Unlike other kinds of grants available to faculty, General Education Summer Grants are designed to strengthen and encourage collaboration in relation to teaching in the General Education program. We welcome proposals from groups of faculty (at least three per proposal) engaged in collaborative course modification, improving alignment across multiple sections of the same course, integrating new pedagogies, or other similar projects, and may involve faculty from within a single cluster or across several.
Grants will generally be awarded for $2000.00 to $4000.00. Funding may be used for stipends, software, supplies and refreshments. If stipends are sought, money will be allocated at the rate of $150 per day per person for a full day’s work related to the grant activity. Adjunct faculty may be included if participation is in compliance with new state guidelines for the yearly hourly average.12-month employees may also apply for and participate in grant projects, but are not eligible to receive a stipend.
Each proposal will be evaluated by the GEC Grant Committee using the following criteria:
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To what extent does the proposal encourage and support collaboration among faculty?
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How well does the stated purpose of the proposal describe its relevance to the General Education program?
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Is the proposal appropriate for the General Education program?
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To what degree does the proposal strengthen the General Education program?
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How well does the proposal describe the various activities/products planned during the course of the grant work?
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Is the budget appropriate?
Procedures & Deadlines
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The electronic call for proposals goes out in [date]. Proposers are strongly encouraged to discuss ideas for grant proposals with the appropriate Cluster Coordinator/s to determine feasibility and need of potential grant work.
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Use the correct Grant Proposal Format, Budget, and Endorsement forms (see below). Incomplete submissions will not be considered.
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Complete proposals should be sent electronically to the appropriate Cluster Coordinator(s) by noon on Monday, February 24, 2014 for his or her review. Signature pages should be submitted separately in hard copy form.
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The Cluster Coordinator will review and submit any approved grant proposals to Tanya Fitzpatrick (fitzpatm@jmu.edu) in the Office of General Education in either hard copy (signature pages) or electronic form (whichever is most appropriate) for distribution to the GEC Grant Committee by noon on Friday, February 28, 2014.
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The GEC Grant Committee reserves the right to contact the grant director(s) for additional information and/or clarification.
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Grant recipients will be notified before Spring Break.
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After the grant period ends, submit a short, written report to the Office of General Education by Monday, September 29, 2014. These grant reports should include the following:
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a review of activities supported by the grant;
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an accounting of the disbursement of funds; and,
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if appropriate, products such as course proposals, curriculum guides, or other items related to the work of the participants.
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Grant recipients should be prepared to offer a no more than 15-minute oral or video presentation to the GEC during a regular General Education Council meeting during October or November 2014.
Grant Proposal Format, Budget, and Endorsement Forms
NOTE: Use this information to create a Word document. You can also cut and paste information from the printable version. Examples of previously funded grant proposals are available upon request.
I. Information Sheet (one page)
A. Title. Give a brief title.
B. Director(s)/Participants. Include names of the individual/s submitting the grant proposal and who will be responsible for its implementation (the Director/s) and those other individuals who will have involvement in the grant activity (the Participants). If the specific individuals who will be participants are unknown at the time of the grant submission, then provide the number of individuals that will be expected to participate and those academic units involved.
C. Purpose. Give a brief statement concerning the purpose of the proposal and its relevance and contribution to the General Education program. Describe how this proposal benefits students and faculty. If appropriate, describe and how the grant will affect what is currently in place.
II. Narrative (maximum 1000 words)
A. Activity/Product. If the proposal entails primarily activities, describe the activities to be funded and, if appropriate, give proposed dates for summer workshops/projects. Clearly identify the intended outcomes of the activities. If the proposal is to be used for developing products such as syllabi or teaching modules, then give a detailed explanation of how these will be created. It is strongly recommended that faculty who are developing a new course spend some time interacting with the other faculty teaching in the cluster for the purpose of maintaining coherency within the shared content and/or concepts of that cluster. Cite any relevant sources.
B. Timeline. Give dates of relevant activities related to the grant work undertaken and the date of submission of the grant report. The deadline for the submission of grant reports is September 30, 2014.
C. Deliverables/Product. Please state and briefly describe the products or deliverables that will be shared with the General Education Council.
III. Budget (Attachment A)
IV. Endorsement Forms (Attachment B, Attachment C)
The grant proposal must include a completed Endorsements Form (see Attachment B) and a Cluster Coordinator Endorsement Form (see Attachment C). Signatures of the grant director(s) and the appropriate Cluster Coordinators, Department Heads/School Directors, and Deans are required.
Consideration will be given only to those proposals that conform to the above detailed format.
