Message to USC Faculty and Staff
From: Elizabeth A. Graddy, Interim Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
September 10, 2019
I write to let you know that Vice President of Research Randy Hall will step down from his position, effective December 31, 2019. Dr. Hall has been Vice President of Research for 14 years, and we are immensely grateful for his dedicated service. USC has grown into a top-tier research university, and Dr. Hall’s leadership has been critical to this evolution.
During his tenure, Dr. Hall directed USC into global leadership in interdisciplinary and collaborative research, administered USC’s entire research enterprise, and helped launch national research centers. He was uncompromising in holding our research to the highest ethical standards by creating an inclusive research environment, prioritizing the protection of research subjects, and maximizing our positive societal impact.
His focus on shared research enabled digital scholarship and catalyzed new campus policies on how research contributions are considered in faculty promotion and tenure. This outlook also led to the development of shared repositories, funding programs that support joint research, and the acquisition of shared instrumentation such as high-resolution microscopes and cellular analysis tools. He also launched the Washington, D.C. Office of Research Advancement to help USC pursue funding opportunities and research projects that promote collaboration.
Dr. Hall was the architect for the TARA (Total Access for Research Administration) system, which supports the management of research awards and proposals, core laboratories, and regulatory protocols. Working with the Academic Senate, he developed the Center for Excellence in Research, which guides USC faculty toward maximizing their research impact, and he provided support for faculty launching national research centers. He guided our increasing appreciation of the value of non-traditional results of research, such as software and commercial products.
Perhaps above all, Dr. Hall guided the ethical behavior of our research community. With the University Research Committee, he developed new standards for transparency and reproducibility, and created the framework for sharing data. He built an integrated research office that deals with complex issues such as technology transfer, conflicts of interest, compliance, subject protection, and training and ethics.
I am especially grateful for his team’s outstanding Strategic Plan for Diversity in Research, which covers the entire university. It establishes clear principles and procedures for creating an inclusive research environment and for conducting research that serves the needs of all populations, especially in health research in diverse populations and research that engages with our neighbors and other communities.
Across our university’s history, our best leaders have worked for the good of our campus community and for the public at large, and Dr. Hall has embodied this spirit of generosity for the entirety of his service. Through informed risk-taking, a spirit of collaboration, and a commitment to positive, lasting impact, Dr. Hall has demonstrated how to achieve excellence in research.
Dr. Hall will take a sabbatical and then return to the faculty of the Epstein Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering. We will keep you updated on our progress to find for our next Vice President of Research. Until then, please join President Folt and me in thanking Randy for his inspiring and selfless service.
Cc: Carol L. Folt
Academic Senate
Academic Deans
President’s Cabinet
Provost’s Cabinet