In January 2024, the University of Michigan implemented the Standard Practice Guide (SPG) 303.06 to define the responsibilities of LSA faculty in managing their data, focusing on issues of data ownership, sharing, and retention. The SPG was created as part of the Research Data Stewardship Initiative, which supports U-M researchers in managing and sharing their research data to improve the transparency, rigor, and impact of their academic research. This policy will help faculty and researchers maintain and preserve research data, fostering greater collaboration and future research opportunities.
SPG 303.06 defines “Research Data” as any recorded material that research communities deem necessary or useful for validating, reconstructing, evaluating, replicating, and generating findings. This includes computer code, metadata, and observational records including laboratory notebooks or other forms of documentation. The SPG aims to increase widespread access and promote reuse of research data by calling all Principal Investigators (PIs) to make their data publicly available when possible, taking into account any existing agreements, contracts, sensitivities, or protections. In addition, data use and transfer agreements should be established before copies of data are sent outside of the university.
Furthermore, PIs must also retain data for a minimum of seven years after the completion of a project or publication. This retention time applies to all research data, regardless of the source of funding, and brings U-M in line with peer institutions, funding agencies, and national best practices. If a project or grant is funded by one of the major agencies, they will have policies in place regarding data management and data sharing. Additionally, research data created as part of the research process should be FAIR – Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable. The LSA research community should be aware of these policies and understand their responsibilities. The SPG 303.06 defaults to the funder’s data management, preservation, and sharing policy specifications if they are available. If you are receiving funding from a smaller organization, such as a charity, they may not have a policy in place. The university’s expectation is the adherence to the requirements as stated in SPG 303.06.
Since it has taken effect, LSA Technology Services has made steady improvements to comply, most notably by spearheading the SPG 303.06 Compliance Project. As part of this initiative, LSA Technology Services added a Business Process Consultant to the team, who has researched the SPG and conducted many interviews to gather requirements over the past few months. The project involves various research administration, desktop support services, and research generating departments throughout LSA. The goal of the project is to find and address compliance gaps and issues within LSA while assisting LSA faculty, staff, and students in adhering to this policy. Effective research data management and preservation will enhance research integrity and reproducibility, meet funder and institutional requirements, facilitate collaboration and data sharing, and protect data for long-term access and reuse.
Be sure to subscribe to our Innovate Newsletter to receive updates on the SPG 303.06 Compliance Project where more information about how LSA will be implementing processes and procedures to comply with SPG 303.06.
