Research and Publication Committee

Helping you with your research needs…

The Research and Publication Committee is here to provide a ready source of support and guidance on research projects is available to librarians at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The Research and Publication Committee was established to:

• Encourage research and publication by providing monetary support.
• Stimulate discussion of research ideas and methodologies.
• Serve as a clearinghouse of information about outside sources of funding.
• Provide practical criticism of research projects.
• Act as an advocate for the research interests of the Library faculty.

The most important links to our materials are listed below, but do not hesitate to contact any member of the committee if you have questions related to the approval process.

Learn more about…

• The Application Process, including deadlines, forms, policies, and ethical considerations for research
• An overview of RPC support and services
• Other campus resources for funding and research support
• Recent RPC Awards
• Publications and other outcomes of RPC funding  (an incomplete list) – 2011 and earlier
• Recognizing Excellence Blog – provides links to publications, presentations and more
• RPC Research Brown Bag Schedule

Library Research Showcase 2021

Stay tuned for links to presentations from this year’s showcase!

The Library Research and Publication Committee is a standing committee of the Library Faculty established to encourage research and publication among Library Faculty and Academic Professionals by:

• providing monetary support
• bringing alternate sources of funding to the attention of the Library Faculty and Academic Professionals
• stimulating interest in and discussion of research ideas and methodologies among librarians
• providing practical criticism of and support for research projects
• advancing Library research and publications within the University community.

The Committee reviews and approves or disapproves funding requests for student wages, graduate assistants, travel to other research collections, photocopying, manuscript preparation, data analysis, the creation of illustrations, editing for non-native English speakers, etc. The Committee sponsors occasional brown-bag series that focus on library research.

The Committee of five faculty members and one academic professional is appointed by the University Librarian, with the advice of the Executive Committee. The chair is appointed by the University Librarian. Committee members serve two-year staggered terms, and may be appointed to one successive term.

• Chris Bailey(ex officio - Visiting Information Sciences Librarian)
• Erin Kerby, Chair(Aug 2020 - Aug 2022)
• Tracy Popp(Aug 2020 - Aug 2022)
• Steve Witt(Aug 2021 - Aug 2023)
• Emilee Mathews(Aug 2021 - Aug 2023)
• Qiang Jin(Aug 2021 - Aug 2023)

• AP investigation time survey (pdf)
• RPC Grants Awarded During the Academic Year 2017-2018
• RPC Grants Awarded During the Academic Year 2016-2017
• RPC Grants Awarded During the Academic Year 2015-2016
• RPC Grants Awarded During the Academic Year 2014-2015
• RPC Grants Awarded During the Academic Year 2013-2014
• RPC Grants Awarded During the Academic Year 2012-2013
• RPC Annual Report FY2019-2020
• RPC Annual Report FY2020-2021

• Other Campus Research Funding and Support Resources
• Policies for Award Approval
• RPC Application Process
• RPC Research Brown Bags 2016-2017 Academic Year
• RPC Support and Services

RPC Application Form – Read the Guidelines for the Proposal Narrative carefully.

RPC_ShortForm – Use this form to request funds for poster printing or high resolution scanning.

Extension Form–RPC – If you do not think you will be able to complete your project within the time allotted (generally one year), please complete as soon as possible.

Project Outcomes Form–RPC – Please notify us when you are finished with your project funds and let us know of your outcomes using this form.

All forms should be sent to the current chair.

• Margaret (Peg) Burnette(Aug 2019 - Aug 2021)
• Antonio Sotomayor(Aug 2019 - Aug 2021)
• Heidi Imker(ex officio - AUL for Research, Nov 2018 - Aug 2020)
• Seth Robbins(Aug 2018 - Aug 2020)
• Jennifer Teper(Aug 2018 - Aug 2020)
• Lynne M Rudasill, Chair(Aug 2017 - Aug 2019)
• Shuyong Jiang(Aug 2017 - Aug 2019) Served Two Consecutive Terms
• David Morris(Aug 2017 - Aug 2019)
• Merinda Kaye Hensley, Chair(Aug 2017 - Aug 2021) Served Two Consecutive Terms

The RPC meets monthly throughout the academic year and all meetings are open except when we are reviewing applications.