Dear CIRES colleagues,
Several members of CIRES administration and leadership put together brief answers to many of the questions that came up at our March Town Hall meeting at NOAA. We will review these regularly and update them as warranted; we are continually in touch with NOAA leaders on many of these issues and expect we will collectively be able to resolve or clarify some of them over time. If you have additional questions, please contact lucia.harrop@noaa.gov.
Foreign Nationals and LUAs
What is the update on LUAs and Foreign National’s access to the DSRC building?
- This is a federal process. Our federal partners are working on submitting LUAs for foreign national guests working in the DSRC. Approvals are dependent on another security office. Unfortunately, we do not have information on the timing of approvals.
- We continually communicate the impact of the limited access with our federal partners and NOAA leadership.
Science Advisors
Is there a mechanism to review NOAA Science Advisors?
- Currently, there is not a way to review science advisors.
What is the role of the Science Advisor and how are they able to contribute to the ASA process?
- CIRES Supervisors lead the ASA process and we invite input from Science Advisors.
- Per NOAA policy, our federal partners (including science advisors) may comment on project performance, not on a CIRES individual’s performance.
- Currently, Science Advisor involvement and interactions vary by Lab/Center. CIRES will continue to update and advise – likely in upcoming ASA training sessions later this spring.
Changing CI/Federal relationship
Will CIRES management share the new guidance for Federal/CI interactions and take feedback before implementing it?
- The CI Handbook is one of many documents that pertain to the award that NOAA gave to CU Boulder called CIESRDS. This handbook was developed by NOAA and given to all the Cooperative Institutes in the Spring of 2023. he CIs (administrators and directors) have reviewed it and sent questions to NOAA in December; most have not yet been answered, but with new leadership, we are optimistic we will hear back soon.
- CIESRDS/CIRES employees are welcome to ask questions regarding the handbook to Kari Bowen (kari.bowen@noaa.gov) or Christine Wiedinmyer (christine.wiedinmyer@noaa.gov) and others within CIRES leadership.
How is CIRES supporting employees at the DSRC with the changes that are occurring with our federal partners?
- We are advocating for more proactive and supportive communication of changes from our federal partners at the local and OAR/NOAA levels. There are continued efforts to make this more transparent and systematic to give information and manage expectations.
If I have a conflict with a Federal employee in my lab, what can I do to get it resolved?
- CIRES regularly engages all appropriate campus offices when working through personnel issues, both to ensure we’re doing our due diligence in support of the employee(s) involved and the unit itself. We can invite our federal colleagues to join, but cannot mandate.
- If you have an issue, the first step would be to contact CIRES HR at cireshr@colorado.edu
- There are many resources available to you through CU Boulder.
- Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance (link) for reporting concerns.
- For mediation, contact the Ombuds office (link)
- For wellness services, contact the Health and Wellness office (link)
- For employment accommodations assistance (link)
What is being done by CIRES to help manage/mend the seemingly strained relationship between CIRES and our federal partners due to the new guidance?
- CIRES Leadership and Admin are having ongoing conversations with Lab, Center, and Line Office leadership for clarification on recent changes in guidance.
- We are working with our federal colleagues to find solutions to areas that remain unclear.
Publications/Affiliations
What are affiliation implications when it comes to submitting manuscripts for CIRES at NOAA scientists, specifically speaking to Wiley Open Access journals?
- Guidance for publishing: https://bit.ly/CIRESaffiliations
- Use CIRES/CU Boulder as primary. Acknowledge NOAA funding. Disclaim.
- Q/A re. Wiley: We have funding for publication fees. These funds come out of the usual sources for a person’s salary, generally task II funds for CIRES people based at NOAA
- We encourage authors to work out authorship issues on the front end
If a publication is entirely produced by CI employees, does it need to go through the NOAA approval process?
- No, they do not. See page 80 of the CI Handbook, “Approval Process section.
Science Plan
What is the Science Plan and what role does CIRES play?
- The science plan is an annual requirement. The plan includes descriptions of projects funded by the cooperative agreement for the 4 Boulder OAR labs as well as SWPC, NCEI, WPC, and Office of Education for a year (July 01 through June 30).
- The plan details are entered into insideCIRES and the individuals listed as the CIRES Lead are sent a link for reporting on the outcomes of the project at the end of May for the Annual Report to NOAA.
Hiring
What role can Federal employees play in the CIRES hiring process?
- CIRES welcomes participation by federal subject matter experts In the hiring process.
- Some units are limiting federal participation in CIRES searches and on hiring committees.
- This situation in some NOAA units is evolving, and we will continue to update you as appropriate. You can consult with the federal leadership in your lab/center.
Surveys
Can engagement and culture survey results be disaggregated and shared at a unit or lab level with all CIRES employees?
- The CIRES Culture Survey results will be added to this public dashboard in the next few weeks. Becca Ciancanelli, CIRES DEI Director, will offer a few sessions in May to discuss the survey results and future related programming.
- Engagement Survey results from April 2023 will be posted by unit in the month of April. HR will notify CMC and employees when all is posted. CIRES level results shared by Angela Knight, CIRES HR Director, at the October 2023 town hall, can be found here.
CIRES Communication
Could CIRES seminars be broadcast so CIRES @ NOAA employees can attend more easily?
- Most CIRES seminars and events are broadcasted through online platforms. If you are having issues connecting please contact
CIRES IT at ciresithelp@colorado.edu.
How can I get my work more widely communicated?
- Talk with Lauren Lipuma, email lauren.lipuma@colorado.edu, DSRC 3B513 about media requests, new research, fieldwork, publications, new/interesting findings, opportunities for me to join you in the field, training you’d like us to provide, etc.
Travel
Do I need federal approval for travel?
- You will need to request approval from CIRES Travel before booking any travel via Inside CIRES using the CIRES Travel Submission application.
- When traveling on Task II funds, your travel request must have an “acknowledgment” that states the travel being requested is under the scope of the project funding the travel.
- It is important to note that this is not an “approval.” Please do not use approval in the request to your federal colleague.
- If you are not aware of who can provide the acknowledgement for your lab/center, please reach out to cirestravel@colorado.edu.
DSRC Building
Can we host CIRES events at the DSRC?
- While we can host CIRES events at the DSRC, we are unable to pay for refreshments out of CIRES funds for events that take place at the DSRC. Examples of events that have occurred in the past are town halls, meet and greets, guest speakers, tours, etc.
Do CIRES employees have access to the health unit at the DSRC?
- For emergencies please call the DOC Boulder Dispatch at (303) 497-7777 and/or 911.
- Medical assistance is available at the DSRC for all on-site employees, including CIRES employees. For non-emergency medical assistance, call (303) 497-3801 or proceed to the Health Unit in Room GB101.
- Specific services available to CIRES employees at NOAA are forthcoming.
