Conference Grant Program
The State-of-the-Art Research & Creativity Conference Grant Program
Recurring RFP intended for 2024-2025 Academic Year
The State-of-the-Art Research & Creativity Conference Grant Program, sponsored by ORED, provides UA faculty the opportunity to organize a distinctive conference on UA’s campus that explores and promotes new ideas and initiatives. Priority will be given to new conferences that are 1) designed to engage and involve both graduate and undergraduate students; 2) transformative and cross-disciplinary; and 3) seek to develop mutually beneficial research, scholarship and creative activity partnerships with other research universities, both domestic and international.
The Grant Program is outlined in ORED’s Strategic Plan, Strategic Objective 3.2, “to support State-of-the-Art Research and Creativity Conferences on the UA campus that explore and promote new transformative initiatives, and will secure an endowment to support the program.”
It is expected that State-of-the-Art Research & Creativity Conferences should deliberately aim for significant professionalization and networking opportunities for students and faculty, and incorporate innovative themes that are not procedural or recurring on campus. As such, regular meetings of UA campus organizations are not eligible for the State-of-the-Art Research & Creativity Conference Grant Program.
With strong justification, the Grant Program may provide funding for the hosting of established external academic societies or associations, if the conference otherwise meets objectives 1-3 above.
UA faculty members, or a cross-disciplinary collaborative team of UA faculty members, may apply for Grant Program funds, which could potentially cover up to 50% of the anticipated conference expenses, not to exceed $10,000. Applicants are expected to secure at least 50% of the anticipated conference expenses from other sources prior to application. To apply, please email the following to Angie Brown at angie@ua.edu:
- A letter of intent/request, detailing:
- The title and purpose of the conference
- The conference organizers and potential participants
- The recognition, importance and potential impact of the conference
- How the conference engages and involves graduate and undergraduate students
- The amount of Grant Program funds being requested
- A preliminary conference schedule, including proposed dates
- A preliminary budget, which includes documentation of previously secured funds. Any planned conference registration fees should be included in the budget. This anticipated revenue, based on the number of projected attendees, should be factored into the total budget and request from Grant Program funds.
- A email from the Dean(s) or Associate Dean(s) for Research stating their support for the proposal.
Should funds be awarded, ORED requests acknowledgment of State-of-the-Art Research & Creativity Conference Grant Program support in the conference informational materials. Awards from ORED are contingent on the successful securement of other funding totaling at least 50% of the total conference expenses.
Within three months of completion of the conference, applicant faculty, or team, should submit a summary report to ORED, which includes a copy of the final program and a brief assessment of outcomes.
Request for Proposals – updated July 15, 2024