The Faculty Development Council Faculty Development Funding Program

Call for Proposals/Applications

Eligible Applicants: All Tenured, Tenure-Track, and Clinical Faculty Employed Full-Time at The University of Texas–Pan American

The purpose of the Faculty Development Funding Program (FDFP) is to provide funds for faculty members to receive hands-on training by participating in training programs and workshops to enhance their skills in teaching, scholarly activities, and community services.

Application Deadline:  5:00 p.m., March 25, 2013

Application Process

The maximum award will be $2000 for an individual and $3,000 for a group. Furthermore,

1. Applicants should submit only one FDFP proposal per call, and no more than two proposals per academic year.
2. Any costs exceeding the award will be the responsibility of the award recipient(s).
3. Faculty may apply individually or in groups. If they apply in a group the amount of $3,000 will be divided by the number of applicants.
4. Awards must be expended by the deadline included in the Acceptance Letter.
5. An on-line application sent using the link “Faculty Application Form” below is required.
6. Awardees are required to submit a one-page report within 30 days after their funded activities have terminated.
7. Priority shall be given to applicants who have not received an FDFP award in the past year.
8. Each proposal should include a proposal description of one to four (1 – 4) typed pages. All proposal descriptions must include:
   1. A discussion about the significance of the training activity or workshop.
   2. How the activities will enhance the faculty member’s professional development and benefit the individual, Department and University.
   3. How the applicant(s) will disseminate the information and learning to other members of the faculty and/or students.
   4. A budget description broken down by applicable categories (e.g. travel & lodging costs, workshop registration fees, meals). If applicants will be using other sources of funds in addition to the FDFP, these should be included in the budget description.
9. THE DEPARTMENT CHAIR SUPPORT FORM (use link below) IS REQUIRED FOR EACH PROPOSAL. An additional recommendation by the Dean and/or Director is highly encouraged. Support letters should indicate whether Departmental or College funds will be made available for the activity. Matching funds for proposals are not required but are highly encouraged. Please specify if additional funding was requested, even if it was denied.

If travel costs will be incurred, include the location (city and state) and the purpose for the travel (e.g., workshop, mini-course, etc.), date(s) of events, and the actual travel costs as per UTPA travel policies (e.g., per diem, actual mileage, etc.) including documentation justifying costs (e.g., UTPA Travel Service airfare cost estimate, workshop information showing registration fees, hotel quotes, actual mileage if traveling by car, airfare from airline websites, government per diem). For more information, contact Dr. Marie T. Mora, Chair of the Faculty Development Council, 956-665-7913, mtmora@utpa.edu.

Criteria to Judge Proposals

1. Proposals will be accepted from tenured, tenure-track, and clinical faculty employed full-time at the University of Texas – Pan American for faculty development activities. Only complete proposals will be reviewed. Please note: incomplete proposals/applications are a frequent reason why applicants are not recommended for funding.
2. Developmental activity is defined as the “participation in a workshop or other training exercise in the area of the faculty member’s expertise and applying the developmental techniques learned during the workshop into the classroom and/or research settings, thus benefiting the students and faculty of the Department, College, and University.”
3. FDFP awards must be utilized for developmental activities that will clearly enhance the applicant’s ability to develop his/her teaching, research/scholarship, and/or service expertise.
4. Activities FUNDED include hands-on training or workshops that are clearly developmental activities for the benefit of the individual faculty member, the Department, the College, and the University.
5. Activities NOT FUNDED include conducting or presenting research, attending or participating in regular conference sessions, purchasing equipment, departmental development, and/or student programs. Also not funded will be travel for non-UTPA employees to visit UTPA to conduct faculty development activities on campus.
6. Travel to present a paper and/or attend regular sessions at a conference will NOT be funded unless additional developmental activities are incorporated and explicitly defined.
7. Proposals in this application cycle should be for activities occurring between June 1, 2013 and November 30, 2013. Activities scheduled before June 1, 2013 will NOT be funded during the current cycle. Proposals submitted past the deadline will be NOT be evaluated. Activities that will occur between December 1, 2013 – May 30, 2014 will be considered in the Fall application cycle (to be announced in early Fall 2013).
8. Faculty are encouraged to submit proposals that integrate critical thinking, writing, and speaking across the curriculum, or technology/training to enhance the applicant’s ability to engage in scholarly or pedagogical activities. Collaboration between or among faculty is encouraged.
9. Faculty are expected to seek departmental/college contribution of funds for all requests. Priority will be given to applicants who have sought additional funding.
10. Regardless of the focus of the request, it is important that the proposal clearly shows there will be explicit professional growth on the part of the applicant(s) as a result of the funding, and that it benefits UTPA. Proposals should be detailed in scope and budget, written clearly and concisely.
11. Applicants are encouraged to view an example proposal. Please email mtmora@utpa.edu to receive an emailed version of an example.
12. The maximum award per request is $2,000 for individuals, and $3,000 for groups.

Online Forms 

Faculty Application Form »

Department Chair Support Form »