George Mason University

The Faculty Research and Development Awards (FRDA) help faculty members to initiate new programs of research and scholarship or to enhance existing ones.  The primary objective of these awards is to provide seed money that will lead, where possible, to further support from external sponsors.  For this reason, the likelihood that a proposed project will gain subsequent outside funding will be a significant factor in the evaluation.  The expectation for future external support need not be read as requiring immediate submission of a grant or fellowship application following the FRDA.  Especially for independent scholars, it is recognized that this award may provide support for only one step toward the goal of positioning oneself for later successful research support.

Award Categories

Single investigator awards:  Proposals may request support for research costs ranging from $1,000 to $5,000.

Interdisciplinary awards representing two CHSS departments/units/disciplines:  Proposals may request support for research costs up to $8,000.

Interdisciplinary research awards representing three or more CHSS department/disciplines:  Proposals may request support for research costs up to $10,000.

Note: In the evaluation of all interdisciplinary proposals, the potential for future funding (criterion #5 below) is especially heavily weighed. Interdisciplinary proposals that cross colleges will be considered if appropriate cost sharing by the other college is included in the budget.  Please check with Matt Zingraff if you are planning to submit such a proposal.

Eligibility

Tenured and tenure-track faculty members are eligible to apply.  Priority will be given to faculty members early in their careers at George Mason University.

Application Cycle

The call for proposals for this award is generally made in March with a due date early in the fall semester. The exact dates will be announced in the call for proposals, which will appear on this Web site and sent as an announcement to all faculty.

Application Process

Applicants should submit the following

• The full proposal should be submitted as a single document in the order below.
• • Cover page using the attached form
    
  • Abbreviated curriculum vitae using the attached form
  • Project narrative that addresses the 5 review criteria listed below.  (Four page maximum, excluding references; single spaced, 12 point font, one-inch margins)
  • Reference page (1 page maximum)
  • Budget with explanation of expenses (e.g., wages, technical support, travel and associated costs, equipment, training, et cetera).

• Applications should be submitted electronically as an attachment to chssres@gmu.edu. Please indicate "FRDA" on the subject line for applications.

Budget support

Support may be requested for most items usually found in a research budget, including student labor, travel for data collection and other travel essential to the research project, equipment excluding computers, laboratory or research supplies, necessary professional development activities, and training central to the research, et cetera.

Review Criteria

• Description of Proposed Research - (The goals and objectives of the project should be clearly defined in terms of the research focus.)
• Relevance and Novelty of Proposed Research – (The project should advance knowledge in the area of study or propose new models for work in the field.)
• Research Strategy – (The proposed method/strategy/plan should be adequate to address the proposed topic.  This section should include a description of the information or data, your access to relevant data, the project design and plan, form of the analyses where appropriate, explicit time frames for completion of the project, resource requirements and availability, et cetera.)
• Proposed Budget – (The budget should be appropriate for the project and line items should be sufficiently justified.  Budget questions should be addressed to Matt Zingraff.)
• Potential for Future Funding – (The selected research issue should have sufficient potential for follow-up funding in the near-term or later-term.  Potential sponsors should be identified where possible and the relationship between a sponsor and the proposed research should be explained (for example, “The award will help establish my expertise in area X which will allow me to apply for a Fulbright to continue my research on …….” or  “The award, in conjunction with ….., will help establish my reputation in area X which will position me to be competitive for available external support” or “This preliminary work will provide the framework with which to make application to NEH for a partnership with Fairfax Public Schools to enhance their curriculum on …..” or “Baseline tests and results on this topic will strengthen my application to Division Y of  NSF for the December call for proposals.”)

Final Report

Recipients are required to submit a brief report that highlights the major accomplishments and success of the supported work. The report should be in a form suitable for posting on the college Web site (no longer than one-third page of text).

Other Information

This award program does not support course releases, supplemental salary of any kind, or conference travel expenses. All expenses must be incurred and all invoices submitted in order to be charged to the fiscal year in which the award is made in early June. At the end of the fiscal year, any unexpended balance reverts to the college for reallocation.

For further information or questions please call 703-993-8721 or e-mail chssres@gmu.edu. Please indicate FRDA on the subject line for electronic correspondence.