Research and Economic Development Strategic Plan
Strategic Goal I
Build financial stability, resiliency, and sustainability
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Increase revenue opportunities
INITIATIVES PROGRESS Grow extramural awards and contracts funding Total expenditures increased to $252M (Federal
expenditures $144M).
Facilities and Administrative (F&A) Revenue: Business $3M; Nonprofit $13M
The fourth internal funding competition launched in a new format with total awards of ~$1.15M.Academic Analytics tool implemented.
Grow philanthropy $1,790,000 for the SoCal OASIS® Park was received from the James Irvine Foundation, US Bank and Cisco Diversify IP portfolio 1. 126 UCR inventors served (includes faculty, students, postdocs, staff, etc.) 60 faculty, 31 grad students, 21 postdocs, 2 undergraduate students, 12 staff).
2. 52 invention disclosures received/accepted in FY 2025.
3. 82 (44 provisional, 38 non provisional applications filed) + 13 US patents issued.
4. 7 agreements total (6 licenses – 4 were utility, 2 were plant, 0 were copyright; 1 option; including 3 license agreements to startups.
5. Number of outreach/marketing campaigns: 25 total (20 industry; 5 faculty).
See more at Annual Reports | Office of Technology Partnerships
Increase industry sponsored research to 6% of research grants 1. 57 research sponsors engaged. (leading to contracts).
2. 72 contracts negotiated
3. 19 SBIR proposals for 15 different sponsors on behalf of UCR faculty. 1 UCR affiliated STTR was received valued at $600,000. In addition, 25 SBIR/STTR proposals were supported by EPIC SBDC. Total dollars awarded to EPIC SBDC start-ups was $13,721,325 from 12 awards.
4. Since 2013 through 2025: $2.64M to 69 projects.
5. Four (4) license agreements with UCR IP, of which three (3) are startups.
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Improve financial models
INITIATIVES PROGRESS Stabilize funding for select core research facilities Merged facility (CalIT2) now running in a sustainable financial manner.
Strategic Goal II
Invest in the success of the people who teach, do research, work, learn, and live at UCR
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Improve graduate student success and pipelines
INITIATIVE PROGRESS Increase culture of entrepreneurship on campus 1. 71 participants: 2 INNOVAR workshops with 27 teams, 60 participants. NSF Hub West 10 teams - 11 participants
2. 3 Companies formed by grads.
3. $7,500 in participant support
4. 13 graduate students engaged in OTP activitiesMore details at Annual Reports | Office of Technology Partnerships
Increase number of training grants Diversify IP portfolio Increase industry sponsored research to 6% of research grants -
Improve undergraduate student success and experience
INITIATIVE PROGRESS Increase culture of entrepreneurship on campus 1. 3,371 students engaged.
2. 22 undergraduate students admitted in NSF Hub West, Blackstone and INNOVAR workshops.
3. 2 undergrad student led ventures accepted to EPIC SBDC.
4. 3 companies formed -
Support research integrity and compliance
INITIATIVE PROGRESS Continue to address state and federal changing requirements There is a requirement for NSF and CITI training. An ad-hoc committee was created to make recommendations about new NSF training requirements and Citi modules were implemented. -
Address staffing levels, staff flexibility and professional growth
INITIATIVE PROGRESS Invest in strategic hiring Enhance professional development Strengthen research administration processes The campus has transitioned to cloud-based research applications by Kuali to standardize the processes for research proposals, awards and subawards, compliance, administration, and documentation across various departments.
Strategic Goal III
Expand the visibility and scope of influence of UCR locally, nationally, and globally
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Elevate UCR's profile and research, scholarly work, and creative activities
INITIATIVE PROGRESS Promote faculty and UCR nationally through media, awards, and national networks Invest in centers for research UC Riverside Artificial Intelligence ReSearch and Education Institute (RAISE@UCR) established. Increase number of CAREER awards Participate in large multi-campus proposals Better track data related to research inputs and outcomes Increase multidisciplinary research activities on campus Catalog of all research centers and campus and accompanying guidelines were completed and endorsed by Senate. -
Contribute through research and innovation to the economic development of the Inland Empire and beyond
INITIATIVE PROGRESS SoCal OASIS™ The SoCal OASIS™ Park is ahead of schedule - anticipated to open in early 2027. Build a pipeline of promising startups and support company attraction and job creation 100 companies mentored through EPIC.
21 companies mentored through Build2Scale Program.
7 companies expanding locally and 24 new direct jobs created regionally.
International: OTP participated in SelectUSA as California Delegate, meeting with 25 companies.
Outreach with 25 companies, including 4 company relocations to Inland SoCal. Established a fund for technical verification and completed 6 validations. Startups raised $2.1M in direct capital through OTP assistance.
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Achieve additional national recognition
INITIATIVE PROGRESS APLU classification - Innovation and Economic Prosperity (IEP) IEP designation achieved in March 2024