Funding

9.1 Funds for Classroom Activities

A portion of the Mellon Foundation grants to the University’s undergraduate colleges for curriculum development is set aside each year by the dean’s office for classroom or co-curricular activities. Eligible categories for support from the Mellon funds include:

1. field trips;
2. guest lecturers;
3. academic travel that has a clear and direct relation to the enhancement of a course;
4. hiring a student to serve as a tutor or assistant teacher; and
5. purchase of instructional videos, software, and books for the library or audio-video centers.

Adjuncts and full-time non-tenure track faculty are eligible to apply for funds related to a, b, and e. Excursions are completely funded, but subject to a per-student cap. Applications should be sent to the dean or the associate dean of the college/school in which the course is offered in advance of the event, and receipts must be presented for reimbursement.

9.1.1 Curricular Enrichment: Fordham College at Rose Hill and Fordham College at Lincoln Center

All instructors may apply for curricular enrichment funding for activities directly related to course learning outcomes. Other requirements for this funding mechanism are that the activity will provide students with a scholarly or intellectual experience that links New York City to their Fordham experience; students participating in the activity will have an opportunity, through an assignment or class discussion, to reflect on the experience and relate it to their coursework; the activity is reasonable in cost. The dean’s office will issue a call for proposals and electronic submission instructions at the beginning of each semester.

9.1.2 The Challenge Fund: Fordham College at Lincoln Center, Fordham College at Rose Hill, and Gabelli School of Business

The Challenge Fund is designed to support faculty in carrying out projects that will enhance curriculum and teaching. Annual guidelines along with a request for proposals are issued at the beginning of the spring semester. One eligible category normally involves support for special workshops and public programs involving distinguished guest scholars and artists.

The Faculty Challenge Fund is open to all full-time faculty who teach at Fordham College at Lincoln Center, Fordham College at Rose Hill, or Gabelli School of Business (undergraduate). The selection committee consists of A&S and GSB deans and a group of representative faculty.

9.2 The Office of Research

The Office of Research is responsible for the coordination and facilitation of the University’s research policies and programs, and promoting research activities across the University’s academic units and among faculty and students. The office is comprised of several research units:

Office of the Chief Research Officer
The Chief Research Officer oversees internal and external support for research at the University and associated research policies. This includes the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP), the Institutional Review Board (IRB), the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), the Radiation Safety Committee, and the University Research Council (URC). Among other responsibilities within the Office of Research, the Chief Research Officer supports faculty in cultivating their personal and professional goals by administering Fordham-funded faculty fellowships, faculty research grants (see sections 9.2.1 and 9.2.2), and other internal award programs to enable the tenured and tenure track academic community to develop competitive research projects with potential for publication or subsequent submission to external funding agencies.

Office of Sponsored Programs
The Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) assists the Fordham community with the development, review, and submission of external grant, contract, and fellowship proposals, and is responsible for approving and submitting all such requests on behalf of the University. Faculty members should contact the OSP in the early stages of any proposal for help in locating possible funding sources, assistance with budgets, and compliance with University and grantor regulations. The OSP staff reviews, comments, and collaborates with faculty throughout the proposal process.

The IRB and IACUC ensure that federal, state, and University standards are met for the conduct of any research by any member of the Fordham community involving human subjects (IRB) and vertebrate animals (IACUC). All research conducted by members of the Fordham community is subject to review and approval by the IRB and IACUC.

Faculty directing research seminars or conducting classes where students conduct research using human subjects should make inquiries at the IRB Office about the review process by calling 718-817-0876 after consulting the IRB web page, fordham.edu/irb.

You are also encouraged to review the External Awards Manual, which you can download here.

9.2.1 Faculty Fellowships

Through the Office of Research, Academic Year Faculty Fellowships and Summer Faculty Fellowships are awarded to tenured faculty and non-tenured tenure-track faculty to carry out study and research required for academic development. Awards are made on the basis of the demonstrated research competence of the applicant, the value of the project submitted, and the project’s potential contribution to the University and to the professional development of the requesting faculty member. Please visit the Office of Research web page for further details.

All faculty who receive one of these fellowship awards should subsequently collaborate with the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) to develop the work from their Fordham fellowship into a future externally funded fellowship, grant, or publication (see 9.2 above).

9.2.2 Faculty Research Grant Program

Through the Office of Research, the Faculty Research Grant program enables tenured and tenure-track faculty to pursue research projects that will lead to new publications and successful external funding applications. Grants provide seed money by providing funds to cover the costs of conducting research. The program gives priority to pilot work for external funding applications.

All faculty who receive one of these grant awards should subsequently collaborate with the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) to develop the work from their Fordham-funded grant into a future externally funded fellowship, grant, or publication (see section 9.2).

9.2.3 Faculty Research Expense Program

The Faculty Research Expense Program is no longer administered by the Office of Research. Tenured and tenure-track faculty can seek small amounts of funding from approximately $100 to $500 from their department or school to support immediate research needs.

9.3 Academic Computing Environment

Fordham University’s Academic Computing Environment (ACE) is a digital space for faculty to conduct research and experimentation with innovative technology projects. As part of our Building Learning Spaces grant funded by the New York State Economic Development Agency and by working with the Faculty Senate Technology Committee, we have designed and built an infrastructure where virtual server builds are available to faculty who will be able to administer their projects themselves, with Fordham IT support available in the background. Links to all the ACE initiatives may be found at fordham.edu/ace.

Research Computing Cluster (RCC)

The RCC is intended to serve the research computing needs of all full-time Fordham faculty, making available a powerful set of multi-core computers running the Linux operating system to which you have secure access 24-7 from any internet connection. The RCC is administered by faculty. These fellow researchers understand the critical importance of having prompt one-to-one help in troubleshooting hardware and software issues, so you can concentrate on implementing your research ideas.

To obtain an account, simply email the RCC Administrator at [email protected]. Provide your office location and preferred phone number, and indicate the days and times when you are available to meet to set up your account.

A Sandbox Environment

ACE purposefully lends itself to experimentation and research on projects before bringing them to teaching or funding environments. Think of this as a sandbox, a private space where you work on and test a project before making it public.

Furthering Grant-Based Research

Faculty members can now include ACE resources as part of projects that support university initiatives, such as Faculty Innovators grants, Growing Research at Fordham grants, etc., where computing resources such as ACE are necessary evidence for the academic viability and institutional commitment in successful grant applications.

Collaboration

ACE can also be a collaborative space where you can work on a project with your colleagues at Fordham and beyond.

Types of Projects

Projects will be quite varied, from hard-core data crunching and large-scale survey analysis to digital humanities projects, meta-text ventures, and media presentations. Projects for ACE will come from faculty exclusively and will be faculty driven.

9.4 Travel to Professional Meetings

Tenured and tenure-track faculty in the Arts and Sciences should please consult the following link, for an overview of Arts and Sciences policies regarding reimbursement for academic travel. Gabelli School of Business faculty should contact the Associate Dean of Research and Faculty Development for information on travel to professional meetings.

9.5 Professional Development Funds for Adjuncts and Full-Time Non-Tenure Track Faculty

Adjuncts and full-time non-tenure track faculty may be eligible to apply for professional development funds available to cover certain travel and conference expenses. Please contact the Provost’s Office for additional information.