The Office of Research and Grant Administration was incorporated in 1967 to coordinate all matters concerning research at Old Dominion University.  Grant administration became the exclusive business of the Research Administration Office’s Foundation.  These partner groups oversee grant supported work and document research performed by campus faculty, students, and staff.  The first official director of the office was Clifford L. Adams who made it into the principal engine for the development of funded research at the college.  The name of the office changed several times since its creation, becoming the Office of Research and Development, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, and then Office of Research and Graduate Studies.  In 2003 this office split into the Office of Research (with Robert L. Ash as the Interim Vice President) and a separate Office of Graduate Studies (with Philip J. Langlais as Associate Vice President). Today the Office of Research is led by Mohammad A. Karim and oversees the university's legal, ethical and safety standards and regulations relating to research. The Old Dominion University Research Foundation, while it acts as a separate entity to provide administrative, fiscal and support services, coordinates its efforts directly with the Office of Research to ensure Old Dominion researchers are given every available resource during the course of their work.

Note written by Mel Frizzell