Major Award Decisionmaking at the National Science Foundation (1994) / Chapter Skim
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Pages 1-12
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From page 1... ...
Peer reviewbased procedures such as those in use at NSF, the National Institutes of Health, and other federal research agencies remain the best procedures known for ensuring the technical excellence of research projects that receive public support. Today, the nation is facing serious international economic competition, which extends to scientific end engineering research.
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From page 2... ...
Some of those involving the location of one-of-a-kind national facilities have generated the sharpest questions about selection procedures. Decisions by the National Science Board (NSB)
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focused on the roles of expert peer reviewers, staff, outside advisory groups, and NSB in the merit review process, and on the public explanation of the process, and its outcomes. In addition to examining NSF policies and procedures, and the organization and resources it has to carry them out, the pane!
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recommends a number of changes to strengthen or improve the planning, review and selection, and subsequent renewal of major awards. Detailed recommendations are contained in various chapters of the report, but the key points follow: Clear Rules of the Game The "rules of the game" (i.e., the criteria, procedures, and roles of participants in the merit review process)
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From page 5... ...
Appropriate Roles of Peer Reviewers and Staff The review process must; be structured so that the roles of peer reviewers and staff in evaluating and recommending proposals are clearly understood, and trade-offs among technical and other criteria are clearly explained, at each subsequent level of decisionmaking.
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From page 6... ...
The panel recommends a short, carefully prepared memorandum that summarizes the results of each stage of the merit review process and outlines the rationale for choosing a winning proposal (Recommendation 9~. Such memoranda would increase public understanding of major award decisions and therefore enhance public confidence in the system that produces them.
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calls for stronger planning efforts, including contingency plans for lower funding levels than expected (Recommendation i) , based in part on a broader range of input from research communities affected directly and indirectly by a major project (Recommendation 2~.
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NSB and NSF should take steps to ensure broader consultation with relevant communities beyond those benefiting directly from a major project award, including educational, governmental, and industrial organizations and institutions. Recommendation 3: Primacy of Technical Merit Criteria The NSB and NSF should continue to make technical excellence the primary criterion in evaluating the merit of proposals for major awards.
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From page 9... ...
Due account should be taken of the likelihood that cost-sharing commitments will in fact be met in the out years. Recommendation 6: A Two-Phase Merit Review Process For major awards, the peer review part of the merit review process should be conducted in two phases.
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From page 10... ...
Recommendation 8: Planning the Review Process and Criteria NSF and NSB should further strengthen their effort to implement a review process for each major award that (a) imposes a reasonable schedule, (b)
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In particular, as recommended above, any decision to pass over the proposal rated highest technically (Phase I) or to recommend a proposal other than the one selected in Phase 2 of the merit review process must be fully explained, and relevant documents should be publicly available.
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