UO Foundation Trustee Excellence Grant

Overview and Program Goals

The UO Foundation Trustee Excellence Grant (UO-FTE Grant) aims to advance exceptional research, scholarship, or creative work by UO faculty in ways that translate to significant impact—be those contributions to their field of scholarship, the discovery of new knowledge, and/or meaningful connections and partnerships with communities.

The UO Foundation will fund two awards of up to $50,000 each to faculty. Awards will be made to a single faculty member who demonstrates a plan to advance high-impact scholarship and research in instances where faculty resources and/or external funding opportunities are limited. We do not expect to award funds via this program to faculty with significant active external or internal research funding.

Competitive proposals will clearly identify the impact of the research, scholarship, or creative work to be advanced, an appropriate and rigorous research methodology, and the impact of the proposed activity in terms of scholarship and social impact. Proposals that involve student participation in the proposed research are highly encouraged.

Questions about this program, application, or submission process may be directed to Research Development Services, rds@uoregon.edu.

Deadlines

May 15, 2023 Proposal Deadline
Late May Proposal Review
Early June UO Foundation Trustees Funding Decision
Late June Award Notifications
July 1, 2023 Start Date for Projects
August 1, 2025 Final Reports Due

Download Request for Proposals and Templates

Download Budget Template and Sample Budget

Eligibility

Principal Investigators: Eligible PIs are tenured or tenure track faculty and career research faculty with the classification of research associate, research professor, research scientist, research engineer, principal research scientist, or librarian with 0.50+ FTE appointments during the academic year(s) of the research award. 

Emeritus, retired, courtesy, visiting, instructor, and pro-tem faculty, as well as postdoctoral scholars, are ineligible to apply as principal investigators.

Budget and Use of Funds

Amount: $50,000

Length of Project: The project period begins July 1 and may not exceed 24 months.

Allowable Costs: Funds may be used for costs necessary to plan the research project (consistent with university and state rules) including:

  • Travel: may include funds to support a planning workshop, faculty retreat, to host a distinguished speaker who will help you initiate your project, or to travel to visit a program officer to discuss your project
  • Equipment
  • Materials and supplies
  • Contractual services
  • Salary for career research faculty, graduate students, undergraduates, and/or technical personnel under the supervision of project investigators
  • Other direct costs: e.g. core/shared user facility use, speaker stipend
  • The project period begins July 1 and may not exceed 24 months. 

Unallowable Costs:

  • Replacing current funding from another internal or external source
  • Renovation, remodeling, or alteration of research laboratories or core/shared facilities

Application Components

Application: The UO FTE Grant applications must be submitted using the online submission form.

  1. Application Form (online): Basic information is to be provided in the form’s text boxes.  (Note: the form cannot be saved part way through).
     
  2. Proposal Documents: (single-spaced text, Times New Roman font in 11-point or larger, and 1” margins).
     
        1. Abstract (250 words or less): A short summary of the project goals and activities.
        2. Proposal Narrative (4-page limit): Use the Project Narrative TEMPLATE at end of the RFP document to complete this component of the application.
        3. References Cited
        4. Biographical Sketch or CV (2-page limit per person): PIs should submit a Biographical Sketch or CV.
        5. Current and Pending Support (no page limit): For each PI, use the Current and Pending TEMPLATE at end of the RFP document to list any current and/or pending funding for any research project at UO, whether or not related to the proposed project.
        6. Budget: Use the UO FTE Grant budget Excel template.
        7. Budget Justification (no page limit): Use the Budget Justification TEMPLATE at the end of the RFP document to complete this component of the application.
        8. Departmental Approval (due May 19): Upon proposal submission, Department Heads for the PI will receive a request to approve the application, including authorizing the proposed budget and any departmental commitment (if any) for matching support designated for the project. Please discuss your proposed work and budget with your department head prior to submission to expedite the approval process.
  3. Optional Demographic Survey (online): The OVPRI is committed to creating an environment that fosters sensitivity to and understanding of the diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic backgrounds present in our community. The application form includes a section to disclose demographic information aimed at assessing the success of our activities towards this goal. Response to these questions is entirely optional and is not considered in award decisions. This information will not be seen by the review committee, but instead used by OVPRI leadership to ensure our internal granting programs are inclusive and equitable and serve diverse populations at UO. We welcome the submission of this information from all PIs on the project.

Submission Instructions:

  1. Complete all components of the application and combine them into a single PDF in the order listed above, with each component on its own page. 
    • Save with the naming convention [Contact PI Last Name] _FY 23 UO FTE Grant Proposal.
  2. Fill out the basic information in the online application form.
  3. Upload the complete PDF.
  4. Submit the form.
  5. Complete the demographic survey (optional).

Review Process and Criteria

RDS will conduct an initial review to ensure that proposals comply with all guidelines. Proposals deemed non-compliant will not be reviewed further.

The OVPRI will convene a panel to evaluate the grant proposal. The VPRI will present the top four proposals to UO Foundation Trustees, who will make the final funding decisions.

Applicants are informed of whether they are selected or not for the award; all notification letters will include reviewer feedback to assist with future proposal submissions.

Criteria: See the review sheet as used by the review committee when scoring proposals.

  1. Significance and Contribution: Is the project intellectually significant? What value does it offer to the faculty member’s disciplinary field and/or general audiences?
     
  2. Organization, Concepts, and Methods: Is the conception, definition, organization, and description of the project clearly articulated? Is the methodology sound and indicates project success?
     
  3. Work Plan/Budget Justification: Is the work plan and timeline feasible, appropriate, and supported by a well-justified budget?
     
  4. Competencies, Skills, Access, and Support/CV: Is the applicant well-qualified to carry out the proposed work and have the means to do so if funded?
     
  5.  Final Product(s) and Dissemination: What is the likelihood of achieving the project's final product(s)? How strong is the dissemination plan for its intended audience(s)?
     
  6. Broader Impacts: Are the broader impact activities being proposed related to the goals of the project and tied to societal benefits? How well qualified is the individual to conduct the proposed activities? Are there adequate resources available to the PI to carry out the proposed activities? Is the budget allocated for broader impact activities sufficient to successfully implement them?

Note: As stated above, funding preference is given to investigators without significant active funding from internal or external sources.

Reporting

A final report is required and due to Research Development Services no later than one month (30 days) after the conclusion of funding. RDS will supply awardees with a link to the final report form in the last quarter of their project.