The Administrative Core supports the work of the five Projects and three Cores in terms of administrative planning, oversight, and management of the Yale ACE. It will also monitor utilization of the other Core resources and integration of the projects within the Center as well as coordinate, as appropriate, activities with other grants within the Yale Autism Program, as well as with NIH and central data repositories such as the National Database for Autism Research (NDAR) and the OpenfMRI database. Allocation of resources and general oversight of the entire program project are central functions of this Core. The overall concerns of the Administrative Core are to maintain efficiency, to ensure compliance with university and HIC regulations, and to maintain smooth and efficient functioning of the research program as well as optimal utilization of Core resources. The work outlined in the five Project areas is thematically connected through links in scientific constructs, subject cohorts, methods, and data sharing, thus, this multidisciplinary Center requires a highly integrated system of communication and coordination from the Administrative Core. An internal Executive Committee (EC) will be convened, comprising all Project Directors (Dr. Chawarska, Dr. Constable, Dr. Ment, and Dr. Vaccarino) and Core Leads (Dr. Powell, Dr. McPartland, Dr. Volkmar, Dr. Macari, and Dr. Chang). The EC will oversee the entire Center, meeting on a monthly basis to set policies, engage in fiscal planning, review progress in the specific project areas and budgets, foster integration and communication across projects and Cores, manage data sharing across the Center, and supervise the publication plan. We will also establish an Internal Advisory Committee, who will receive quarterly updates and meet annually with the EC to discuss progress and provide quality control. In addition, a Center Advisory Committee will be established, including external scientific members as well as lay members. A key effort of the Administrative Core will be to make certain that the abundant resources of the Yale Autism Program, the Child Study Center, and the Medical School are streamlined in support of this endeavor. A web-based collaborative work-space will be created and a communications tool will be implemented, both of which will enhance collaboration and communication. Coordination of the work of the Administrative Core with that of the Clinical Characterization and Statistical Analysis Cores will be a key objective, in order to monitor use of resources, ensure compliance with NIH and IRB regulations, and engage in overall strategic planning. Similarly, efforts to ensure effective dissemination of research findings, community outreach, and recruitment enhancement by the Dissemination and Outreach Core will be supported by this Core to maximize the impact of the program project. This effort will use the expertise and experience of Drs. Chawarska and Constable in coordination of research activities involving various investigators and disciplines.
