🔒CT bill would require UConn to hire at least 10 ‘top-tier’ researchers within 3 years, allocates $55M for the effort

The University of Connecticut’s desire to be recognized as a superior research institution could get another boost from the state legislature, which is considering a bill to require the school to hire at least 10 “top-tier” researchers in the next three years. The legislation would provide up to $55 million for the effort. House Bill 5479 was introduced this month by the legislature’s Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee. Following a public hearing on Tuesday, the bill received a unanimous joint favorable report from the committee and was referred to the Appropriations Committee. The bill seeks to support UConn’s efforts intended to help it receive an invitation to join the Association of American Universities. The Washington, D.C.-based elite consortium of the nation’s top research institutions currently has only 71 members — 69 U.S. schools and two located in Canada. Membership brings not only prestige, but also potential improved access to federal research funding and greater influence in shaping public policy. Schools, however, do not apply to join the AAU; membership is by invitation only. Because of that, campaigning for membership is frowned upon. “Yes, we’d love to get invited to AAU, but I think at no point should we be saying that we’re pining for it,” Pamir Alpay, who was UConn’s vice president for research, innovation and entrepreneurship at the time, told Hartford Business Journal last summer. “That’s not a good look for the university.” The bill would require UConn to “implement a plan to hire not fewer than 10 new top-tier research faculty on or before June 30, 2029.” The legislature last year passed Special Act 25-3, which required UConn to develop “an action plan to increase the likelihood of receiving an invitation to become a member of an association of research universities in the United States.” The school has since submitted its 12-page plan to the legislature. Item No. 1 on the plan is to recruit and hire top-tier faculty. The new bill defines “top-tier” faculty as those with strong research portfolios and “internationally recognized scholarly reputations, as documented through recognition such as receipt of prestigious awards and honors, book publications and citations, research funding or any other means” as determined by UConn’s president. The plan UConn implements also would be required to include “improving infrastructure, such as laboratory space and equipment, to support such research faculty, developing an effective recruitment strategy, and supporting graduate students working for such research faculty.” Prioritizing investments in and maintenance of “strategic research infrastructure” is item No. 2 on UConn’s action plan. To provide financial support for the plan, the bill would empower the state Bond Commission to “authorize the issuance of bonds” in one or more series but not to exceed $20 million in the aggregate. In addition, the bill appropriates $35 million from the General Fund to UConn for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2027, to cover personnel costs that may include, but are not limited to, salary and fringe benefits, to help recruit the researchers. Lindsay DiStefano, interim vice president for research, innovation and entrepreneurship at UConn, submitted testimony on the bill during the public hearing. DiStefano said the school’s action plan “provides a clear roadmap for UConn to achieve membership in a prestigious national association of research universities.” She adds that, based on the school’s analysis, UConn is already eligible for membership based on key metrics that include federally funded research expenditures, faculty honors, citations, book publications, Ph.D. degrees granted and postdoctoral appointees. “However, UConn currently ranks in the lower 25%-40% of existing members on these indicators,” DiStefano said. “This positions us well for invitation but underscores the need for targeted investments to enhance our competitiveness.” If approved, the bill would take effect on July 1.