Who Should Apply: Full-time tenure-system faculty from any/all CLAS units, across all divisions; non tenure-track faculty may serve as Co-Is
Deadline: Dec. 1, 2024
Funding: PIs should consult their AD for guidance on budget expectations. Budgets may span a maximum of two years. Continuation to the second year is contingent upon meeting milestones defined explicitly in the proposal timeline.
Funding for this opportunity is available to multidisciplinary groups that will build CLAS capacity for successfully competing for significant external awards that require or are enhanced by a multidisciplinary approach. Proposals must target the submission of a competitive proposal to at least one specific external funding mechanism.
The Strategic Initiative proposal should be no more than three pages that include:
- A description of the multidisciplinary team which must include faculty from at least two units, across at least two of the following CLAS disciplines (Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, Social Sciences, Humanities.) UConn faculty outside of CLAS may be included, but do not count towards this unit/discipline requirement.
- At least one specific external funding mechanism and include a specific target date(s) for submission of a proposal to the external entity/ies. Describe how the multidisciplinary team addresses the needs of the targeted mechanism(s).
- Timeline to achieve proposals goals. Include specific milestones that provide tangible evidence that the team is developing a functional, productive collaboration that will make it competitive for seeking external funding.
- Budget and justification for the anticipated expenses. Consult with your associate dean prior to fully developing your budget. If you would like assistance in developing the budget based on your specific needs, please email CLAS Grant Management Services. Projects may include faculty and/or student collaborators, but salary support will only be provided for individuals in CLAS units.
All proposals must also append a supplement that includes the following. The supplement does not count towards the proposal’s three-page limit.
- Acknowledgement from the unit head(s) of PIs and any Co-Is. This need only acknowledge that the unit head(s) is/are aware of the proposal submission.
- PIs and Co-Is must report balances for all current funding (e.g., grants, fellowships, startup, indirect costs, etc.). Proposals from PIs/Co-Is with unspent funds in startup, indirect costs, or other internal award accounts must justify the need for additional funds requested in this proposal.
- If the PI and/or Co-PIs have received funding from any CLAS program within the past five years, describe the outcome(s) and the impact achieved from the funding.
Additional notes:
- Faculty included in the proposal may not receive funding from any other concurrent CLAS research funding program (e.g., Academic Themes).
- Each faculty member may be involved in the submission of no more than one Strategic Initiative proposal as PI or Co-I.
- Proposal evaluation criteria will include:
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- Breadth of the multidisciplinary group. In particular, the inclusion of non-STEM disciplines.
- Significance of increasing capacity as specified in the proposal.
- Alignment of CLAS investment with potential return from successful proposal(s) to targeted external program(s).
- Degree of added competitiveness in the targeted area.
- Timeline feasibility and appropriateness of milestones to assess progress.
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Submissions must be made by Dec. 1, 2024 through the CLAS proposal submission portal.
A report detailing project milestones met and specific outcomes will be required by the end of the first budget period, June 30, 2026. If a second year budget is funded, all resources need to be expended and project outcomes need to be reported by Aug. 23, 2027. Provisions will be made to enable PIs to report longer-term outcomes.