CENTER FOR EDUCATIONAL INNOVATION
DIVISION OF ACADEMIC AFFAIRS
SEED GRANT FOR PROMOTING PEDAGOGICAL INNOVATION
DESCRIPTION: One signature and priority recommendation of Realizing UB 2020 is
pedagogical excellence and innovation. Nationally, improving undergraduate and graduate
education is a priority of federal and state governments, as well as private corporations and
foundations. As an example, in 2014, the National Science Foundation had a budget of $479
million for undergraduate and $388 million for graduate STEM education. UB’s Center for
Educational Innovation (CEI) serves as a nexus for campus-wide efforts to further elevate the
scholarship of, and research support for, pedagogical advancement and improved learning at the
university. In a recent survey of UB faculty, 68% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that
CEI “should provide seed grants to cultivate faculty innovation in university teaching.” The Seed
Grant for Promoting Pedagogical Innovation, offered annually through CEI, intends to promote
excellence in university teaching, learning and assessment. In particular, it intends to enhance
UB’s capacity to successfully obtain external grants to support university pedagogical
innovation.
AWARD AMOUNT: A total budget of $50,000 annually is available to support a maximum of
$10,000 per project for one year.
SCOPE OF SUPPORT: Funding may be used to support faculty course reduction, graduate
students and purchase of limited materials, supplies and equipment. Faculty extra service salary
and travel are not allowed. A small amount may be used for external consultants if a strong
justification can be made. Projects in the following areas are particularly welcome:
 Student assessment and program evaluation
 Online learning, including hybrid and blended learning
 Applications of instructional technologies
 Scale-up of innovative pedagogies and assessments
ELIGIBILITY: All full-time faculty (tenured, tenure-track and clinical) may apply.
CONDITIONS OF AWARD: Awardees are required to submit a proposal for a large (greater
than $100,000) external grant within 24 months of the award starting date, and resubmit at least
once if the first attempt is not successful. Prior to issuance of the seed grant, all necessary
regulatory approvals (e.g., IRB) must be in place. A progress report must be submitted midway
through the project, and a final report summarizing the results in relation to the stated goals of
the application is due within 60 days after the ending of the project funding. Awardees are also
required to present at UB’s annual Genteels’ Excellence in Teaching conference. The awardees
must also report annually for three years on proposals submitted and awards granted. All reports
are due to the director of the Center for Educational Innovation.
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PROJECT DESIGN CONSULTATION: CEI staff is ready to provide individual consultation
on project designs, particularly assessment and evaluation; they will also be available to support
development of proposals for external grants. CEI staff and the director will not be involved in
the proposal reviews.
PROPOSAL FORMAT: All proposals must be in PDF format with single space, 12-point font
and 1-inch margins, and must include:
1. Cover: Listing project title, PI, contact information, project duration and approval by the
department chair and dean of the unit.
2. 150-word abstract: Summarizing project objectives, design, significance and potential for
external funding.
3. Project narrative (5 pages maximum, plus references): Describing the project’s intellectual
merits and potential impacts, and making a strong case why a seed grant is necessary in order to
successfully obtain large external grants to support the project. The project narrative should
include the following elements:
a. Significance
Ground the proposed project in a body of scholarly literature. State the project’s
objectives and specific research questions (when appropriate). Elaborate on the potential
for the project to impact university teaching and learning.
b. Design
Clearly describe the design, methods for data collection (e.g., measurement instrument)
and analysis, and expected outcomes at the end of the seed grant funding. Describe the
roles of PI, co-PIs and graduate students or teaching assistants (if applicable) in the
implementation process. Finally, present a timeline of major activities for the project.
c. Plan for Applying for External Grants
Clearly identify at least one specific external funding opportunity with a specific
submission deadline and describe a plan for submitting a proposal before the deadline.
Explain how the proposed seed grant project will enhance the chance to successfully
obtain the external grant.
4. Key Project Personnel: Include a 1-page biographical sketch for each key project personnel,
including PI, co-PIs and other key project personnel.
5. Project Budget: Include a 1-page line item budget and a detailed justification, including a
description of other resources or cost-sharing (if available) that will be applied to the project.
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PROPOSAL SUBMISSION: RFP will be announced on January 22, 2015 and applications
must be submitted via email as a single PDF document by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 27, 2015 to
the Center for Educational Innovation (ubcei@buffalo.edu), attn. Renee Crandall.
PROPOSAL REVIEW: A panel consisting of five faculty and professional staff will review
proposals. A scoring rubric will be used to rank-order proposals. The scoring criteria will include
the following aspects:
 Significance
 Design
 Plan for applying for external grants
 Qualifications of the project team
AWARD NOTIFICATION: The review panel will make recommendations to the director of
the Center for Educational Innovation who will make award decisions and notify applicants by
May 1, 2015. The earliest project starting date is May 15, 2015. Although the budget with its
justification is not a review criterion, the review panel may recommend modifications to the
proposed budget. All applicants will receive a summary of the review panel’s qualitative
comments on each proposal’s strengths and weaknesses.
QUESTIONS: Please address all questions about this seed grant to Renee Crandall
(reneecra@buffalo.edu), Office Manager, Center for Educational Innovation.
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