The Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) has launched a Web page with information for University of Iowa researchers and scholars wondering how the partial shutdown of the federal government, which took effect Dec. 22, might impact their work in the labs and in the field. 

The page, at https://research.uiowa.edu/shutdown, will be updated as new information becomes available. 

Most of the UI’s federal research funding comes from the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), which includes the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Because DHHS was fully funded for this fiscal year before the shutdown and will be minimally impacted by the shutdown, most of the research activity in medicine and related areas should be able to continue for now. 

However, agencies whose funding wasn't approved before the shutdown are, in some cases, unstaffed and unable to respond to calls or emails or review new grant proposals. Those include the National Science Foundation, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Justice, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. 

Even then, researchers with active, funded grants are able to continue their work during the shutdown to the extent funding is currently authorized.

“We continue to monitor the situation closely,” John Keller, OVPR interim vice president and dean of the Graduate College. “Hopefully this will be resolved soon so our researchers and scholars can turn their full attention back to their work. Until then, we encourage research faculty and staff to contact us if they have any particular questions or concerns.”

Keller said questions should be director to Wendy Beaver, Executive Director of the Division of Sponsored Programs, at wendy-beaver@uiowa.edu or 319-335-2122. 

The University of Iowa Office of the Vice President for Research provides researchers and scholars with resources, guidance, and inspiration to secure funding, collaborate, innovate, and forge frontiers of discovery that benefit everyone. More at http://research.uiowa.edu, and on Twitter: @DaretoDiscover.