Do you have an innovative idea to inspire change in teaching, eLearning and student experience at York University? Submissions are now open for Phase 3 of York University’s highly successful Academic Innovation Fund (AIF), with project submissions due by 4pm on Friday, Feb. 23, 2018.
The Office of the Associate Vice-President Teaching and Learning, which oversees the AIF, has issued this new call and the total funding available is $1.5 million. Beginning in 2018-19, AIF will move forward with Phase 3 funding from 2018-21, addressing particular institutional priorities that are articulated in York’s University Academic Plan (2015-20), Strategic Mandate Agreement and the Institutional Integrated Resource Plan.
Funds are available in two categories: Category I funding will support academic innovation projects; and Category II funding will support Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) projects.
Category I funds are open to full-time faculty and staff members to develop projects that are curricular in nature and address eLearning, experiential education (EE), student success and retention and/or internationalization strategies in degree programs. These projects can qualify for up to $100,000 per year. The highest priority will be given to projects that are sustainable, scalable and affordable. High priority will be given to grant requests from schools, departments or Faculties that have documented experiential education or eLearning plans.
Category II initiatives provide grants of up to $5,000 per research project to support faculty members investigating an aspect of teaching and learning grounded in their own teaching. Successful applicants will be provided with in-kind integrated professional development and research support from the Teaching Commons (including individual consultation and a year-long program EduCATE – Education, Curriculum, And Teaching Excellence) and will be expected to present their work at York’s annual teaching and learning conference, TiF (Teaching in Focus).
(Note that previous Category II funding supported course redevelopment, which will now be supported on an ongoing and continuous basis by the Blended and Online Learning Development (BOLD) team.)
All proposals will be reviewed, approved and ranked by the Office of the Dean before submission to the Office of the Provost. The AIF Steering Committee, chaired by the associate vice-president teaching and learning, will review all proposals and provide its recommendations to the provost, who will make final decisions. To learn more, visit the AIF website to download the application guidelines.
Applications for AIF funding for this next cycle should be submitted electronically to the Office of the Associate Vice-President Teaching and Learning (avptl@yorku.ca) by 4pm on Friday, Feb. 23, 2018.