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ACM-University of Chicago Faculty Development Grants

The University of Chicago, a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest from 1988-2008, has generously created an ACM Faculty Development Grant Program to promote interaction between ACM faculty and the University. The five-year program allows faculty at ACM member colleges to propose a variety of research activities that take advantage of the unique resources of the University of Chicago and help advance the scholarly agendas of liberal arts faculty. Awards can range up to $1,500.

Grants will support travel and costs associated with brief residencies or interactions at the University. The main areas of focus include:

  1. Participation in one of the Graduate Workshops sponsored by the Council on Advanced Studies in the Humanities and Social Sciences (CAS). These workshops typically involve interdisciplinary collaborations and presentations by university faculty members, graduate students, and guest speakers from other institutions. A full list of current workshops can be found at http://cas.uchicago.edu/.
  2. Focused research in the University’s libraries that takes advantage of collections and holdings otherwise not available to ACM faculty members.
  3. Participation in other collaborations with University of Chicago faculty arranged through ongoing disciplinary associations or participation in other University of Chicago-affiliated seminar or discussion groups.

Projects can involve a combination of activities. For example, a faculty member may participate in the meetings of a CAS workshop and build in library research time around that event. Visitor access to the University libraries will be arranged as part of the grant award.

Call for Proposals

Application Procedures

Grant proposals will be accepted on a quarterly basis (corresponding to the University’s Quarter system) and screened by the ACM Faculty Career Enhancement (FaCE) Project Steering Committee and the Dean’s Office at the College of the University of Chicago. Awards can range up to $1,500 for activities that continue over more  than one academic quarter.

ACM anticipates making from seven to ten awards in a calendar year. Grant periods will correspond to the University’s calendar:

 

Quarter: begins Quarter ends ACM Proposal due
Winter: January 4, 2010 March 20, 2010
 December 1, 2009
Spring: March 29, 2010 June 12, 2010
 March 1, 2010
Summer: June 21, 2010 August 28, 2010 June 1, 2010
Autumn: September 22, 2010 December 11, 2010 September 1, 2010

 


Proposals must include the following:

  1. A description of the proposed activities at the University of Chicago and an account of how the interaction would advance the research agenda of the ACM faculty member. Applicants should be especially clear about why particular resources at the University of Chicago are essential to ongoing research projects and what role this interaction will have in future scholarly work.
  2. An estimated budget that outlines proposed expenses and gives a timeline for activities at the University of Chicago.
  3. A curriculum vitae.
  4. A letter of support from the academic dean at the faculty member’s college.


At the completion of the activities funded under this grant, the faculty member will send a report to the ACM that includes a detailed expense account (with receipts) and a summary of the grant activities. Applicants should give an account of how the grant activity enhanced their scholarly agendas and plans for building on that work. A check will be issued to the grant recipient upon completion of the activity and submission of the final report.

Proposals will initially be reviewed by the ACM FaCE Steering Committee and then by the Dean’s Office at the College of the University of Chicago. Individual faculty members may apply for up to two ACM-University of Chicago Faculty Development Grants over the course of the five-year grant program, but not in consecutive years.

Budgets should be based on ACM Travel Guidelines. Housing at the University is available at the International House. It may also be possible to arrange for housing at a hotel in Chicago’s River North area through the ACM office.

Questions and completed proposals (preferably in electronic form) should be directed to John Ottenhoff, Vice President, ACM.

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