The Office of the Dean of the College invites faculty to submit proposals for the Faculty Student Collaborative Research Grant. The aim of the program is to fund summer collaborative research between faculty and students in order to support faculty in their scholarly activities and to provide students with first-hand research and scholarly experience through collaborating with research-active faculty. Students present their research at the Summer Research and Internship Symposium (to be held during Family and Friends Weekend, in early Fall) and will also have the opportunity to participate in co-curricular summer research programming during the summer and in the fall.

The awards are competitive and based on proposals submitted by faculty members. Research projects may include support of on-going faculty research or of a student-initiated research project designed in collaboration with the faculty member that will further the faculty member’s research.

     Eligibility. Tenure-track, adjunct, lecturer, and returning one-year visiting faculty members are eligible to apply. Students must be degree seeking Colorado College students in good standing who will return to Colorado College for at least one semester after the summer. 

     Application procedure and deadline. Faculty should upload completed applications as Word or pdf files to the Dean of the College Canvas page and the Faculty Student Collaborative Grant Module- please email Lisa Schwartz (lschwartz@coloradocollege.edu) to be added if you are not already. The submission portal on Canvas will be open for application uploads on January 22, 2024 (first Monday block 5) and will be considered on a first come first served basis until funds run out.  Awards will be announced by March 4, 2024 (third Monday of Block 6).  For more information, contact Lisa Schwartz (lschwartz@coloradocollege.edu or 719-389-6685). 

     Duration. The summer research should be carried out under the direct supervision of the faculty mentor over the time period of the research award. The student cannot be concurrently taking courses or holding more than half-time employment. The standard award is for 8 weeks of research, but faculty may request that the research duration be shorter than 8-weeks.  We will accept proposals for research collaboration from 4-8 weeks in duration.  

     Award. Individual grants of $4,800 will cover one research student’s fellowship stipend (8 weeks). Student researchers conducting less than 8 weeks of research will receive a fellowship stipend of $600/week.  

 Application procedures.

• The annual call will be announced via email alerting faculty that the application is available in the Dean of the College Canvas page and the Faculty Student Collaborative Grant Module. Please email Lisa Schwartz to be added if you are not already.
• The submission portal on Canvas will be open for application submissions for approximately two months starting in early January. Faculty should upload applications as Word or PDF files.
• Awards will typically be announced no later than early March.

Faculty responsibilities

Faculty members supporting collaborative research projects should foster mentor-apprentice relationships with their students and expose students to the processes of scholarly inquiry. The Dean of the College expects that faculty members and their student researchers will be in frequent contact with one another.

Each faculty member is responsible for designing and implementing a meaningful research experience for the student researcher. The student will develop a solid understanding of the research question, such as the theory and methodology in forming the research, the methods, skills and technical knowledge required to complete the research and share its findings.

Faculty and students have the option of registering the summer research experience as an internship via GS198. It carries zero credit, but will show up on transcript as a completion grade (pass/fail track) when the student has completed the research experience in the summer.   Contact Andrea Culp if you are interested in learning more.

In addition to the Research Symposium in the Fall, we encourage faculty members to help students identify additional opportunities to present their research at national and regional professional meetings or at undergraduate research conferences. The student can apply to the Conference Presentation Grant.

Student Responsibilities

The student will commit to researching full-time during the time period of the award under the direction of the faculty mentor. Vacation time or time spent taking courses should be worked out in advance with the faculty sponsor. These “non-research” periods do not count towards the duration of the research commitment.

Student research assistants will have the opportunity to participate in the SCoRe (Student Collaborative Research) summer programming. SCoRe provides co-curricular opportunities for academic and career-related development as well as extra-curricular activities to complement the research experience.

The student is expected to participate and present at the Research and Internship Symposium. Students may present individually or in groups if applicable. Accommodations can be arranged in advance for students who will be away from campus for unavoidable college-sponsored obligations (e.g., study abroad, academic field trip, athletic team travel). Students are also encouraged to present their research at the Colorado Springs Undergraduate Research Forum each spring.

For further information, please contact Pedro de Araujo or Lisa Schwartz.