amongst Principal Investigators within the neighborhood (3-year rolling average of direct & indirect costs) and dividing by the specific building metric to determine the justified space assignment in square feet (sq. ft.).
      • Average 3-year funding / Building space metrics = Justified Space Assignment
    • Funding included in metric:
      1. External awards as PI
      2. Peer-reviewed awards as PI
      3. Trainee funding from NIH or foundations. PIs must confirm the names of each of their trainees on their annual space audit.
      4. Subcontracts with indirects to PIs from other institutions
      5. Co-I status may be included in the metric for certain faculty (e.g. biomedical informatics) because of their significant and sometimes exclusive roles as Co-I on grants from other PIs. 
      6. Other Funding-Related Considerations:
        • With certain exceptions, if an investigator is not listed as a Primary Principal Investigator (PI) on the notice of award (NOA), the funding will not automatically count towards their metric. However, Co-I status will be taken into consideration.
        • If more than one PI is listed on the NOA, the award will be divided equally by the number of PIs. Thus, each PI cannot claim credit for the full amount of the award. Unequal percentages of multi-PIs will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
        • Because they cannot be easily tracked, non-peer-reviewed funding, donor dollars, and internal awards (e.g. Trifit, Bridge, Discovery, NCH Awards) are not incorporated into the space metric. However, these may be taken into consideration when making space decisions
      7. In addition to the priorities and considerations outlined in Procedures I.A., additional review criteria include:
        1. Research funding track record, including both current funding and submitted funding pipeline
        2. Contributions to ERIK missions and to University goals
        3. Adherence to University Conflict of Interest policies
        4. Citizenship and accountability
        5. Additional criteria to consider: publication/acceptance for publication of peer- reviewed journal research articles, achievement or potential for achieving a national reputation in one’s field; history of or potential for successful mentoring of junior researchers or graduate students
  4. The research space metric is the minimum amount of funding needed for a particular space. Because research space is a limited resource, ERIK cannot guarantee that increases in funding will translate to increased space. However, if a PI secures additional funding and wishes to request an increase in space, they can submit a new space request.
  5. New early career recruited investigators (e.g., Independent Tenure Track Assistant Professor) are exempt from meeting the required space metric until the end of their third year (based on the date of hire outlined in their letter of offer). PIs/neighborhoods that are significantly below their metric will be required to submit a plan to the SGC by which to rectify the metric (e.g., increase funding, decrease space). The plan is due to the SGC within one month of the annual review meeting. The SGC reserves the right to approve, modify, or deny the plan. If a PI/Neighborhood does not have sufficient sponsored funding or an acceptable plan to justify their current research space, they may have their space reduced, removed, or relocated with appropriate notice.
  6. All space reverts back to the ERIK "central pool" once vacant.

VI. Research Space Disputes and Concerns

  1. It is the goal of ERIK to ensure due process to researchers who have disputes about laboratory space assignments.
  2. In cases of dispute, researcher(s) should submit a written summary of the case to the SGC Chair (email: TBD@OSU.EDU). It will be the responsibility of the researcher(s) bringing a dispute to this group to present all relevant data about the case.
  3. This presentation must be made in writing to the SGC Chair. A meeting of the SGC will allow the researcher to present their case personally. The SGC will make its recommendation to the Vice President for Research, whose decision in this matter will be final.
  4. Concerns regarding researcher engagement in behavior inconsistent with university culture or values may be submitted orally or in writing to the Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives or may be submitted anonymously via the Anonymous Reporting Line (866-294-9350 or ohio- state.ethicspoint.com).
  5. Reported behavior concerns will be reviewed by the Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives and may be referred for consideration by the SGC, another university office, and/or an appropriate external entity under applicable policies and regulations. Director of Research Infrastructure and Strategic Initiatives will refer the complaint to the appropriate university or external authority for consideration under the applicable policy.
  6. In cases of referral to the SGC, a researcher will be allowed to present their case personally. The SGC will make its recommendation to the Vice President for Research, whose decision in this matter will be final. Sanctions may include, but are not limited to the following, and may further include a combination of sanctions:
    • Verbal reprimand;
    • Written reprimand;
    • Reduction of space allocation;
    • Revocation of space allocation.

VII. Modification of Signage or Space

  1. Requests for all infrastructure modifications, including signage, studies, renovation, repurposing, conversion, or construction of space must be submitted to the ERIK Infrastructure team for review/approval prior to any change being made.  
  2. Requests should outline the proposed change, justification of need, funding mechanism, impact on the operations/research within the building, and alignment with the missions and priorities listed in Procedures I.B and IIA. above.  
  3. The ERIK Infrastructure team will confer with other university offices and/or an appropriate external entity under applicable policies and regulations. Review of requests may include an on-site evaluation or consideration by the SGC.  
  4. ERIK will consider capital project requests in the second quarter of each fiscal year via submission of center/institute annual reports and/or via written request by the unit/college. Off-cycle requests may be accepted as prescribed by an awarded, federally funded grant or similar funding mechanism. For those projects deemed meritorious and prioritized by ERIK, all applicable University capital planning processes will be followed.  
  5. Approved projects will be entered into Adaptive by the ERIK Research Infrastructure team for their management in coordination with the requesting unit/College and other university offices (e.g. Facilities, Design and Construction; Planning, Architecture, and Real Estate; etc.).
  6. Project budgets will be closely monitored by the Infrastructure team in conjunction with ERIK’s Office of Finance and Business Administration. Budget modifications during design and construction may not be made without the review and confirmation of available financial and administrative resources by these teams. Review and approval by the Vice President for Research is required for capital project budget modifications. Additional committee approvals (e.g. IPPLG, Board of Trustees) may be required per applicable University policies and procedures. 
Research Space Governance
Estimated Reading Time: 20 Minutes November 13, 2025