Faculty Development
FACULTY DEVELOPMENT AWARDS AND APPLICATION GUIDELINES

Key Principles of the Award

1. The PROSPER Faculty Development Awards are intended to enhance a faculty member’s outcomes related to teaching, research, and scholarship. Faculty members at any academic rank may be considered for an award, but junior faculty with no or little discretionary funding are especially encouraged to apply.

2. Requests should align with the advancement of skills described in one’s Individual Development Plan (IDP) that has been reviewed by your department chair (If an IDP has not been developed by an associate or full professor, the proposal is expected to align with the development plan described in the faculty member’s annual report.)

3. The Awards may be used in various ways, such as paying for expenses associated with attending organized programs of advanced study, workshops, short training courses or similar learning expenses, consultation or study with leaders of pedagogical and disciplinary trends or helping to increase a faculty member’s exposure to colleagues at other institutions who can be collaborators and role models.

4. Generally, the skills that may be addressed with a Faculty Development Award include updating or revitalizing current skills, developing new skills in a current area, or developing skills to enter into a new area. Examples of skills that may be addressed in a proposal for this Award include:

a. Research/Patient Care/Scholarship skills, such as improving one’s methodological training related to a new research direction or gaining added certification in patient care
b. Becoming a better teacher by focusing on strengthening a faculty member’s teaching abilities, developing new teaching and learning techniques or new ways to assess learning
c. Professional skills, such as improving one’s grant writing, oral presentation abilities, manuscript writing or learning how to mentor others
d. Leadership and Management skills, such as learning how to become more effective in leading and motivating others, budgeting, managing projects and time, organizational abilities
e. Interpersonal skills, such as learning techniques for getting along with others, communicating clearly in writing and/or in conversations

5. Upon completion of an Award, the faculty member will be required to update their IDP to reflect the outcomes associated with the undertaken activities and share the updated IDP with the Deans Office and the Department Chair. For faculty who do not have an IDP, please submit a report.

Funding Level

Awards are expected to generally be in the range of $2,000 to $5,000 but faculty members may apply for an award in any amount by providing a detailed explanation for requests more than $5,000.

PROSPER Faculty Development proposal guidelines and review process:

Faculty interested in submitting a proposal should notify the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs for information on guidelines, selection procedures and deadlines for any given funding cycle.

Proposals must be submitted electronically and emailed in Word or PDF format only as ONE file to: Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, Rich Segal at segal@cop.ufl.edu

The PI’s Chair should be copied on all email submissions.

Formatting requirements: Single spacing; font size no smaller than 11 point; minimum 0.5 inch margins; tables and figure legends can be in 10 point font.

Proposals should consist of the following materials in this sequence:

1. Cover Page: Include title: identify PROSPER target area (Updating or revitalizing current skills, Developing new skills in a current area, or Developing skills to enter into a new area): name of PI, email address of PI; if a reapplication, when did you previously apply; if you previously submitted a Faculty Enhancement Opportunity (FEO) Application, when was your last submission and was it funded; and total budget request.

2. Abstract. Provide one paragraph describing your proposed activity in a way that can be understood by colleagues outside your discipline, alumni, and educated members of the general public.

3. Goals for the Faculty Development Award (list three to five succinct goals).

4. Detailed Plan/Activities/Schedules associated with the Faculty Development Award (plan cannot exceed one calendar year unless approved by the Associate dean for Faculty Affairs prior to submission).

5. List specific outcomes of this Award related to your professional growth and development.

6. If you have an Individual Development Plan (IDP), please attach. Note that assistant professors are required to have submitted an IDP. Associate and Full professors who have not been asked to submit an IDP by their chair should attach the section on faculty development from their annual report.

7. A detailed budget and justification of expenses

b. Budgets should range between $2,000 and $5,000 but faculty members may apply for an award in any amount by providing a detailed explanation for requests more than
$5,000.
c. Explain whether other funds are available that may be obtained to fund the proposed activity.
d. Budget may include resources for travel, fees/tuition/equipment, supplies, consultants,
other (specify) with the exception of faculty/student/staff salaries and indirect costs.
e. Budgets may be for one year.

Submitted Faculty Development proposals will be reviewed by a faculty review panel that will be determined on each review cycle based on expertise needed. The review committee will consist of at least two senior and one junior faculty members from either within or outside of the University.

The faculty review panels will make recommendations to the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs who will also serve as ex officio chair of the review committee.

An overall priority score will be assigned to each proposal keeping in mind the following review criteria:

Goals are clear, meritorious and compelling: How well will the intended activity enhance the faculty member’s outcomes related to teaching, research, and scholarship? How well does the activity align with the advancement of skills described in one’s Individual Development Plan (IDP) or other documentation of career goals?

Plan is clear and realistic for goal achievement

Benefits to the applicant’s academic/professional/scholarly growth are clear and specific

Need for Funding: Are other funds available for the proposed activity that the faculty member may obtain?

Budget justification is clear and appropriate for proposed goals and outcomes: Is the requested budget appropriate for the scope of work?