History
The corporation was established in 1946 as an educational institution dedicated to research, development, and education in the physical, biological and engineering sciences. It was granted an absolute charter by the Board of Regents of the State University of New York Education Department; the charter called for AUI to "acquire, plan, construct and operate laboratories and other facilities" that would unite the resources of universities, other research organizations and the Federal Government. It was envisioned that AUI would create facilities and laboratories so large, complex, and costly as to be outside the scope of a single university. These facilities were to be made available on a competitive basis to all qualified scientists without regard to affiliation, as well as to resident scientific staff.
Nine northeastern universities joined in sponsoring AUI in 1946: Columbia University, Cornell University, Harvard University, The Johns Hopkins University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, the University of Rochester, and Yale University.
Over the years, AUI has taken on a broad national character with a diversified Board of Trustees from universities and other institutions across the country. At the same time, the nine founding universities remain represented, although ties to their administrations are not of a formal nature.
AUI Function
AUI operates the NRAO under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation. The Corporation is responsible for oversight and audit of the operation of NRAO. AUI appoints the Observatory Director, approves appointments of tenured staff and senior managers; reviews ongoing programs and budget; and oversees long-range planning and proposals for new, major facilities. These actions are reviewed by the NSF, with NSF approval required for major commitments.
As specified in its charter, AUI is governed by a Board of Trustees, which elects Corporate Officers to serve the Board in carrying out the day-to-day business of the Corporation. The number of elected Trustees is currently authorized at 22 members. The AUI President, if not already a member of the Board by election, serves as a Trustee ex officio. Since AUI is an independent corporation and not a consortium, individual Trustees serve as fiduciaries and do not represent their home institutions on the Board.
A great strength of AUI is the fact that its Board of Trustees deliberately maintains a broad balance of expertise in all major areas of science, as well as extensive experience in senior administration. As Corporate activities have changed, the Board has likewise restructured itself to ensure appropriate institutional participation and individual expertise in its membership.
The Board of Trustees delegates certain review functions to its standing committees, including an Executive Committee that meets more frequently than the full Board. Board members, in concert with Corporate personnel, participate in audit and financial planning of the Corporate budget and reserves as well as those of the NRAO. AUI employs a Visiting Committee of independent experts to review the quality and scope of ongoing and planned scientific programs at NRAO. This Committee is composed of distinguished scientists drawn from universities and industrial organizations all over the world.
AUI financial statements are available on request.
