The Office of Creative Propulsion supports creative inquiry, interdisciplinary collaboration, and integrative arts practice across JMU and beyond. We believe that some of the most innovative ideas emerge when people from different disciplines, backgrounds, and perspectives have opportunities to connect, explore, and create together. Our role is not only to support specific projects and programs, but also to cultivate the conditions that allow meaningful collaboration to happen.
Through funding opportunities, fellowships, course development, project support, and resources for faculty, students, and community partners, OCP helps move creative ideas from inspiration to implementation. We work with artists, scholars, educators, researchers, and community members whose work crosses traditional disciplinary boundaries and explores new approaches to teaching, learning, research, and creative practice.
In addition to providing direct support, OCP creates spaces for connection, conversation, and idea-sharing. Over the years, these efforts have included initiatives such as Research Speed Networking, which brings together faculty and staff from different disciplines to discover common interests and potential collaborations; Arts Impact Panels, which explore the role of the arts in addressing complex social, educational, and community challenges; and Open Coffee Hours, informal gatherings designed to foster relationship-building, creative exchange, and new partnerships across campus.
Whether through structured programs or informal opportunities for engagement, OCP is committed to building a vibrant ecosystem for integrative arts. We help connect people, ideas, and resources in ways that encourage experimentation, spark new partnerships, and support creative work that transcends disciplinary, methodological, technological, cultural, community, and curricular boundaries.
Creative Support at OCP includes:
- Integrative Arts (IART) course development and supportProject and partnership development
- Fellowships and funding opportunities
- Faculty and student collaboration initiatives
- Networking and community-building events
- Creative consultation and brainstorming
- Professional learning opportunities
- Resources for interdisciplinary and community-engaged work
Looking for creative support? Contact us at ocp@jmu.edu.
