Faculty Student Summer Research Program

The Faculty Student Summer Research Program is a competitive grant program, initially funded in part by the W. M. Keck Foundation.  The program enables Skidmore faculty and students to engage in significant projects over 10- or 5-week periods during the summer. The project should be closely related to the faculty member's curricular, pedagogical, scholarly or creative interests and should be planned and executed by the student and faculty member working together. Projects should ensure good student learning outcomes.

Projects:

• May be collaborative but could also include other kinds of mentoring experiences
• May advance the research agenda of the faculty member
• May be student-initiated

The project should be defined in such a way as to permit completion of a substantial portion of the project by the end of the research period. Participants in this summer research program are expected to work from campus for the duration of the program. However, if remote off-site work is required, a project may involve time spent at another location (e.g., as part of field work for data collection purposes). In this case, the proposal must include a rationale for this special request.

Faculty-student partners on each project will give an oral report on the planned project, explaining goals and methods, early in the period; participate in a discussion about the Faculty Student Summer Research Program in early July; and submit a final report, demonstration, poster, exhibition or other appropriate activity on progress and achievements at the close. If the project involves time spent at another site(s), participants are required to attend the opening and closing summer sessions.

Awards

1. Faculty may submit as many as two proposals. Proposals may include up to two student collaborators. In exceptional cases, faculty may request more than two students, but the project rationale should clearly articulate the necessity for more students and the role each student will play in the project.
2. Each faculty participant will receive one stipend (depending on the number of project weeks), up to $3,500 maximum. Faculty supervising a 10-week Schupf Scholar project will receive a stipend of $3,500; Faculty supervising a Faculty Student Summer Research Project will receive a stipend of $3,000 for a 10-week project or $1,500 for a 5-week project.  Faculty supervising more than one Schupf Scholar project and/or supervising one or more projects under the Faculty Student Summer Research Program will only be paid one stipend.

3. Students are permitted to submit only one proposal for a 10-week session. They may apply for back-to-back 5-week sessions (one first session and one second session) provided they have a different faculty sponsor for each. These 5-week proposals will be considered independent of one another. Each student participant on a 10-week program will be paid $4,000 or $2,000 for the 5-week program. All students will receive free room and board on Skidmore's campus for the period of the grant. Because the program emphasizes the sharing of ideas and experiences, students are strongly urged to live on campus. In exceptional circumstances, students may be granted permission by the Associate Dean of the Faculty to live off campus (in such cases the students will have to provide for their own housing, and no additional living stipend will be offered). Whether living on or off campus, students are expected to participate in all Faculty/Student Research group activities.

4. Faculty may apply for funds to purchase supplies and equipment of modest cost (not more than $750 for a 10-week program or $650 for a 5-week program; these funds are not intended to be used for entertainment purposes). Faculty may also request funds (e.g., ad hoc, travel to read) to pay for the costs of travel to conferences where faculty/student teams will report the results of their research or further costs of printed publication. The FDC budget for such costs is limited, and faculty are urged to use departmental funds as well to help pay for their costs. Students may request support from Student Opportunity Funds.

Application Procedure

Faculty Student Summer Research Awards are highly competitive and funding is limited. Faculty and students wishing to participate in the Faculty Student Summer Research Program should submit an application to the Office of the DOF/VPAA by Friday, February 2, 2024. The FDC will communicate its recommendations for funded proposals to faculty sponsors before Friday, February 23, 2024. Faculty sponsors will then notify student collaborators of the FDC's recommendations for funding of their project.  Faculty sponsors must confirm their student collaborators and their intentions to pursue the project via email to the Office of the DOF/VPAA by Friday, March 2, 2024 (dpeters1@skidmore.edu). If a student collaborator is subsequently unable to participate in the approved project, faculty may petition the Office of the DOF/VPAA to request the funding of an alternative student. No changes to student collaborators will be accepted after April 15, 2024.  Failure to adhere to these deadlines may result in a revocation of grant funding.

The application should consist of the following clearly marked components (one application for each student):

1. The names of the student and faculty member. Indicate if either has participated in the Faculty Student Summer Research Program before, and if so, when.
2. The title of the project.
3. A description of the project (500 words maximum) written in a fashion comprehensible to non-specialists.
4. A statement written by the faculty member providing a description of the working relationship with the proposed student and how the experience benefits the student's educational, professional, and/or creative goals; a justification for the requested grant period and information regarding external funding. If working with multiple students, the faculty member should rank order them (in case all students on the project cannot be funded).
5. A brief statement outlining the broader impacts of the project. Broader impacts may be achieved by outreach and/or recruitment of students from under-represented groups, though projects that specifically address issues of diversity and inclusion or through activities directly related or complementary to the proposed research project.
6. A statement of the goals, proposed activities, and format of the final outcome (e.g., journal article, exhibit, website, conference presentation, etc.).
7. An itemized budget listing the costs of equipment and supplies needed to complete the project.
8. Signatures of both the faculty and student applicants.
9. If faculty are submitting more than one proposed project, the faculty member should rank order them (in case both projects cannot be funded).
10. Proposals that involve human subjects or the use of human tissues are subject to the requirements of the College’s Institutional Review Board (IRB). IRB guidelines, FAQs, and forms are available at: https://www.skidmore.edu/irb . Proposals that involve the use of vertebrate animals are subject to the requirements of the College’s Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). IACUC guidelines and forms are available by contacting the IACUC Chair. IRB and IACUC approvals are not a prerequisite to submitting a Faculty Student Summer Research Grant but are required prior to the commencement of the research.

Form:  Faculty Student Summer Research Proposal—Application Cover Page (Word)

 

The cover page must be attached to materials submitted by both the student and the faculty member.

 

 

1. Other summer commitments that either the student or the faculty member may have must not interfere with the demands of this program. Please note that during the grant period students may not enroll in summer school since they are expected to commit to the project a minimum of 35–40 hours per week. The collaborative work schedule shall be the priority over all other commitments and will be determined in consultation with the faculty mentor. Students will not be supported to stay on campus beyond the grant period for which they have been funded. Faculty members are discouraged from teaching in summer school or participating in any other grant program during the grant period.
2. Applications need to specify the grant period.
3. Faculty-student teams are expected to be present for the group sessions unless prior arrangements have been made with the program coordinator for the Faculty Student Summer Research Program when the awards are accepted. Participating teams will be given a schedule of expected dates for session participation.
4. Faculty-student partners on each project may be asked to participate in programs where they can report on their work from the summer to the larger Skidmore community during the succeeding academic year.
5. All financial documentation and itemized receipts need to be submitted to the Office of the DOF/VPAA by the end of the summer program. Expenditures must be in support of the project goals.  The program coordinator will arrange for a paid outing for all summer students; individual faculty will not be reimbursed for entertainment.
6. All materials and/or equipment purchased with the aid of grant funding become the property of Skidmore College when the funded project is completed.
7. A final report is required from both the student and the faculty member. Presentation at the final meeting will constitute the final report. However, if a final presentation is not made at the final meeting, a written final report must be submitted by the student and the faculty member to the Office of the Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs by September 15 immediately following the summer the research project occurred. Failure to file a final report may result in advances being treated as taxable income and will disqualify participants from future grant opportunities. The final report, submitted online, will consist of the following:
   1. An itemized expense form and receipts for expenditures that supported the work of the project.
   2. A brief written summary of the research completed during the grant period.

Faculty final report:
https://www.skidmore.edu/fdc/faculty_student_summer_research/summer-research-faculty-final-report.php

Student final report:
https://www.skidmore.edu/fdc/faculty_student_summer_research/summer-research-student-final-report.php