Faculty Development Resources: FACULTY DEVELOPMENT GRANTS

The College maintains a commitment to support faculty in their pursuit of excellence in professional activities, teaching effectiveness, and contributions to the college. Grants awarded by the Faculty Development Committee support faculty needs such as travel, exhibition assistance, research, supplies and equipment, and more. Modest grants are available to support activities including, but not limited to, the following:

• Professional activities such as research, exhibitions, publishing, funding for supplies and materials, or participation in conferences and workshops.
• Enhancing teaching effectiveness by learning more about today’s students’ learning styles, dealing with problem students, the Millennial generation, or educating the whole student
• Contributions to the college such as building departmental teamwork, fostering collegiality, hosting interdisciplinary events, or enhancing inter-departmental communications

There are 2 deadlines each year-- the first Monday of November and of March.

1. Fill out the online Grant Application Form. A copy of the information will be sent to your email.
2. Your Chair/Director will automatically be notified over email for approval.
3. The Faculty Development Committee Co-Chair will also be automatically notified via email for approval: Richard Lundquist, Faculty Development Committee Chair.

Questions about grants:
Contact Jennifer Moon, Faculty Development Committee Chair
Technical questions about the form:
Contact Heather Cleary, Director of Library Services

This Formstack form for reimbursement requests of Faculty Development Grant funds should be utilized by adjunct and full-time faculty only.

1. Read the form's instructions and requirements thoroughly.
2. Complete one online form submission for all expenses incurred for an approved Faculty Development Grant awarded in the current fiscal year.
3. The Provost Office will receive your reimbursement request submission and complete the necessary Business Office form(s) on your behalf.

Any expenses to be reimbursed must be submitted by the second Friday in June of the current fiscal year. For 2022, the deadline is June 10th.

Questions about reimbursement should be directed to the Provost Office.

The Faculty Development Fund for part-time faculty is facilitated by Otis College’s Labor Management Committee, as outlined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement between Otis College of Art and Design and the Service Employees International Union Local 721 on October 1, 2020 (see page 18 of the agreement). 

Part-time employees who have taught at least one course each semester for three semesters will be able to receive reimbursement for approved expenses associated with professional development activities directly related to teaching courses assigned to the bargaining unit employee, such as exhibitions, conferences, and seminars.  For more information, including eligibility and how to apply for funds, please contact your Labor Management Committee members Badly Licked Bear at bbear@otis.edu or Stephanie Sabo at ssabo@otis.edu.

Which faculty members are eligible to apply?
Full-time and Adjunct faculty members who have taught at Otis for two or more consecutive years are eligible to apply for Faculty Development Grants to support professional activities as part of their pathway toward advancement in Rank. (Part-time faculty members are not eligible; part-time faculty, by definition, are engaged professionally beyond Otis, are not subject to the rigors of the Performance Assessment and Step (PAS) process nor Otis' demanding Rank and Promotion (advancement) criteria, and have no Service to the College obligations.) The College strives to support those individuals (full-time and adjunct faculty members) who face the rigors mentioned above as part of their engagement with the College, and at the same time manage their external professional activities. (For information on Rank and Promotion, see the Faculty Handbook)

How much money can I get, and how often can I apply?
Grants are awarded up to $2,500. Applicants may apply for one award each year, not to exceed $2,500 per person within a two-year period.

What criteria are used to evaluate my application?
The purpose of the Faculty Development Grants is to guide grantees toward promotion in rank. Therefore, in planning grant applications, faculty members should focus on the three criteria for promotion and advancement in rank -- teaching effectiveness, professional achievement, and contributions to the college/community as outlined in your faculty handbook.

Applications that include proposed wider dissemination to the Otis community (e.g. presentation at department or college-wide meetings, incorporation into the curriculum, etc.) will be prioritized. Grants are awarded based on their value as they relate to the three criteria as well as the project's:

• overall quality, which contributes to professional development or to pedagogical growth
• feasibility, or the extent of its potential dissemination and impact on the arts community and beyond
• clarity and specificity; how the project will contribute to the grantee’s career and/or to the Otis community. 

How are the grants paid?
Grant recipients receive a letter outlining the grant award, and the process by which grants are paid. Since all amounts paid by the College to any individual are taxable, and therefore subject to tax withholdings, Otis preserves maximum grant award amounts for recipients by reimbursing all expenses incurred as part of the grant-funded activity.

All expenses must comply with the Otis College Travel and Business Expense Reimbursement Policy. They must be detailed on an approved Travel and Entertainment Expense Report Form and/or Disbursement Request Form, and be accompanied by original receipts. (All forms are available on the Dashboard) Please refer to your grant award letter and confer with the Faculty Development Committee Chair(s) for guidance on how to process your receipts for reimbursement.

All grant expense reimbursements are processed upon receipt of a publication-ready Grantee Report and the reimbursement documents and receipts by the Faculty Development Committee Chair(s).

Faculty Development Grants are given for the fiscal year in which they are applied for. Expenses must be submitted by the third week of June.

What kinds of activities do the grants support?
You may apply for a grant to support travel to a site, research and/or research to fund supplies and materials, hotel costs, meals, services used in the execution of the activity, ground transportation, registration fees, project documentation fees, copying costs, software needs as they relate directly to the project, equipment, participation in professional conferences and workshops, participation in conferences and workshops that support teaching effectiveness related to student learning styles, dealing with classroom issues, developing college activities that support building departmental teamwork, collegiality, and communications, and more.

Full List of Grantees and Their Project Reports, 2004-Today

These reports are easy to write. 1-2 pages are sufficient, and, if possible, 3-5 images to help others to quickly understand the nature of your project.

A step-by-step process such as that shown below might help in preparing a written report, ready for web publication:

1. Introduction - a simple statement to the effect of:

In Fall 2008 I received a Faculty Development Grant in support of equipment needs and travel related to the production of work for an upcoming exhibition at Great Gallery, Kissimmee, FL.

2. Elaboration - a paragraph explaining the grant-funded project or activity, what kinds of needs the grant facilitates, or what special challenges prompted the application, such as:

Since the work for this exhibition is made entirely of dryer lint, tar, and preserved cow hide, my studio required retrofitted ventilation and air filtration equipment. In addition to this special equipment need, the exhibition required three on-site visits, including supervision of the installation, attendance at an opening reception, and presentation of a gallery lecture.

3. Value to Otis and/or the College Community - a paragraph outlining potential implications this activity might have for the benefit of the grantee, Otis students, faculty, or your department, such as:

I will share a documentary Powerpoint presentation with my classes in the Foundation, Integrated Learning, and Toy Design programs. It is hoped that these presentations will enhance student awareness of dryer lint as a construction medium, of tar as a decorative surface enhancing agent, and of preserved cow hide as a collage ground. Further, I plan to share with colleagues in these three programs the process by which I developed this body of work, which can expand their understanding of unique pedagogical, critical, and technical issues embodied by the exhibition.

4. Conclusion/acknowledgment - a statement such as:

This project advances my career, and at that same time brings added value to my teaching as I share the work with students and faculty colleagues. I especially appreciate the opportunity to develop this exhibition with the aid of an Otis Faculty Development Grant; the show would not have been possible without this vital support.

Such a report, if accompanied by several photographs of the artist's studio—cow hide-covered tables, tar buckets and roofing mops in a row, shiny new fans with hypo-allergenic air filters, and mounds of multi-colored dryer lint—would make a great web page, reflecting the achievements of the faculty member, and Otis' direct support of those achievements and their contribution to the college.

Your report will also help Otis publicize your work, and at the same time, its commitment to supporting faculty as art/design professionals and as artists/designers who teach. To view many impressive grantee reports, please see Grantee Projects and Reports in the in the next column.