‘Paper of the Year’—Protecting Shared Resources When Put Under Pressure

Research By: A. Nicole White, PhD, MBA

Post Date: May 21, 2026 | Publish Date: January 05, 2026

shared facilities

As federal research funding and policy conditions shift, shared research resources face new pressures that could reshape the future of research infrastructure

Behind much of today’s scientific research is a set of shared systems that support work across labs and disciplines. Core facilities, biobanks, imaging centers, and genomics platforms—often called shared research resources (SRRs)—provide access to advanced technologies, specialized staff and standardized processes that individual labs typically cannot maintain on their own.

But changes in federal research funding and policy are reshaping how these shared systems are supported—and raising questions about their long-term sustainability.

A study published January 2026 in the Journal of Biomolecular Techniques examines how scientists, research administrators and SRR leaders are experiencing this evolving landscape. The article was recognized as ‘Paper of the Year’ at the Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities annual conference.

“This matters because shared research resources help institutions be more efficient by reducing duplication of equipment and supporting collaboration across disciplines,” says A. Nicole White, PhD, MBA, assistant professor and Cincinnati Children’s Shared Facilities program manager whom is also the first author of the study. “SRRs play a key role in making research affordable for our Investigators, supporting training of scientists and enabling largescale, interdisciplinary research with state-of-the-art technology.”

Many Perspectives, Similar Pressures

The study gathered insights from more than 220 participants during a national conference session hosted by the Association for Biomolecular Resource Facilities. Participants included SRR staff, directors, administrators, and institutional leaders from academic, nonprofit, and industry organizations. Despite differences in perspective, respondents described similar pressures affecting shared research infrastructure.

Participants cited several contributing factors, including proposed adjustments to indirect cost recovery rates, variability in the timing and availability of federal funding, shifts in programmatic priorities such as workforce and training initiatives, and increasing administrative and regulatory requirements.

“A lot of the conversation around federal policy changes focuses on how we going to respond,” says White. “What participants pointed out is changes to how research is funded affects the shared resources that support research across institutions—and those systems are especially sensitive to shifts in funding and policy.”

Focus Group Findings

Focus group discussions surfaced a wide range of insights across eight thematic areas, including institutional policy, workforce dynamics, communication and operational structure. The findings below highlight the themes related to the sustainability of SRRs across institutions.

Financial instability
Participants consistently described concern about financial stability, particularly uncertainty related to federal funding, indirect cost recovery, and long-term institutional support. Several emphasized that unpredictable funding timelines, not just funding levels, create challenges for planning and operations within SRRs.

Workforce continuity risks
Respondents reported ongoing challenges related to recruiting, retaining, and training highly specialized staff. Participants emphasized that staffing disruptions—whether due to hiring freezes, funding instability or attrition—pose risks to service continuity, institutional knowledge and research timelines.

Gaps in leadership engagement
Participants cited inconsistent or unclear communication as a source of stress and uncertainty. Many noted that SRR perspectives are not always included early in planning or decision-making processes, limiting the ability to anticipate operational impacts or respond quickly to changes.

Operational inefficiencies
Discussions highlighted persistent institutional inefficiencies related to equipment purchasing, resource duplication and fragmented operational practices across departments or units. Participants noted that these issues can strain limited resources and complicate long-term planning.

Limited recognition of SRR contributions
Many participants expressed concern that existing evaluation and reporting metrics of shared resource performance do not fully reflect SRRs’ contributions to research, training, collaboration and innovation. This lack of visibility was described as a barrier to advocacy, funding justification and strategic alignment across many levels of governance.

Looking Ahead

Based on participant insights, the study outlines several approaches institutions can consider as they plan for the future:

Strategic integration: Engage SRR leaders in institutional planning, space allocation, equipment decisions and policy development.

Operational alignment: Standardize business practices, procurement and reporting to improve efficiency and coordination.

Workforce investment: Support cross-training, clear career pathways and shared staffing models to build resilience.

Collaboration frameworks: Reduce legal and administrative barriers to external and multi-institutional partnerships.

Visibility and evaluation: Use both qualitative and quantitative measures to communicate SRRs’ contributions to research, training and innovation.

“When institutions recognize shared research resources serve as the center point as strategic partners—not just service providers—it opens up more sustainable ways to adapt to changing funding conditions and support more stable, resilient research infrastructure,” says White. “At Cincinnati Children’s, we see this approach reflected in how shared resources are integrated into research planning, how collaboration across disciplines is supported and how we invest in the people and systems that sustain discovery. Keeping our focus on the value shared resources bring to advancing research is important for their sustainability. Because they rely on recharge rates and institutional support fueled by individual grants, it can be easy to lose sight of their value—and doing so ultimately makes it harder to move science forward.”

About the Study

Co-authors of the study included experts from Johns Hopkins, Rutgers University, Seattle Children’s, Fred Hutch Cancer Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Purdue University, Tufts University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and University of Kansas.

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Publication Information

Original title:	Voices from the Bench: Focus Group Insights on Shared Research Resource Sustainability Amid Federal Policy Shifts
Published in:	Journal of Biomolecular Techniques
Publish date:	January 05, 2026