Data Management @ ODU

Welcome to the Data Management @ ODU library guide! This resource will help you get started with data management, including what it is, why it is important, and guidelines for best practices. 

Research data, as defined in ODU Policy #5350: Research and Scholarly Digital Data Management Policy, is digitally recorded information that are necessary to support or validate a research project's observations, findings, or outputs. This policy is maintained by the ODU Research and Scholarly Data Governance Committee (RSDGC) and establishes general digital data management standards and responsibilities for Old Dominion University researchers.

Regardless of the research methodology you use (qualitative, quantitative, or mixed-methods) and format of your research data (whether it includes numeric information, text, images, audio, video, or something else entirely!) managing your data from the beginning to the end of your research project will make the process more efficient, secure, reproducible, and compliant with funder and/or journal requirements. 

For information about the NIH Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Policy (effective January 25, 2023) please refer to the National Institutes of Health section of the Data Management Funder Policies library guide.

The ODU Libraries can assist with:

• Understanding funder and journal data sharing policies
• Writing data management plans
• Identifying and using data repositories
• Identifying best practices for organizing your data
• Metadata and documentation
• Connecting you with other campus groups, offices, and departments

We can also provide instruction, workshops, and consultations regarding the above topics.

Contacts:

• Nikki Galloway, Research Data Management Librarian, at 757-683-4184 or email ngallowa@odu.edu
• Your Subject Specialist

The University Libraries, Office of Research, Research Foundation, and Information Technology Services work together to provide support and assistance to researchers regarding the research lifecycle.

• Office of Research
  • Contact Karen Eck, Assistant Vice President for Research, at 757-683-3707 or email keck@odu.edu
  • For questions regarding Intellectual Property: contact Monti Dutta, Innovations Commercialization Office, at 757-683-4027 or email adutta@odu.edu
  • For questions regarding Research Compliance: contact Greg Cutter, Interim Assistant VP for Research Compliance, at 757-683-4929 or email gcutter@odu.edu

• Research Foundation
  • ​Contact Shannon Robinson, Associate VP of Research & Executive Director ODURF, at 757-683-3460 or email s4robins@odu.edu​​

• Information Technology Services
  • For questions about storage of large amounts of research data on ITS servers contact John Pratt at 757-683-3088 or email jpratt@odu.edu
  • For questions about geospatial and visualization systems contact George Mcleod at 757-683-6752 or email gmcleod@odu.edu

This video, Data Sharing and Management Snafu in 3 Short Acts, was created by the NYU Health Sciences Library and highlights "what shouldn't happen when a researcher makes a data sharing request" (NYU Health Sciences Library, 2013, Video Description).