RCD Nexus

Welcome to the RCD Nexus, your Research Computing and Data Resource and Career Center. We are creating tools, practices, and professional development resources to support individuals and institutions. Note that for us, “Research Computing and Data” encompasses computing, data, networking, systems, software, instrumentation, and most of all, the people who support all this.

The main areas of emphasis for the RCD-Nexus include:

• A more robust and sustainable implementation RCD Capabilities Model and a new Community Dataset portal.
• Conducting an RCD Professional Staffing survey and sharing the results
• Advancing the adoption of the HR Job Family Framework
• Developing a Career Arcs resource for RCD professionals
• Curating leading practices for staff professional development, and for involving students in RCD/workforce development

The RCD Nexus portal will gather these and related tools and resources together to support the community. We place strong emphasis on helping to bridge the gap for smaller institutions that are struggling to get RCD programs started to support their researchers.

We are also excited to continue the work together with the various organizations that currently support RCD professionals and coordinate our respective work to provide a clear voice advocating for the profession. 

See also the Internet2 Press Release. 

Technical Reports

Schmitz, P., Brunson, D., Mizumoto, C., Jennewein, D., & Strachan, S. (2022). Towards a National Best Practices Resource for Research Computing and Data Strategic Planning (Technical Report RCDNexus-TR-2022.1)

Getting access to services

Some services are available now:

RCD Capabilities Model support and consulting
Email capsmodel-help@carcc.org to request an engagement. 

HR Job Family Framework support and consulting
Email rcd-nexus@carcc.org to request an engagement. 

Additional products and services will be added over time.

How can I learn more or get involved?

We’ve created an rcd-nexus-announce@carcc.org email list where we’ll share information about upcoming events, products, etc. You subscribe to that list by emailing rcd-nexus-announce+subscribe@carcc.org.

You can also check back on this site to see what’s new.

If you’d like to get involved with any of our activities, email us at rcd-nexus@carcc.org and let us know how you’d like to help. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is this new thing?

The RCD Nexus is an NSF-funded Cyberinfrastructure Centers of Excellence (CI CoE) pilot to develop a Research Computing and Data Resource and Career Center. 

How can I learn more or get involved?

Subscribe to the rcd-nexus-announce@carcc.org email list (e.g., by emailing rcd-nexus-announce+subscribe@carcc.org), check back regularly on this site, or email us at rcd-nexus@carcc.org and let us know how you’d like to help.

When will these services be available?

Some support and consulting services (e.g., for the RCD Capabilities Model) are available now (see info on services above). Additional products and services will be added over time.

Is this activity replacing CaRCC?

Not at all. The RCD-nexus is one of a number of initiatives that CaRCC is facilitating to support the RCD community. 

RCD Nexus Leadership

Dana Brunson (Internet2)	Overall program leadership and guidance
Thomas Cheatham (U of Utah)	Involving Students in RCD/Workforce Development
Claire Mizumoto (UC San Diego)	Professional Development of Staff
Patrick Schmitz (Semper Cogito)	Enhancing/Supporting the RCD Capabilities Model, Portal Development Oversight
Scott Yockel (Harvard)	RCD Professionalization (Job Families, Staffing Survey)