ISC GUIDELINES FOR REQUESTING SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND CURRICULAR DEVELOPMENT

Requests for funding for activities listed below should be sent to the Associate Deans' Office. Requests for curricular development funding in areas where there are separate budgets for this (Centers, Wilson Program in Enterprise and Leadership, some concentrations, grants from external funding agencies, etc.), will be sent to those areas. Proposals must include persuasive justification for why the project falls outside normal departmental curricular development in your area of expertise and regular teaching and why the expenses for which you request support cannot be covered by normal departmental budgets. Examples of persuasive justification might include, but would not be limited to, projects adding diversity to the curriculum, promoting interdisciplinary or integrative learning opportunities, or using new pedagogy or technology to enhance learning. Proposal Evaluation Criteria:

  • Does the proposal fit with the College's strategic priorities, especially the emphases on integrative and inquiry-based learning and interdisciplinary curricular development?
  • Does the proposal exemplify and facilitate new or more effective kinds of teaching?
  • Does the proposal use technological tools or skills that instructors would be unlikely to acquire without special funding?
  • Does the proposal relate to courses that are, or will be, taught frequently?
  • Has the proposal already been partly implemented, so that some course materials can already be examined and assessed?
  • Does the proposal come from instructors who have not recently received similar grants?
  • Would this proposal not be implemented as part of normal course development in the faculty member's discipline?
  • Is this proposal collaborative?

Budget Guidelines:

  • Normally funding should not exceed $2,000 per project. Faculty members may request funding for expenses listed below.
    • wages for student assistants
    • materials
    • travel
    • courses for retooling or development of new skills (e.g., foreign language or technological competencies)
    • attendance at symposia or workshops relevant to expanding or new fields of knowledge critical to effective teaching at Grinnell
    • books, AV equipment, hardware, software, or digital media ONLY WHEN THERE IS A COMPELLING RATIONALE that these cannot be provided by the Library or ITS. All such items remain the property of the College.
  • Budgets may not include:
    • Computer hardware, software, and digital media - these requests are normally made through Information Technology Services
    • Books, journals, and other publications - these requests are normally made through the library.
  • Budgets must include any other realized or potential sources for funding, if applicable.