Athens, Ga. (July 11, 2005) — The Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach (OVPPSO) solicits proposals from tenure-track faculty and all public service faculty members for OVPPSO Scholarship of Engagement Grants. Through the grant program, the OVPPSO seeks to encourage innovative, sustainable outreach activities that apply faculty expertise to community needs. Outreach activities can include service learning and service-based instruction; community-based participatory research, applied research, and policy analysis; technical assistance; and program development and delivery.

Proposal Deadline for 2005-2006: September 15, 2005

What is the Scholarship of Engagement?

“Service is often seen as somehow outside the ‘real’ work of scholars…. One way to make faculty service a more legitimate use of faculty resources is through a scholarship of engagement, where outreach and service activities are treated as scholarly activities in the same way that research always has been and teaching is increasingly. When faculty and administrators finally embrace a scholarship of engagement and acknowledge the important role of service in both the internal and external functioning and health of the campus, then faculty can begin to experience integrated academic lives, with teaching, research, and service reinforcing and supporting one another. The scholarship of engagement challenges faculty to view their work in addressing community needs as a means to connect and apply disciplinary expertise to needs that exist in the community and to integrate the lessons learned into their research and teaching.” (Ward, 2003, p. v-vi)

Purpose

The Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach (OVPPSO) solicits proposals from tenure-track faculty, clinical-track faculty, and all public service faculty for Scholarship of Engagement Grants for University Engagement (SEGUE). Through the grant program, the OVPPSO seeks to encourage innovative, sustainable outreach activities that apply faculty expertise to community needs. Outreach activities can include service-learning and service-based instruction; community-based participatory research, applied research, and policy analysis; technical assistance; and program development and delivery. Special consideration will be given to proposals with an emphasis on service-learning.

Outreach activities funded under the Scholarship of Engagement Grants Program should address issues related to:

• strengthening the economic and social well-being of people living in Georgia and the Southeast; and
• the changing demographic profile of Georgia and the Southeast, in particular the increasing Latino population.

Issues addressed may include healthcare, education, housing, transportation, access to capital, leadership development, community development, or other issues.

In addressing these issues, the SEGUE grants are intended to provide seed money to academic faculty who would like to incorporate outreach activities into their teaching and research, and to clinical and public service faculty who would like to initiate a new outreach activity that complements their current work.

Activities supported by the SEGUE grants should lead to a larger project concept and the submission of a proposal for external funding. While preference is given to sustainable projects that have potential long-term impact, proposed projects should also be able to show tangible results in the short-term. Proposals should clearly outline both the short-term and the potential long-term outcomes. SEGUE grants are not intended to provide support for established areas of teaching, research or outreach, or previously funded projects.

Community needs cannot be answered by a single disciplinary response. Special attention will be given, therefore, to proposals that demonstrate collaboration by faculty members across disciplines and units and include partnerships among academic or clinical faculty members and public service faculty members.

Call for Proposals:The program is funded and administered by the Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach (OVPPSO). Questions should be directed to Dr. Trish Kalivoda, Associate Vice President for Public Service and Outreach, at 542-6125 or .

SEGUE program proposals should be submitted online at http://www.uga.edu/outreach. Please follow the link to the application. You must also mail one hardcopy of all application materials to: SEGUE/IDEAS Grant, Treanor House, 1234 S. Lumpkin St. Athens, GA 30602. The application deadline is September 15, 2005.

Service-Learning

Service-learning is participatory learning through organized service experiences that address community needs by way of a collaborative process between the school and the community. As a form of experiential education, it is in accord with problem based and case-study pedagogical approaches where “action oriented” learning is a way to reconnect the academy in general and students in particular with the community. For more information about what service-learning is, and a description of the differences between volunteerism, community service, and service-learning, please see http://www.uga.edu/servicelearning.

Eligibility

Eligibility is limited to tenure-track faculty, clinical faculty, and to all levels of public service faculty (representative, assistant, associate, and senior associate). Temporary, visiting, adjunct, or part-time faculty members are not eligible, nor are postdoctoral research or teaching associates.

Only one proposal may be submitted to the SEGUE and IDEAS programs by an eligible individual. Two or more individuals may submit a joint proposal, although no individual may serve as an applicant on more than one project.

Review Process
Proposals will be reviewed by a committee appointed by the OVPPSO. Recommendations of the review committee will be forwarded to the OVPPSO for final funding decisions.

Funding Limit
SEGUE proposals will generally be awarded up to $5,000. Proposals with larger budgets should have strong justification. Demonstration of matching funds is encouraged.

Use of Grant Funds
Grants are intended to support the development of new outreach activities. The program is not intended to be a source of support for an ongoing program, nor is it an alternative source of funds for programs already developed to a level which normally would justify support from external sources. SEGUE grant funds should not be used as matching funds, where such funds are required as part of an external proposal. Funds cannot be used to support travel to attend professional meetings or conferences. SEGUE grants are state funds and subject to all state guidelines, and are to be expended within the FY06 year (before June 30, 2006, and subject to all university spending deadlines).

SEGUE grant funds may be used for:

• Support for undergraduate and graduate student involvement in the outreach project. Grants are not intended to support students’ thesis or dissertation research. Proposals requesting undergraduate or graduate student participation should make clear the role played by the student in the outreach project, and highlight how the project contributes to the students’ learning experience.
• Travel expenditures required by the outreach project (excluding travel to professional meetings).
• General expenditures for supplies, equipment, materials, services, and personnel required by the outreach activity. The grant does not support expenditures on computers.

Deadline
SEGUE grant proposals should be submitted to the Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach on their webpage http://www.uga.edu/outreach. The application deadline is September 15, 2005.

Proposal Format
Applications should include:

1. An application form available in the OVPPSO (542-3352) and on the OVPPSO Web site at http://www.uga.edu/outreach.

2. A letter of support by the department / unit head.

3. A current abbreviated curriculum vitae.

4. Budget: Applicants should include a detailed, itemized FY06 budget listing the following categories:

o Salaries and wages (staff benefits need not be included)
o Undergraduate and graduate student support
o Travel (excluding travel to professional meetings)
o General expenses (office supplies, services, etc.)
o Equipment (items over $1,000 listed)

Matching funds and additional support for the project should be listed. SEGUE grants are state funds and subject to all state-funds guidelines, and are to be expended within the FY06 year (Before June 30, 2006 and subject to all university spending deadlines).

5. A narrative description of the project that includes the following:

o Abstract. No longer than 100 words to summarize the proposal’s main points.

o Description. Provide a brief overview of the rationale or need for the activity/project, and the objectives, methods, and target audience.

o Scholarship. Describe the role of the applicant’s professional expertise in the design and execution of the project. For example,

• How does the applicant propose to apply his/her specific discipline or expertise to address a societal/human problem or challenge?
• How will the activity complement the applicant’s teaching, research, or outreach programs?
• Does the project’s design integrate other disciplines? Explain.
• Does the project bring together academic or clinical and public service faculty? Explain.
• Does the project generate demonstrate significant integration and impact on the student learning experience, either in a specific course or program of study?

o Impact. Describe the anticipated impacts, both short-term and long-term. Evidence of impact can include both quantitative results (e.g. changes in test scores, or widespread adoption of a product or technique) and qualitative results (e.g. testimonials from or assessments by participants).

o Implementation Timetable. A complete timeline and schedule of activities to accomplish the project’s objectives should be included.

o Plan for Future Support. Applicants should identify potential external sources of support for the project, including pending proposals, and outline a plan for the submission of external proposals.

o Communication Plan. A brief outline of how information about the project will be disseminated to the community (both the university community and the broader community) should be included.

6. Institutional Review Board approval. Human Subjects forms, if applicable, should be submitted to the appropriate office for approval. Please contact the Human Subjects Office at 542-3199 to determine if your proposal will require Institutional Review Board approval. Attach a copy of the request to your proposal. This will be included only in the hardcopy version of the application.

Submission

The grant application packet should be prepared in the following manner:

• The completed application packet should total 10-12 pages in length (excluding the application form).
• One-inch margins.
• A type size no smaller than 12-point font.
• Application materials should be uploaded on the Public Service and Outreach webpage. Please see the application link on http://www.uga.edu/outreach. Accepted file extensions include: .doc .pdf .wpd .txt .jpg .png .gif .tif .pages.
• One hardcopy version of the entire application, including Departmental Endorsements and Institutional Review Board approval request, should be mailed to SEGUE/IDEAS Grants, Treanor House, 1234 S. Lumpkin St. Athens, GA 30602. You must also complete the online application procedure for consideration.

The application deadline is September 15, 2005.

Proposal Evaluation Criteria

1. Purpose and quality of the project including relevance to priorities of the unit and the University.
2. Extent to which students will be directly involved – is there a service-learning component?
3. Anticipated overall impact of project including number or proportion of students and/or community members affected.
4. Existence of interdisciplinary collaboration on the project.
5. Budget justification and clarity.
6. Commitment and support of the requesting unit for the project including demonstration of matching funds and potential sources of external funding.
7. Sustainability – will the project be maintained past the SEGUE/IDEAS funding cycle?

Review and Awards

Proposals will be reviewed based on the listed proposal evaluation criteria by a committee appointed by OVPPSO. Recommendations made by the committee will be considered by OVPPSO for final funding decisions. OVPPSO will take into account the nature and number of exemplary projects that can be awarded with available funds and may offer partial funding for selected projects.

Project directors of successful proposals will be required to report annually to OVPPSO on progress or completion of the project. Reports should be based upon the evaluation criteria in the original proposal.

Proposers will be notified of funding awards by October 20, 2005.

This article was posted on Monday, July 11th, 2005 at 5:26 pm and is filed under Grants.