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Funding

Internal Funding News & Announcements Pre-Award Post-Award Research Enabled

Internal Funding

Seed Grants for Transitional and Exploratory Projects (STEP)

Purpose/Program Overview

Seed Grants for Transitional and Exploratory Projects (STEP) provides seed funding on a competitive basis to SIUE faculty to support a project that will be used to seek extramural funding.

The focus of the program is to support promising junior faculty to undertake pilot projects that will aid in establishing their careers as scholars and independent investigators and enable them to successfully apply for extramural funding. Additionally, the program intends to support faculty in developing and honing proposal writing skills to present their research to be competitive in seeking external funding.

Junior faculty prior to midpoint review for tenure and promotion may submit proposals to revise dissertation material. However, applicants must make a strong argument for how the STEP project may propel the applicant’s career in a significant and lasting research direction.

STEP funding cannot be used to sustain or supplement current research programs. Faculty beyond the midpoint review (which includes all ranks associate and above) who are making a transition to a significantly new research area to support an extramural application may be considered for funding if funds allow. The proposal must clearly demonstrate how the STEP project represents a significant transition in their research from previous activity. Successful proposals by established faculty will outline specific differences between the STEP project and previous scholarly activities, including publications and conference presentations so that an educated lay reader is able to discern the new direction of the proposed project.

Definition of Research

Research and creative activities are broadly defined as all creative, critical, scholarly, and/or empirical activity that expands, clarifies, reorganizes or develops knowledge or artistic perception. This definition includes the theorization, demonstration, implementation, and application of research.

Eligibility

All full-time continuing members of the faculty, including research faculty (see below for center research faculty), may apply to the STEP program. The terminal degree must be completed by the time of submission.

All applicants, including PIs and Co-PIs, must have submitted completed final reports and fulfilled the terms and conditions, including submission of an external grant proposal, of projects previously funded by the SIUE Graduate School at least 5 business days before this program deadline in order to be eligible for this program. This requirement applies to all PIs and Co-PIs of the previous internal award.

The Center Director must ensure submission of the required proposal if a research faculty member who was awarded leaves SIUE prior to submitting the required proposal.

Ineligible activities include:

faculty development, such as learning a new technique, language, methodology or completing a thesis or dissertation
institutional research, i.e., studies related directly to the operation of the University that are not generalizable and have little application beyond SIUE
public service and consulting
departmental curriculum development, such as the preparation of curriculum materials, curriculum modifications, and student interest surveys. Curriculum development that includes empirical studies of the effectiveness of new program formats, or techniques and content that are generalizable and have application beyond SIUE may be considered research for this grant program.

Award Description

Pending availability of funds, funding is for one fiscal year (July 1^st – June 30^th) and is awarded by budget line item. All line items must be allowable costs. Awards will not exceed $16,000.

Investigators may request up to one month of their salary (up to a maximum of $9,000) to be used for summer support. (Therefore, if the monthly salary is more than $9,000, the request can be only for $9,000.) Commitment overload is not permitted during the term of the grant. Technical overloads may be permitted if the investigator is teaching during the portion of the summer when not committed to the STEP project.

100% time/effort commitment is required while receiving summer salary from the STEP program.

Annette and Henry Baich Award

An additional $1,000 will be awarded to the best STEP application that meets the requirements of the Baich Award. Details will be provided in the electronic application materials. For further information about eligibility, see the Annette and Henry Baich Award website.

Terms and Conditions of Award

Upon notification of award, awardees must complete the STEP Award Acceptance Form in Kuali Build. Awardees must 1) submit a final report for STEP in the Internal Grants Report Form in Kuali Build by the first Monday in August following the end of their award period and 2) submit a proposal to an external sponsor by June 30 of the fiscal year after the award period ends.

External proposals may be submitted before the end of the STEP project period if approved by ORP. External proposals, if related to the awarded STEP project, must advance rather than duplicate the original STEP project.

Student and Faculty Internships/Fellowships or primarily professional development activities will not qualify as an external submission. Faculty Fellowships that are scholarship or research focused will qualify as an external submission.

Timeline/Dates

A workshop will be held annually in the fall. To register, complete the Workshop Registration form in Kuali Build. While the workshop is not required, it is highly recommended.
Third Friday in January: applications due in Kuali Build no later than 4:30pm.

Award notifications are anticipated to be sent out in April.

Application/Nomination Process

Applicants submit their full proposal in Kuali Build by completing the STEP Application form.

The following documents are to be uploaded as a single PDF file in the order indicated below. If any documents are missing or in the wrong order, the application will be returned. Use the following format when naming your PDF: STEP_LastNameFirstName.pdf:

1. Project Abstract (150-word limit)
2. Narrative (limit 10 double-spaced pages, 1" margins)
  - Use the following section headers and address:
    - Alignment with STEP purpose
    - Introduction and Background
    - Procedures/Project Plan
    - Facilities
    - Timeline
    - Anticipated Results
3. External Funding Potential Form (link to template)
4. References
5. Appendix (optional)
6. Curriculum Vitae (Limit two pages each, 1" margins)
7. Previous Funding Forms(s) ◦– if none, include the form with “N/A” (link to template)

Your proposal will route to your Chair, Dean and Unit Research Committee for review, ranking, and approval. Your application will then route to ORP for review by the R&D Committee.

Selection Criteria

Members of the Graduate School’s R&D Committee utilize the resources and scoring rubric below during their review of STEP applications:

STEP Scoring Rubric for R&D Committee Reviewers

Graduate School General Guidelines for R & D Committee Reviewers

Other Resources

Any questions concerning this program may be directed to the Graduate School at siueresearch@siue.edu.