Dear colleagues,
In my email on May 16, I shared details of our Research Continuity Funding (RCF) program that supports FAS faculty research activities related to mass-terminated federal grants for the upcoming year (July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026). Today, I write to announce updates to that program that have been recommended by the Research Continuity Committee (RCC). Within the context of constraining overall spending on terminated federal awards to 80% of their fiscal year 2025 (FY25) levels, the FAS seeks to support faculty at every career stage and to do so in a responsible manner. At the heart of our planning is the imperative to maintain the strength and excellence of FAS’s research enterprise, including opportunities to invest in research priorities and expand into new emerging areas.
Program updates include:
- Supplemental Salary for Senior Faculty
Senior faculty, who do not have dean’s ninths available but have budgeted for supplemental salary on mass-terminated federal grants, will now receive funding from FAS to cover the costs of that planned compensation.
2. Increased Start-Up Reserve Threshold for Senior Faculty
The allowable reserve in faculty start-up accounts will be increased from 10% to 25%. RCF will now become available once a senior faculty member has fully expended all PI-directed sources of funding and their start-up fund balance has reached this new 25% reserve threshold.
3. Enhanced Support for Tenure-Track Faculty with Terminated Federal Grants
To ensure that tenure-track faculty can continue investing in their research program with confidence, RCF for tenure-track faculty will, for the 2025-26 fiscal year, be expanded in the following ways:
- Beginning July 1, 2025, tenure-track faculty will receive immediate RCF to cover their mass-terminated federal award(s) for fiscal year 2026 (ending June 30, 2026). There is no longer a requirement for tenure-track faculty to spend down their start-up to receive these funds.
- Additionally, tenure-track faculty may continue to spend from their start-up accounts at their FY25 spending level. Specific guidance can be found in the Frequently Asked Questions on the FAS Office of Research Administration (FORA) website.
This support gives tenure-track faculty the ability to continue building their research programs and for senior faculty to maintain continuity of critical research activities.
To address any questions you may have, I will host another town hall for faculty PIs to talk through the expanded program. The FORA team has also updated the Frequently Asked Questions online. Questions can also be directed to: research@fas.harvard.edu.
Over the summer, we will assess how the RCF program is working, observe the progress of our legal cases, and follow other governmental actions that may affect research. It is heartening that in recent weeks, a group of state attorneys general, two dozen universities, civil liberties groups, and more than 12,000 alumni have filed amicus briefs supporting Harvard’s lawsuit challenging the government’s freeze of nearly $3 billion in federal funding to researchers across Harvard’s Schools. As our case makes its way through the courts in the weeks and months to come, we will continue to hope for the best while responsibly planning for the worst.
I recognize that faculty who have experienced a loss of federal funding will continue to require support beyond just this coming year. The RCF is intended to safeguard the excellence of our research mission today, as we transition to a future in which the research budgets of federal funding agencies are significantly reduced. The FAS must develop a framework for the longer term, when sources of research funding are different, but our commitments to preserving our scientific preeminence and advancing discovery are not.
I have tasked the RCC to work in close partnership with the Divisional Deans and the Resources Committee on a new model to address this ongoing need. I remain extremely grateful to the faculty, who have stepped up to serve on these committees and for their dedication in helping the FAS chart a path forward, and to the University for generously co-investing with the FAS in the RCF program for the year ahead.
Sincerely,
Hopi
Hopi Hoekstra
Edgerley Family Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences
C. Y. Chan Professor of Arts and Sciences
Xiaomeng Tong and Yu Chen Professor of Life Sciences