Types of Awards
Scholarly & Creative/Professional Development Grants
Scholarly and creative projects support faculty research and publication. Ideally, results that are subject to publication, exhibition, or other forms of professional peer review. Examples of acceptable expenses in this category include travel to research sites, equipment, consumable materials for science labs and art studios, library user fees, and photocopying.
Professional development projects enhance or develop new knowledge, expertise or skills that will enable the recipient to advance sustainability related teaching, research, creativity and civic engagement. For travel and other costs related to a conference or workshop, faculty should make use of the Dean’s Conference Fund first and request SEF funds for expenses that exceed their available balance. Examples of professional development include training, conferences, workshops or certifications.
- Stipends are not paid for this project category.
- Students are not eligible for this award.
Typically, awards of up to $3,000 are available for scholarly, creative and professional development projects. Funding should not to exceed $6,000 annually from all Dickinson funding sources.
Curriculum Development Grants
Curriculum development projects support faculty teaching and course modifications. These projects should advance sustainability learning outcomes in new and revised courses and/or co-curricular activities, and that require more time and resources than are normally available. Focus could be given to improving assessment-based learning outcomes towards the sustainability general education requirement or departmental revisions to include sustainability learning pathways. Projects that use assessment-based outcomes to improve teaching will be favored.
Examples of teaching projects that have high resource needs include incorporating active learning pedagogies such as living laboratory, service learning, community-based research and place-based learning; new technology; and substantial curricular changes and innovation. Funds can be used to cover stipends, equipment/materials and travel related to curricular development. Stipends of $250 per week are available for up to three weeks for summer projects when the effort is well above and beyond normal course development expectations.
- Equipment purchases above $2,000 are not eligible.
Typically, awards of up to $3,000 are available for curriculum development projects. Funding can not be combined with other stipended faculty work.
Student-Faculty Research Grants
Student-faculty research (SFR) projects promote sustainability research in any discipline that engage a student and faculty member as equal co-investigators or co-creators in a significant, collaborative research activity, scholarly project, or creative work to advance understanding of sustainability. The project should result in a peer-reviewed publication, presentation, exhibition, performance or other scholarly output. Both the student and faculty role must be substantial at every stage of the project. SFR projects normally take place in the summer when there is enough time for students and faculty to focus in a concentrated way on a shared project. They usually last eight weeks, but in some circumstances may be shorter. Faculty are eligible for a stipend of up to $500/week for up to eight weeks in summer assuming they are available for mentorship and collaboration with a student co-investigator/co-creator that entails significant contact hours with the student collaborator. Student researchers are eligible for stipends of $450/week and summer housing for up to eight weeks. Faculty and student stipends are not paid typically for student-faculty research projects conducted during fall or spring semesters. Research supplies and materials can also be included, but equipment can not exceed $2,000.
Typically, awards of up to $13,000 are available for student-faculty research projects.
Research Assistantships
Research assistantships enable faculty members to hire students to assist in the faculty member’s scholarly or creative project in an area related to sustainability. Student research assistants have less responsibility than a co-investigator or co-creator in a student/faculty project and perform tasks that are largely defined and closely supervised by the faculty member.
Awards of up to $3,000 are available for summer research assistantships and $1,600 for assistantships during the academic year.
Faculty supervisors of research assistants are not eligible for a stipend.
Student Travel
Students are not eligbile to apply for funding from the Sustainability Education Fund directly. Faculty and other staff may apply for funds for students on their behalf, in partnership, to attend an event that provides a significant learning experience related to sustainability or climate change and helps advance co-curricular programs of the college or it's sustainability iniatiatives. This can include, for example, presentation of work at a professional conference, attendance of a workshop or participation in a service learning activity. Faculty are encouraged to attend in partnership. Students are expected to produce a reflective work that explains how they and the college benefited from attendance of the event.
Typically, awards are limited to less than $500 per student or half the estimated cost of attending the event.