Dear Colleagues:
In 2012, ANR will seek supplemental proposals for advisor and specialist positions to address programmatic gaps that were not previously identified or that have arisen since the last call.
The exact schedule for position proposals is being finalized, but the call will be issued in January with the submission deadline in mid-May. The submission period is being extended to allow as much time as possible for internal consultation and external input from ANR stakeholders in all program areas.
During the coming round, the position submission system will be open both for new submissions and for revision and resubmission of earlier position proposals that were not selected for recruitment. The online system is being adapted to export previously submitted positions in an editable format as required.
Program Council members have requested additional information for previously submitted position proposals. Revised and new proposals should identify specific issues that the position will address and explain how a proposed ANR position will address those issues. Detailed instructions will be provided in the submission instructions that will be available when the call is issued in January.
Filling critical academic positions remains our top priority. As retirements continue, the resources released through retirements and separations will allow us to issue a call in 2012. We have taken steps to protect these funds as they become available to ANR for reallocation and we anticipate that we will be able to continue to fill academic positions as resources allow.
In addition to those designated to submit position proposals last year, program team leaders will be able to submit position proposals in this round and we encourage broad and strategic discussions within and between program teams to identify critical positions.
We also expect and strongly encourage program teams to engage with external stakeholders, including commodity groups, cooperating programs, agency partners, community groups and others to explicitly discuss priority needs for positions.
After we open the call for position proposals, we will also be planning for the next request for competitive grant proposals to address critical issues identified by the strategic initiatives, including the Water Initiative led by Doug Parker, director of the California Water Resources Research Institute.
We expect the pool of available funds to be similar to last year's, barring substantial changes in the ANR budget.
Look for additional information on both programs in ANR Update after the holiday break, but it is not too early now to begin discussions with your colleagues and collaborators.
Bill Frost
Associate director for Cooperative Extension and the Agricultural Experiment Station
View or leave comments for the Executive Working Group.
This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.