COAS Vision
To be a nationally recognized leader in future-facing liberal arts education and transformative research. We unite tradition with innovation as we foster student success across the academic journey and enrich communities local and global through our research and creative activity.
Program purpose
Innovation is part of the College of Arts Sciences’s long-standing identity, and it is at the core of our strategic plan. This program will support the many forms that innovation takes in the college by creating a mechanism for faculty and staff to submit ideas and seek funding to support the development of their innovative ideas. The program will identify and lower the barriers to individual and collective innovation in COAS.
Total Program Budget
COAS plans to invest up to $250,000 in projects each year for three years. Projects can be renewed pending review. Small, medium and large requests are all welcome. The size of the request should be scaled to the goals and deliverables of the project. Please see additional funding scope below.
Proposal Eligibility
The College of Arts and Sciences Innovation Lab Implementation Group, in partnership with the Student Success and Retention, Thriving Community, and Research and Creative Activity Implementation Groups, invites proposals from all permanent full-time faculty and staff in the college. Collaboration is encouraged, including with COAS adjunct faculty. Proposal tracks align with goals and priorities in our COAS Strategic Plan.
Proposals should address at least one of these three tracks:
Track 1:Â Student outcomes and impacts
Projects aligned with this proposal track include but are not limited to curriculum design and redesign; creation and scaling of experiential learning opportunities; creation and scaling of career readiness initiatives; integration of new technologies to support student learning and progression toward degrees; development of transdisciplinary learning opportunities; connection of Idaho industry and community needs to curricular offerings; development of peer mentoring initiatives; design of activities or structures that help create a sense of belonging for students; implementation of inclusive pedagogies; and other opportunities for supporting and advancing the COAS SERP. This track supports proposals related to graduate and undergraduate education.
Track 2:Â Process improvements for community thriving
Projects aligned with this proposal track include but are not limited to program, department, and college process or policy revision; creation of faculty or staff professional development opportunities; identification of strategies for workplace and employee wellness; design of new mentorship, collaboration, or outreach opportunities; and development of programs to ensure that all communities thrive.
Track 3: Scholarship transformation
Projects aligned with this proposal track include but are not limited to support for structures that bring together scholars from diverse disciplines to create new kinds of inter- or transdisciplinary collaboration; support for scholars that do work within a single discipline but are interested in broadening their impacts, expanding their audiences, or integrating students; support for the creation of bridges between scholarship in a discipline or across disciplines and industry and community partners; training for a group of scholars who would all benefit from becoming acquainted with a new skill, technique, or methodology; and design of programming that might be housed in the COAS Research and Creative Activity Hub. Projects contributing to the improvement of the culture of research and creative activities are strongly encouraged.
Funding scope
The size of the awards will be scaled to the individual proposal. Through a two-step vetting process, the Implementation Group reviewers will work with applicants to ensure the scope and funding of the project are aligned with the COAS vision. They will also follow up with applicants as needed to clarify or enhance sustainability plans. The funded work must either conclude during the funding period, or there must be a clear plan for how the work is financially sustainable. Good ideas for projects that aren’t sustainable or complete will need to be phased out at the appropriate time.
Step 1: Notice of Interest
Share your project idea with the review committee, which is composed of members from the COAS Implementation Groups. The NOI should be brief, and can be a video, an audio file, a written abstract, or another delivery mechanism that clearly and succinctly conveys your idea. It should not exceed the equivalent of 500 words or a 3-minute audio/video file. NOI’s should address the following:
- What is your idea/project?
- What problem or opportunity is being addressed by your idea/project?
- How does the project align with the Vision of COAS?
- How does the project align with Tracks 1, 2, or 3, or multiple Tracks?
NOI’s will be assessed on the merits of the proposal, including the work’s ability to have ongoing transformative impact, rather than the novelty of the specific NOI medium. We encourage NOI media that make the most sense for how you can effectively communicate your idea, interest, and joy around the project.
The review committee will meet to consider the NOI submissions, and they may ask to meet with applicants to provide feedback, or give additional support. The review committee will encourage a select number of candidates to submit full proposals.
Step 2:Â Full Proposal
Details of the full proposal process will be provided to applicants whose work is selected from Step 1 to submit a full proposal that will be assessed by the review committee.
Tentative Timeline
- NOI due 1/7/23
- Committee reviews applications 1/9/23 through 1/17/23
- Applicants are notified 1/23/23
- Full proposals due 3/15/23
- Decisions made and applicants informed by 4/1/23