For seven funding cycles, the Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program at Appalachian State University has supported research and practice related to innovations within higher education that meaningfully benefit society. The scope of this program has included scholarship and curricular innovations as well as investments in robust partnerships with industry and community. This year, the program continues its evolution toward maximizing App State impacts by inviting a focus on cross-sector, often interdisciplinary collaborations that leverage established areas of excellence to build knowledge and programs that support place-based thriving and resilience.
The program supports App State faculty and staff from all disciplines and program areas who propose novel approaches to:
- Build collaborative teams that create capacity for continued scholarship and activities beyond the time frame of this award;
- Create lasting institutional change;
- Provide community and societal benefits;
- Leverage and expand areas of excellence in App State scholarship;
- Establish opportunities that increase student engagement in scholarship and outreach;
- Support partnerships with community, industry and local organizations; and
- Promote place-based thriving and resilience.
All projects must engage App State students.
Basic Grant Information
To support the intention of building lasting collaborative capacity to generate meaningful impacts through scholarship and learning innovations, Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars grants are now structured to provide larger and longer-term funding opportunities.
Each Innovation Scholars team may receive up to $25,000 in funding support, distributed across multiple years and accessible in annual increments based on milestone successes to be determined by the proposing team. Proposals may request up to $10,000 available in Year 1, $10,000 available in Year 2 and $5,000 available in Year 3. Slight deviations from this funding distribution may be requested with justification in the proposal. Projects, approaches and results should all position App State to be competitive for external funding and follow-on partnerships that will continue to grow the innovation investment of this program. These might include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Research that leads to innovative thought across disciplines;
- Innovative learning approaches or campus events that enable interdisciplinary, novel approaches to student learning and establish programs that could become competitive for external funding;
- Student engagement experiences that build community and enable creative solutions;
- Initiatives that directly address a campus, community or societal challenge through novel collaborations;
- Partnerships with town, county, state, national or international partners;
- Innovative programs to contribute to the economic development of our region, including workforce development programs; and/or
- Partnerships with community, business and industry partners in Boone, Hickory and other regions of Western North Carolina.
Projects that support or connect to university strategic initiatives, that build on areas of established excellence and that emphasize Appalachian thriving and resilience themes are particularly welcome.
Funding Parameters
These internal grants are intended to provide maximum flexibility in funding to support a wealth of faculty and staff concepts and approaches related to the innovation of higher education and fostering cross-sector and community-centered partnerships. Therefore, the funding may be applied specifically to support expenses related to each unique project.
Following are examples of possible use of these funds:
- Purchase of equipment, software, research materials and print/electronic publications.
- Travel directly associated with the project activity.
- One course buy-out per semester to conduct grant-related work.
- Hiring student assistants.
- Summer salary supplement to conduct grant-related work.
- Support for community partner work.
Successful applicant teams will paint a compelling picture of how the proposed project plan and budget allocation will seed research, scholarship, creative activities, curricular and programmatic approaches, and other innovative activities that translate into real impacts for the faculty, students and broader community, and that build capacity for ongoing success in this arena.
A review committee will provide finalist recommendations to the Chancellor’s Council, who will make final award recommendations to the Chancellor.
All awarded project teams must submit a final written report on their funded work and present, as requested, in a research forum showcasing Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program efforts.
Contact Information
For questions about this program or the application process, please contact Brittanni Rogers in the Office of Research and Innovation ([email protected]).
Innovation Appalachian
Bold - Optimistic - Pioneering - Sustainable
App State’s pioneering spirit combines with core values of scholarly excellence, leadership and service to create a peak environment where innovation connects our strategic plan and academic mission for the greater good of our community and world. Our strengths in broad-based sustainability, focusing on economics, the environment and equity, provide trail markers for research, innovation and collaboration. At App State, it’s not enough to change the world…we want to change it for the better. Our academic mission is to prepare students to lead purposeful lives as engaged global citizens who understand their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all.
Our success is found in our response to this question:
How do we engage our academic mission through teaching, learning, service, research, innovation, creativity, and intercampus and intercommunity collaborations in all disciplines to support the understanding and development of economically, environmentally and equitably sound communities?
App State is building upon faculty and staff expertise, student passion and creativity, as well as existing and developing programs to engage our campus and community in innovative thought leadership to create a bright future for our region, state, nation and world.