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Faculty-Directed Research Component

Faculty-directed research is accomplished through Town+Gown's two Master Contracts and third-party funded research.  For more information, please see below or contact Terri Matthews, Director, at matthewte@ddc.nyc.gov.


For Agencies

Master Academic Consortium Contract

This master contract for general academic research services (the "Consortium Contract") has a consortium pool of the 14 academic institutions (the "Consortium") below:


Any combination of City agencies, State agencies and certain not-for-profit corporations, using their own funds, can utilize the Consortium Contract by submitting a Town+Gown RFP to Town+Gown, as Consortium Contract administrator, for transmission to the Consortium. The Consortium institutions respond with their Proposals in Response, and the Proposal in Response selected by the requesting entity becomes the Task Order for the research project. 


Inventory on Water-Related Research from Member Institutions for UNESCO MAWAC-ENAR Workshop

Town+Gown supported NYC DEP and NYU Tandon, co-hosts for UNESCO’s Megacities Alliance for Water and Climate (MAWAC)-European North American Region (ENAR) two-day Water Research & Innovation (WRI) Workshop on March 20 and 21, 2023. The aim of the WRI Workshop is to develop a collaborative and sustainable working relationship among these cities and their academic research partners and to develop and support multi-city applied water-related research projects that address issues common to the participating cities. The March 20 session involved presentations by the participating cities—Paris, London, Chicago, Los Angeles and NYC—on their water-related research interests.

Terri Matthews, Director of Town+Gown, presented on its Master Contract, noting that it is a replicable procurement model for sustained urban practitioner and academic collaboration on applied research projects that reflects academic practice and that the Master Contract is available for collaborative research projects identified through the post-WRI Workshop process that involve City agencies. She also prepared and distributed a Town+Gown:NYC Master Academic Consortium Contract Research Inventory from Member Institutions containing water-related research done by 12 of the 15 institutions in the Master Contract Academic Consortium for the WRI workshop participants to showcase water-related research done by these schools.

Two of the presenters at the NYC session—Jennifer Cherrier of Brooklyn College/CUNY and Patrick Gurian of Drexel University—presented on research conducted for NYC DEP under the Town+Gown Master Academic Consortium Contract. Andrea Silverman of NYU/Tandon, Zehra Kuz of Pratt Institute, and Melissa Enoch and Jennifer Farmwald of NYC DEP also presented at the NYC session.


Master Applied Construction Innovation Research Services Contract

This master contract for applied practice-based innovation research in construction, engineering design, and management is with the Institute of Design and Construction Innovation Hub at New York University, Tandon School of Engineering (“Institute”).  The Institute is a membership-based and industry-supported academic research center that conducts applied and practice-based research, within its collaborative platform of faculty and industry members who are experienced and independent experts, on innovation in construction, engineering design, and management aimed at improving efficiency and cost control, while emphasizing sustainability, fiscal responsibility, and safety.  This master contract is similar to the Consortium Contract with respect to requesting entities using their own funds and the templates for RFPs, Proposal in Response and Task Orders.

This is Town+Gown’s first master contract with a membership-based research center and is distinct from the Consortium Contract. This model is available to other membership-based research centers wishing to work with City agencies that cannot participate as members.


For Consortium Members

The Gown Advisory Council (GAC) is created under the Consortium Contract with each of the academic institutions listed above.  The GAC representatives (see GAC Contacts List below) receive and distribute all T+G RFPS, and the GAC meets periodically to raise, discuss and resolve issues related to the Consortium Contract. 


Third-Party Funded Research

Town+Gown is available to become a named collaborator on third-party grant funded research projects. If a researcher is interested in exploring having Town+Gown as a named collaborator, please contact Terri Matthews, Director.


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