Entry-Level Course Planning Grant (ELCP) Application Instructions

 

This grant program is designed for faculty to discuss their department’s entry-level courses.  This program would fund a day’s or a few days’ meetings, meals, and a facilitator, if needed.  Entry-level courses are the first course a student encounters in your discipline, so it could be your 100 or 111, or any courses where students start in your field, like Business 200, Marketing 300, Education 210, Engineering 150, Social Work 281, etc.

 

The ideas behind this program are that a department’s faculty would gather to discuss just what students are supposed to learn in their department’s first courses and what the best ways are to have students to learn them.  Possibly you want to parse out what should be common across sections and what should be left to individual teachers.  Perhaps you want to make it more inquiry-based, or examine measures that would tell you if new approaches are more effective.  Maybe your department wants to improve students’ writing skills across all sections of the course.

 

Costs should be calculated at $100 per faculty member per day, plus costs for meals, a stipend for the organizer, a facilitator, or books, if those are requested.  Funds available in 2007-08 are $20,000.  The deadline for proposals is May 4, 2007.  Submit seven copies of your proposal.  Send them to the address on the last page.  The length of the narrative should not exceed four pages with a 12-point font.

 

Guidelines for proposal narrative

 

1.  Brief Abstract (~200 words)

 

2. Rationale / Need for the project:  Describe the teaching methodology currently used in the course(s).  Is there evidence it should be changed?  What aspects of students' learning will be affected? How?

 

3. Goals: State your goals for the project.  What do you hope emerges from these discussions?  Do you have both broad and specific goals, e.g. implementing a more problem-based, thinking approach, or revision of labs or writing assignments?

 

4. Project activities:  What do you propose to do?  Indicate what specific products (syllabi, curricular structure, etc.) may result from your work.

 

5.  Preparation for the project:  Is there previous work that relates to the project? For example, team members might have attended a conference on a particular pedagogical technique, read books or articles about this approach, analyzed student outcomes, or observed classes that employ the methodology you wish to implement.

 

6. Evaluation:  How will you assess whether you have met your objectives?  How will you know that students’ thinking skills are improved (i.e. is there a good evaluation plan)?


Entry-Level Course Planning (ELCP) Grant Application Cover Sheet

 

 

Name :_____________________________ Dept./Program: _____________________

 

Mail # ______________Phone # _________ E-mail:___________________________

 

1.         Title of proposed project:

 

2.            Description of project suitable for use in publicity and reporting to a general audience (not to exceed 50 words; avoid use of jargon):

 

3.                  Intended start date: _______________

 

Project duration (in months): ________

 

 

4.         Total amount requested: ___________

 

5.         Have you previously received Bush Grant funds?   ___ Yes   ___ No

 

If yes, please describe:

 

 

6.            Estimate the number of undergraduate students who will be affected by this project, e.g. __ number of students in __ sections of a course offered __ each year = ___


2)  Budget Format page for Entry-Level Course Planning (ELCP) Grants

 

·  Applicants are expected to provide reasonably detailed estimates of all expenses. 

·  Capital equipment (>$500) may not be purchased with these funds.

·  The Proposal Narrative should give reviewers adequate justification for general categories of expenses.  Detailed expenses and other calculations must be provided in a Budget Explanation.

·  Other sources of funding should be detailed in a Budget Explanation, as applicable:

·  Indicate whether or not you have applied for internal or external funding of this project in addition to UST’s Bush Foundation grant.  As appropriate, list names of funding programs, both internal and external, and specify which expenses those programs are expected to cover.  This should also be reflected on the Budget form and in supporting documentation (such as a letter of commitment).

·  If currently funded by any UST Bush Foundation grants, list the grant type, year of award, and project title of each grant received.

 

BUDGET ITEM                           Grant Request            Other Funding            Total

 

1. Personnel /  Director Stipend            __________             ___________            ___________

           

2. Travel expenses                               ___________            ___________            ___________

 

a. Lodging                                  ___________

b. Transportation                      ___________

c. Meals                          ___________

d. Conference Fee                 ___________

e. Other (give detail)            ___________

 

3. Supplies, e.g. books

and refreshments             ___________        ___________        ___________

 

4. Duplicating, postage, telephone __________

 

5. Other (provide detail)                         ___________            ___________            ___________

 

TOTAL REQUESTED:                    ___________            ___________            ___________


3)  Grant Application Checklist

 

Submit the application to: Dr. Vanca Schrunk, Mail # JRC 432.

 

Check that your application package contains seven complete, collated copies of the following:

 

___   A.  Cover Sheet

___   B.  Proposal Narrative

___   C. Budget Format page and Budget Explanation (not required for Seed Grants)

___   D. Copies of supporting documentation, if applicable

___   E. Two-page vitae (not required for Core and Core Area Grants)

___   F. Grant Application Checklist (this sheet, signed and dated)

 

Other items to acknowledge:

 

___   G.  Final reports

I do not have any final reports due for previous UST Bush grants.

 

___   H.  Protection of Human Subjects of Research

I understand that if my research will involve human subjects, I must seek approval from UST's Institutional Review Board for the Protection of Human Subjects of Research (IRB) before beginning the project. See the IRB website for information: http://www.stthomas.edu/irb

 

___   I.  Final Report

Within three months of my project’s completion date,  I agree to submit to Program Coordinator Vanca Shrunk (c/o Bush Grant Mail # JRC 432, idschrunk@stthomas.edu, 2-5740) the following: 1) a project evaluation report, 2) an accounting of funds spent, and 3) assessment results. I understand that submission of this final report is a prerequisite for any future funding from UST’s Bush grant for Collaborative Inquiry.

 

 

 

 

Applicant

Signature:___________________________________________  Date:____________