Dear Colleagues:

The U.S. government continues multipronged efforts to raise compliance standards related to outside influence on research, intellectual property, technology systems, and data security. 

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) recently released two memoranda aimed at supporting a fair and secure research ecosystem in the United States: Policy Regarding Use of Common Disclosure Forms, and Guidelines for Federal Research Agencies Regarding Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs. These memos provide clarification, definitions, and guidelines to federal agencies on implementing the requirements.  

As indicated through the memoranda above, participation in Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs (MFTRP) will prohibit researchers from applying for or receiving federal funding. To comply with this federal agency funding requirement, the institution (MSU), principal investigators and other individuals designated as senior/key personnel on proposed federal projects, will be required to certify that they are not a party to an MFTRP. In order to complete these certifications and to assist faculty with their federal disclosure requirements, questions related to MFTRP will be added to the MSU conflict of interest disclosure in early May, and responses will be required before MSU will submit applications or proposals.   

Our team has developed several resources on the Research Security website and we encourage you to review the information, in particular, the definitions and corresponding chart, before updating your COI disclosure. MSU supports faculty and their research endeavors and will provide assistance in navigating these processes. The Talent Program Resource team welcomes your questions at ORI.TalentPrograms@msu.edu.

Please watch for additional communications from MSU Research in the weeks ahead as we approach the May launch of the new requirement. In addition, we will provide further communication on related and evolving federal requirements related to activities, collaborations, commitments, disclosures, and training as MSU approaches are determined.

The Office of Research and Innovation and the Office of the Provost acknowledges that federal guidelines employ the term "foreign," which does not align with MSU's values. Federal terminology is only used where appropriate, and capitalized to define the Terms of Art that the federal agencies are employing in this area of compliance.

Best regards,

Douglas A. Gage, Ph.D.       
Vice President for Research and Innovation

Thomas D. Jeitschko, Ph.D.       
Interim Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs