Grants/Awards

Mini-Grants

Mini-grants are not currently available at this time.

As of spring 2008, approximately $9,400 has been given to academic units to assist with assessment-related activities. For example:

• The Department of English and Linguistics used the mini-grant to provide stipend for part-time faculty who helped to evaluate a sample of research papers collected from general education writing courses. The results of the evaluation have already been submitted and are now part of the department’s discussion for curricular change.
• The Department of Consumer and Family Science (CFS) is currently using the mini-grant funds to support a student worker to do data entry. CFS is conducting a needs assessment to determine students’ needs regarding the scheduling and sequencing of courses.
• The Department of Communication used mini-grant funds to support departmental assessment committee members to travel to the Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis Assessment Conference. This resulted in significant revisions to the department’s assessment plan.
• The Department of Psychology used the min-grant to fund a temporary staff to assist with compiling data collected from a survey of majors and alumni. This data played a major part in the department’s program review, and led to revisions in their assessment plan as well as curricular changes.

Download Application [PDF]

Vice Chancellor Assessment Project (VCAP) Grant

The Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs is pleased to announce the Vice Chancellor Assessment Project Grant (VCAP) to support and promote assessment effort and scholarly related activities on campus including but not limited to program review, accreditation, and a program's effort to improve their assessment plan and/or process to better achieve program/student learning outcomes.

VCAP Award Amount:

The award amount is up to $1500. At most, five selected eligible projects will be funded this academic year.  Funding may be directly used for project-related expenses. If additional funding is needed, please make sure that you have committed funds from your school/department. The funds can’t be used as salary or stipend for faculty. However, the money can be used for student workers, conferences, equipment, books, software, etc.

Application Deadline:

All proposals for the 2012-2013 academic year must be submitted by January 18, 2013. A peer review will be conducted by the Assessment Council to select and fund projects that have the greatest likelihood of maximizing impact on student learning. The evaluation rubric was attached to the email announcement. If you would like a copy, please contact the Office of Assessment. Recipients will be notified by February 15, 2013.

Project Significance:

Proposals must meet at least one of the following criteria:

1. Going beyond where you are now
2. Trying something that has not been done in your department
3. Implementing an assessment technique that is generally considered to be innovative or innovative in your discipline
4. Assessment of a multiple section General Education course

Examples:

• If your department has never had a formal assessment plan, you meet criteria 1
• If your department has not used rubrics widely, you meet criteria 2
• If portfolio assessment is seldom used in the teaching of your discipline, you meet criteria 3

Projects should be 3-12 months in duration.

Funding Timeline:

Funding of the selected proposals will be awarded upon completion of the project. However, early funding may be available if sufficient justification is presented. This request will not impact the evaluation of your proposal.

Eligibility:

All schools, programs, departments, and academic support units are eligible to apply. Proposals should be developed and submitted by or in consultation with the individual(s) responsible for assessment in the respective unit. Proposals must be approved by the head of the unit. In general, no more than one grant per academic year will be approved for an individual unit. Funding will not be released until IRB approval, if necessary, is granted.

Proposal:

• Describe your project and which condition(s) it meets. Provide evidence, if necessary, of how innovative or new your project is.
• State your expectations. How will the completed project enhance program assessment? Improve student learning? Help you improve your program?
• State the activities/tasks to be performed and who will be responsible for them
• Create a schedule or time frame
• Describe how you will evaluate the effectiveness or success of your project
• Explain how the results will be implemented
• Indicate the amount you are requesting and how it will be spent
• Include a completed signed agreement form
• VCAP Agreement form 

Responsibility of Recipient:

• Submit a written report of the project and its results, opportunities, challenges, unintended consequences, and how the results will be implemented to the Director of Assessment. The deadline for the report is January 15, 2014. Report will be posted on the Office of Assessment web site.
• Submit a progress report by September 15, 2013.
• Present the final written report of the work in 2014 at the annual assessment professional development day.

Contact:

Submit one copy of the application or direct questions to Suleiman Ashur (260-481-5411), Director of Assessment, via email assessment@ipfw.edu by January 18, 2013.

Awards

The IPFW Assessment Council will be collecting nominations for the second IPFW Assessment Celebration to be held sometime next spring 2012. During this time, assessment activities by departments and by faculty members will be highlighted.

We will also present two assessment awards that day. The first award will be to an individual faculty member or to a group of faculty members based on assessment work done on a single course or a group of closely related courses. The assessment council will determine the recipient(s) of this award from among those nominated for it. The award will be $750, to be used for assessment related professional development. All faculty members are eligible. Please consider nominating yourself for this award. The deadline for submitting the nomination will be announced..

The second award will be to a department that has done exemplary work in assessing its programs. The recipient of this award will be determined by the assessment council, and the selection will be based on the January 2012 annual assessment reports. The award will be $1000 to be used by the department on assessment related professional development.

Please click on this link to submit an award nomination.

If you have any questions, please contact Steve Sarratore, Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Programs.

Highlights of first annual IPFW Assessment Celebration