Internal (VT) Funding Programs ASPIRES
The 2004-2005 ASPIRES Competition has been concluded. A list of funded projects is available.
A Support Program for Innovative Research Strategies 2005-2006 ASPIRES Competition The Research Division is pleased to announce this year's ASPIRES competition. This program is made possible by funds from the Office of the Provost, the Office of the Vice President for Research, and the university's Central Capital Account. The goals of the ASPIRES Program are to: 1) enhance sponsored research activities at Virginia Tech; 2) raise the level of scholarship; and 3) foster excellence in all academic disciplines. Proposals will be accepted from all faculty; however, evaluation will give strong preference to supporting projects which help new (untenured) faculty who have not yet been successful attracting extramural funding. Eligibility: Faculty who have not yet received tenure and have not yet been successful attracting an extramural grant are encouraged to apply. (Previous ASPIRES winners will be given lower priority in the evaluation process.) This year we will support projects in two categories: 1. Unrestricted Research Proposals and 2. Capital Renovation Proposals. Six to eight proposals in each of the two areas are expected to be funded. Applicants may request support in any amount up to a maximum of $100,000; expenditures in the upper end of the range may be spread over two years where appropriate. Collaborative proposals will be accepted but the major goal of the proposal should be to stimulate the research of junior faculty members. Mentoring by senior faculty is encouraged. Proposals must also document support from the academic units of the university, evidenced by significant cost sharing (equal matching recommended) and letters of written support from participating Department Heads and Deans. Use of Funds The ASPIRES Program should be viewed as an enhancement activity intended to match support from participating academic units and colleges. For that reason, letters from department heads and deans will represent crucial components of the application process. Although a minimum level of matching by the academic/college units is not specified, an equal match from these units is recommended. Significant weight will be given to strategies, activities, or programs developed with ASPIRES that will enhance the ability of junior faculty to compete for new external funding, to enhance scholarship, and otherwise to support the broad University goal to attain Top-30 recognition in research and scholarship. The role of senior faculty participating as mentors in the project must be clearly delineated. Unrestricted Proposals - A broad range of research activities will be considered in this category. Plans to obtain significant, multi-year funding from external sources are important, and should be mentioned in the proposal. Travel to acquire specialized research technologies, to establish partnerships within academia, government and/or industry, or to visit specialized collections at other locations will be considered. However, simple travel to professional meetings and other routine activities will not be supported. Although support of faculty salary is not encouraged, it may be permitted to facilitate activities for which the most important component is development of specialized skills needed to achieve specific research objectives. Proposals requesting faculty salary from ASPIRES must also have strong endorsement from the college/department and equal salary or release time from the college/department. Capital Renovation Proposals - Funding in this category can only be used for facilities renovation. These applications are to be submitted independently of unrestricted proposals. Review Criteria Unrestricted Research Proposals will be evaluated on the following criteria: 1. Scholarly merit of the proposed activities;
2. Strength of endorsement and financial commitments from the appropriate colleges and academic units;
3. Potential for the proposed research to lead to future external funding of a junior faculty member;
4. Appropriateness of the budget request in context of the proposed plan;
5. Importance of the project to the overall research objectives of the university. Continuation of this program in subsequent years is not assured; thus, priority will be given to proposals that show clear evidence that project objectives can be achieved within the specified time period. The budget must include a schedule for expenditure of funds. No extensions of the time period of awards will be considered; this latter provision will be strictly enforced.
Capital Renovation Proposals may be submitted with Department Heads or other administrative personnel (in addition to faculty members) designated as the PI. The following criteria will be considered in evaluating these proposals:
1. How the renovation project will benefit junior faculty members in starting or enhancing their research careers;
2. Quality/detail level of the cost estimates (applicants experiencing difficulty obtaining cost estimates by the deadline should contact Jim Blair
3. Likelihood that the renovation can be completed within the allotted time; Capital renovation projects are not intended as substitutes for or components of new faculty start-up packages. Awards will be announced on or about March 1,2005. Application and Reporting Information Forms for both Unrestricted Research and Capital Renovation proposals are attached to this document. Additional copies can be obtained in 301 Burruss Hall. They are also available for download in Microsoft Word/Excel format from the Research Division homepage (in the "Announcements" section) at research.vt.edu. Delays in renovation of facilities may not be accepted as a basis for project extension.
Deadline. The proposal deadline is Jan. 31, 2005. One copy of the completed proposal with required attachments should be delivered to 301 Burruss Hall by 5:00 PM on that date. Intent to apply (research proposals only). A brief e-mail notifying the Research Division of intent to submit an unrestricted research proposal should be sent to Debbie Nester by December 23, 2004. This notice of intent need only include the participating faculty and a descriptive title of the project. Though it is not strictly required for submitting a full proposal, the notice will greatly aid the Research Division in assuring a fair and equitable review of all proposals. Termination and reporting. All one year projects will be terminated June 30, 2006. Final programmatic and budget reports will be required by September 30, 2006. Two year projects must terminate by June 30, 2007, with final reports due September 30, 2007. The final report should include progress on program objectives, a summary of expenditure categories, and copies of budget pages and abstracts of any grant applications submitted during the funding period. All final reports should clearly identify how the ASPIRES program has benefited scholarly development of the participants and identify the tangible means by which those conclusions were reached. Publications and other public presentations resulting from ASPIRES programs should acknowledge the program where appropriate and copies of those publications should be provided with the final report. Also provide information on how the ASPIRES program helped in developing a major application submitted for extramural funding. ALERT FOR FUTURE YEARS Criteria for ASPIRES will change focus in future years. The Research Division intends to focus on projects which have already been submitted for major external funding and have not been funded. Evaluation for awards then would aim at addressing deficiencies identified in the external review process.
If you have any questions, please contact Jim Blair (1-5410 or jblair@vt.edu). We look forward to receiving your proposal. | 
