Office of Sponsored Programs and Research
106 University Hall
Bowling Green, OH 43403-0230
Phone: 419-372-2481
FAX: 419-372-0304
E-mail: ospr@bgsu.edu
“BUILDING STRENGTH” GRANT PROGRAMS
The “Building Strength” grant programs are designed to facilitate faculty research and creative activities across a wide
range of disciplinary fields. The dual goals of this program are: 1) to promote early-phase activities leading to the
submission of major external grant proposals; and 2) to support activities in areas that do not require the support of large
external grants. However, applicants are reminded that these internal grant programs are solely supported by indirect
costs recovered from the university’s externally-funded grant activities. Therefore, are encouraged to seek external
funding which will allow recovered indirect costs, wherever possible and as appropriate. “Building Strength” funds are
provided by the Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development (OVPRED) and administered by
the Office of Sponsored Programs and Research (OSPR).
Eligibility
All Bargaining Unit Faculty Members are eligible to apply for internal or external grants. The University shall not use a
Bargaining Unit Faculty Member’s appointment or academic rank as a basis for disqualifying him/her from applying for
internal or external grants as long as the activities to be funded by the grant are consistent with the mission of the
individual faculty member’s academic unit and his/her academic unit responsibilities.
[Article 23, Section 4 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement]
PROJECT GRANTS:
Grants to Support Projects Leading to Major and Mid-Range External Grant Proposals
(Award amounts $5,000 to $10,000; Fall & Spring)
These Major to Mid-Range Research Project Grants are intended to support a specific research project, which will
result in the submission of external grant applications requesting at least 10 times the amount of the
internal award in direct costs over the duration of the project period (i.e., applicants requesting $5,000 of
internal support are expected to submit an external request of at least $50,000 in direct costs over the duration of
the project period; applicants requesting $10,000 will be required to submit an external request of at least
$100,000 in direct costs over the duration of the project period). Applicants may request up to $10,000 for this
award. Funds may be used for research-related expenses such as the support of a research assistant, classroom
replacement costs (with the written permission of the applicant’s department chair), and the purchase of research
supplies/equipment. They may also be used to provide faculty summer salary, fringe benefits, participant costs,
and travel funds. Preference will be given to junior faculty, but all proposals will be equally considered based on
merit.
NOTE:
 A qualifying external submission is a single proposal requesting ten times the original amount of the
Building Strength award in direct costs over the duration of the project period. A combination of smaller
requests totaling ten times the amount will not fulfill the obligation.
 The external application can be new or the revision of a recently unfunded proposal.
 The PI on the Building Strength award must be the PI on the external submission.
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Grants for Projects Leading to Small External Proposals or Other Measurable Outcomes
(Award amounts up to $1,000; Fall & Spring)
These Small Research Project Grants are intended to support projects leading to smaller external grant proposals
(up to $1,000 in total costs) or other forms of measurable outcomes. Examples of the latter include the
completion of a book for publication, and/or the completion of a new composition or an artistic endeavor that will
be subsequently performed, submitted to jury, or shown in a gallery.
Note that receipt of the Major and Small award requires an outcome:
1. Major to Mid-Range Research Project awards require the submission of an external grant proposal,
requesting at least 10 times the internal reward in direct costs per over the duration of the project period. The
PI on the Building Strength award must be the PI on the external submission;
2. Small Research Project awards require the submission of a smaller external grant, or other outcome measure
as specified above.
3. If this requirement is not met within 12 months of the “Building Strength” project end date, the applicant’s
Chair/Director and/or Dean will be required to return the full award amount to the OVPRED within 24
months of the project end date.
Deadlines
 Project Grants –Major to Mid-Range and Small -- First Round
Due 5 p.m., Monday, November 9, 2015.
Project Period: Start Date – January 1, 2016; End date – August 31, 2016.
Outcomes (external grants submissions, book contracts, new composition or artwork, etc.) due no later
than August 31, 2017.
 Project Grants – Major to Mid-Range and Small – Second Round
Due 5 p.m., Friday, February 19, 2016.
Project Period: Start Date – May 1, 2016; End date – December 31, 2016.
Outcomes (external grants submissions, book contracts, new composition or artwork, etc.) due no later
than December 31, 2017.
TRAVEL GRANTS
Scholarly/Creative Activities
(Award Amounts Up To $500)
These grants will support travel for:
 Invited or contributed presentations of scholarship/creative activities at academic conferences;
 Travel in support of scholarship/creative activities (use of archives, travel to conduct interviews, use of
external research facilities).
Preference will be given to activities that will lead to externally funded support. Applicants to this program
MUST submit their proposals to OSPR at the same time they submit their paper/presentation to their academic
conference, or request to use archives, etc. Awards are subject to acceptance by external sources (conference,
music festival, art exhibit, etc.) and OVPRED review. Requests for retro-active reimbursement will not be
considered.
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External Funding (Variable Award Amounts)
Additional grants are available to provide transportation, hotel, and meal expenses for travel to visit program
officers at external funding agencies and foundations, or to support collaborative grant writing activities.
Applications for these awards should be made directly to the OVPRED, via OSPR. Such visits MUST be
discussed at least 60 days before the applicant intends to travel. Requests for retro-active reimbursement will not
be considered.
Deadlines
 Travel Grants – Rolling submissions.
 Conference travel request must be submitted when the applicant submits his/her proposal for a
paper or presentation to the external conference, etc.
 Visits to sponsors or grant writing travel must be discussed with the OVPRED in advance and
these discussions should take place at least 60 days in advance.
Awards will be considered until the funding allocation for the Travel Grants is exhausted. Faculty are
encouraged to contact OSPR before submitting a travel request to ensure that funds remain available.
AWARD LIMITATIONS
 Major to Mid-Range Research Project Grants: recipients of these awards will not be considered for other
“Building Strength” funding until the following two conditions are met: 1) the funded project period has ended;
and 2) the outcome has been achieved (i.e., external grant, requesting 10 times the internal award in direct costs
over the duration of the project period, is submitted).
 Small Research Project Grants: recipients of these awards will not be considered for a Major to Mid-Range
Research Project Grant until the following two conditions are met: 1) the funded project period has ended; and 2)
the outcome has been achieved (i.e., external grant submitted, article submitted, composition finished, etc.).
 Travel Grants: applicants are limited to one award per fiscal year (Major to Mid-Range Research Project Grant
recipients are ineligible for further funds until the conditions of their award are met).
APPLICATION PROCEDURE
Cover Page
All applications must use the provided cover page and include the signatures of the applicant, chair and college dean. The
additional signatures will serve as an agreement to refund the OVPRED the entire award amount if the awardee has not
met the outcome measures, as stipulated in the guidelines.
C.V.
Applicants are required to provide a copy of their current academic C.V., which does not count against the page limit.
Budget
Applicants are required to provide a complete itemized budget. OSPR staff will assist with the preparation of such budgets
upon request.
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Narrative
The narrative should be brief and written in language that would be understood by peers who would be unfamiliar with
your work in disciplines outside your field.
For Major and Mid-Range and Small Research Project Grants, the narrative should include a one paragraph
abstract, and a more detailed description, not to exceed three single-spaced pages.
All submitted proposals will be reviewed by the current recipients of “Building Strength” funding, who will rank
proposals based on average scores and make awards accordingly. Every effort will be made to match the disciplines
of the applicants with appropriate reviewers. Priority will be given to proposals from new faculty and faculty
conducting scholarship in difficult-to-fund areas. All types of projects will be evaluated against the following criteria
(Please incorporate the following as section headers in your application to facilitate the review process):
1. Quality of research;
2. Clearly identified measurable research, scholarly, or creative outcomes or objectives;
3. Clearly identified, viable external funding source and reasonable deadline
(in the case of Major to Mid-Range Research Project Grants) or
a feasible and reasonable outcome, such as the submission of an article, work of art, book chapter, etc.
(in the case of Small Research Project Grants); and
4. Evidence of the necessary scholarly/creative credentials to accomplish the project
(Attach a standard academic CV. Does not count against the page limit.).
Applicants must also include a budget (does not count against the page limit). Please develop these budgets with a
staff member of OSPR.
For Travel Grants to Support Visits to Program Officers at Funding Agencies, the cover page, budget, and
correspondence between the applicant, OSPR and/or OVPRED will suffice as an application.
For Travel Grants to Support Scholarly/Creative Activities, your application should include all documentation
which you submitted to be reviewed for the conference, performance event, exhibit, etc. A copy of that documentation
along with the cover page must be submitted to OSPR when you submit your proposal to the external entity
(conference, exhibit, performance venue, etc.).
For all requests, submit a complete, signed, scanned application, as an email attachment, by the appropriate deadline date
and time (where applicable) to:
The Office of Sponsored Programs and Research
ospr@bgsu.edu
OUTCOME MEASURES
“Building Strength” awards are viewed as investments in faculty research development and are expected to contribute to
the outcome measures associated with research: a grant submission, an article submitted for publication, presentation of
research at a conference, meeting with program officers to discuss a research proposal, etc. All “Building Strength”
recipients must provide documentation of such outcomes within 12 months from the end of the approved grant period.
Failure to do so could result in loss of future eligibility for “Building Strength” grant awards. In addition, if this
requirement is not met, the applicant’s Chair/Director and/or Dean will be required to return the full award amount to
the OVPRED within 24 months of the project completion date.
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Example:
 Major to Mid-Range Research Project Grants for the first round are due Friday, November 9, 2015.
 Recipient’s project period will begin January 1, 2016 and end August 31, 2016.
 Recipients of the Major to Mid-Range Research Project grant will be expected to submit an external grant, requesting
at least 10 times the amount of their internal award in direct costs over the duration of the project period, no later than
August 31, 2017.
 In cases where recipients fail to comply with the outcome measures, their Chair/Director or Dean will be required to
return the full award amount to the OVPRED no later than August 31, 2018.
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“BUILDING STRENGTH” GRANT PROGRAMS
REVIEWER’S RUBRIC
1. How compelling was the scientific, scholarly or creative merit of this project? (scale 1-5)
Not compelling
1
2
3
4
2. How clear were the goals of the research or creative endeavor? (scale 1-5)
Not clear
1
2
3
4
Very compelling
5
Very clear
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3. To what degree did the applicant convince you (the reviewer) that the work could be accomplished? (scale 1-5)
Not convinced
Convinced
1
2
3
4
5
4. How clear was the writing? (scale 1-5)
Not clear
1
2
3
4
Very clear
5
5. What was the greatest strength of the application? (1-3 sentence answer)
6. What single improvement would make the greatest impact on the application (e.g. more clear methods, preliminary
results, compelling merit, etc.)? (1-3 sentence answer)
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Proposal No.: _________________
“Building Strength” Grants Program
PROPOSAL COVER SHEET
Applicant Name:
Department:
Rank:
Office Phone:
E-Mail:
Title of Proposal:
Type of Assistance:
(Choose one)
Answer as applicable:
If project involves human subjects, list HSRB approval date:
If project involves use of experimental animals, list IACUC approval date:
Outcome Measures:
Type (grant, article, book, exhibit, etc.):
External Grant Source, Publisher, etc.
Deadline/Submission date, etc.
Funds Requested:
$
Start Date:
End Date:
Please attach a detailed budget.
ENDORSEMENTS:**
Applicant:
Typed Name
Signature
Date
Typed Name
Signature
Date
Typed Name
Signature
Date
Dept. Chair:
College Dean:
**Chairs/Directors and/or Deans signing this form agree to refund the OVPRED the entire award amount if the awardee has not met the outcome
measures, as stipulated in the guidelines.
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