UND Connect
Connecting UND faculty with impactful community-based research, development, and outreach.
In line with UND’s vision to “inspire a sense of wonder, a love of discovery, and a commitment to serve,” specifically addressing our desire to “engage in collaborations that serve the evolving needs of our people, tribal nations, and the state of North Dakota,” UND has launched the UND CONNECT program.
The program will provide UND faculty and students with the opportunity to engage in community-based research, development, and outreach projects. UND CONNECT sponsors research teams comprised of faculty, students, and community partners proposing a project that affects some aspect of quality of life in the state. Each project will address a need-inspired problem, with the “need” arising from the community/state partner, and the addressing of the need involving both the faculty expertise and experiential engagement from the student(s) on the university side and the community/state expertise from the partner.
Project Overview
Projects must positively and tangibly impact the community and/or the state of North Dakota. This program will provide opportunities for faculty to develop projects in partnership with local and/or state institutions, agencies, and other community groups in ways that provide significant hands-on learning opportunities for students (undergraduate or graduate or a combination thereof) and that offer measurable benefit to communities within North Dakota.
Proposals will be received, reviewed, and recommended for selection to the Office of the Provost by the Senate Scholarly Activities Committee (SSAC). Up to ten (10) proposals for up to $5,000 can be supported. Funding for UND CONNECT is provided by the North Dakota Economic Diversification Research Grant Fund.
Open to all faculty members at UND, including special appointment and part-time faculty.
Project proposals should articulate how the following objectives will be met:
- improve the quality of life in some fashion for communities within North Dakota;
- involve students and provide unique learning opportunities or experiences for these students;
- integrate faculty expertise, student learning, and the active participation of at least one North Dakota community organization/partner.
Proposals must include the following:
- Description of the project, including information about how it meets the three criteria outlined above (not to exceed 1500 words). Proposals should identify all faculty members and community partners involved with the proposed project.
- A detailed, projected budget for the UND CONNECT funding request (not to exceed $5,000); the overall project budget could include other funding sources. If applicable, please include other funding sources.
- A timeline for the project from inception to completion. Projects may begin after July 1, 2024, and must be completed by June 30, 2025.
- A short memo of support from the college dean.
Submission
Please save all materials as one PDF document in the order listed above and upload by April 19, 2024 by 5 p.m.
Funded faculty members must be willing to work with the Office of the Provost and UND Marketing on the development and promotion of stories related to the project. This might include contributing to posts on social media about the project, providing a description of the project and regular updates, interviews about the project, photos of faculty and students in the field working on the project, etc.
Evaluation
Proposals will be evaluated using the evaluation rubic.Contact
- Email Randi Tanglen,vice provost for faculty affairs, at randi.tanglen@und.edu with questions about project proposals
- Email Taylor Hanson Wald, academic affairs coordinator, at taylor.hansonwald@UND.edu with questions about application submission
- For questions about allowable expenses, please contact Eric Peterson at eric.peterson2@UND.edu and/or review university and SBHE policy.
- Up to $5,000 to support project
- Monies must be used for operating expenses of the project (NOT salary), subject to university policy
- Monies cannot be used to provide course buyouts for the sponsoring faculty member
- Monies cannot be recaptured by sponsoring faculty member as salary
- Monies should be spent within a year of award of the proposal’s acceptance
UND CONNECT funds are not automatically renewable, but faculty members who receive funding may apply for renewal in subsequent years. The hope is that successful projects with long-term potential will become self-sustaining after the initial year through other grants or community/partner investment. That may not be possible in all cases, of course. Projects that become self-sustaining are not necessarily subject to all of the stipulations outlined above.
- April 19, 2024: Proposals must be submitted
- May 10, 2024: SSAC committee meets to review UND CONNECT proposals and send recommendations to Office of the Provost
- Week of May17, 2024: UND CONNECT proposal applicants notified of award status
- July 1, 2024: Funds available
Within a month of the completion of a project, the funded faculty member must submit a brief (1-2 page) post-project report to the Office of the Provost and the SSAC detailing the activities, successes, challenges, and so forth, of the initiative. These reports will allow the university to refine the program, improve outcomes, and market future initiatives. A report template will be sent to successful applicants.