Bingham Innovation Grants

If you’re potentially interested in the opportunity afforded by the Innovation Grants, follow the steps below to Develop your Project, Read the Fine Print, and, finally, Apply. As always, contact us at bcte@transy.edu with any questions or for help developing your proposal. 

The visual image above should convey that, if you have expenses related to developing your teaching practice, you can apply for a grant! Innovation grants can support individuals and groups** for:

1. Integration of technology - to help students develop digital literacies; engage in innovative pedagogies, scholarship, and creative projects; receive training around technological tools and innovations

2. Pedagogical development - materials and services for innovative course (re-)design; collaborations that elevate pedagogy and students’ learning (e.g., adjuncts to cover team teaching, cross-division pedagogical projects)

3. Professional development - participation in pedagogical conferences or experiences; support for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (i.e., scholarly pedagogical projects)

**Groups of faculty may apply! We encourage applications for cross-program/division collaborations, program-level innovations, etc. 

If you have an idea but are unsure how it might fit into this Grants program, contact the BCTE Co-Directors for information and feedback. 

We are also happy to work with you to develop your idea into a robust application. In fact, we strongly encourage you to do so if you have an ambitious (or expensive!) idea. 

To give you context, the application will ask you to provide a detailed description of your request and a rationale about how this grant would enhance your teaching, including your goals and anticipated outcomes. 

The BCTE Co-Directors solicit and review grant applications in consultation with the DLA Fellow. They then make recommendations to the Dean of the University, who ultimately approves grant applications. 

The BCTE Co-Directors are responsible for developing policy, offering regular assessments, and transparent reporting, in consultation with the DLA Fellow and BCTE Advisory Board. 

Total funding per fiscal year per faculty member will not exceed $5,000 except under unusual circumstances or in the case of leftover money. Total available funding for individual faculty may be less than $5,000, depending on demand. 

Individual faculty may apply for multiple grants in one academic year. However, second or subsequent applications will have lower priority than first applications to allow financing for more faculty. 

In some cases, faculty may need to apply for a grant for the following fiscal year (e.g., a pedagogical conference in August). That's fine! Grants approved for the following fiscal year will count toward that year's funding limits, not the current year's. 

Group grants will count toward individual faculty limits, but we will work with applicants to determine how to divide the group grant sensibly and fairly. (For example, a group grant of $5,000 would not count as the individual maximum for all collaborators. Instead, the $5,000 would be divided and applied in pieces toward individual faculty's award limits.)

Grants for travel to pedagogical conferences will be awarded at reasonable amounts. The current University standard is $1,500 domestic and $2,000 international. We will stay in that territory.

Funds can be spent for various purposes, including the cost of materials, training, contract services, and travel necessary for the success of your project. Some caveats: 

Equipment and technology purchases

Remember that all equipment purchased with grant money becomes the property of Transylvania University. 

One new feature: The old Technology support grants were used for all kinds of technology, including basic tools needed for day-to-day operations (e.g., a second monitor, Bluetooth keyboard, tablet, subsidizing a new laptop). We have a brand-new DLA Technology Fund, which will cover the technology necessary to do our jobs. If you have a “day-to-day operating need” talk to us before applying for a grant, as it is likely covered under the DLA Technology Fund. Innovation Grants to purchase technology are intended to provide opportunities for faculty to purchase software and hardware beyond those typical day-to-day operating needs. 

Personnel costs

Grant money may be used for contract services or adjunct labor.

We will consider requests for faculty stipends not exceeding $1,000 for time spent in summer months above and beyond what would typically be required to prepare for courses (e.g., to supervise contract services, to take a rigorous training course, to spend substantial time recording new material). Staff and students are welcome on collaborative faculty projects; the Dean will consider requests for stipends for staff work conducted outside of regular working hours or for student work that is not for academic credit. We cannot guarantee that stipends will be approved if the rest of the application is approved, as the Dean will make a case-by-case determination of the strength of the rationale in the application. Also, if the pool of money is tight, stipends may not be approved to accommodate as many applications as possible.

General policies

We will follow all University guidelines related to internal grants and Transy’s current travel policy. If the project involves human participants or animal subjects, provide documentation that the project has been reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) or Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC).

An award is approved only for the budget and expense items proposed. We cannot reimburse expenses not included in the proposed budget. If you find that your spending needs are different than you anticipated, send us a detailed request and rationale to bcte@transy.edu, and we’ll do our best to work with you.

Spending needs to occur during the academic year(s) listed on the application. Funds generally cannot be used after the fiscal year of the latest stated academic year. However, should you require an extension on grant spending into the next fiscal year, send a request to bcte@transy.edu with an appropriate justification, and we’ll do our best to work with you.

Outcomes

Recipients will be asked to submit a written report on the project within three months of its completion; reports are shared with the Bingham Board. Submitting a complete report promptly is necessary to receive a stipend, if applicable, and to remain eligible for future grants.

Depending on the nature of the project, the BCTE may invite you to share what you’ve learned, or the outcomes of your innovations, with the Transy community (e.g., by presenting at a Lunch & Learn or Tech Tuesday, or sharing materials on our website).

OK, are you ready to apply? Great! 

1. Click this link to the application. 

2. You’ll be invited to make a copy. In the doc name, replace "Copy of" with your last name(s), such that the copied file is named <Your last name(s)> BCTE Innovation Grant application 2024-2025. 

3. Fill out the application.

4. Share it as a Google Doc with bcte@transy.edu, keeping the default Editing-level access. The default Share setting is "Notify people," and allowing that notification is sufficient to submit your application. If, for some reason, you uncheck the "Notify" option, make sure to email a link to bcte@transy.edu.