Program to Enhance Scholarly and Creative Activities
Introduction/Purpose
The Program to Enhance Scholarly and Creative Activities (PESCA) provides funding awards for significant research projects, scholarly publications, and artistic presentations. These awards are made in the arts, humanities, social sciences, or closely related fields. A variety of activities are eligible for funding including travel to collections and libraries to evaluate original documents.
(Note: Faculty are also encouraged to explore the many types of external funding that are available to support research agendas in many fields of enquiry. A listing of funding opportunities or sources of funding can be found on the Division of Research website in the funding opportunities section.
Eligibility
All Texas A&M University tenured or tenure-track faculty engaged in research, scholarship, or creative work in the humanities, arts, social sciences, or related fields are eligible to receive this award. A faculty member’s name may not appear on more than one application. Tenured or tenure-track faculty are encouraged to submit jointly authored interdisciplinary proposals. A faculty member may receive no more than two Scholarly and Creative Activities awards during a five-year period.
Award Limits
The maximum award amount is $10,000 for single authored proposals; $18,000 for co-authored proposals; and $25,000 for proposals with three or more authors. Schedule/estimated time line:
- Opening date for the submission of proposals: September 3, 2012.
- PESCA proposal writing workshop: September 26, 2012.
- PESCA proposal review panel seminar: October 24, 2012.
- Applications must be finalized in the E-Proposal system no later than October 31, 2012, by 5:00 p.m. (No late applications will be accepted)
- Mid-December 2012: Notification of awards
- May 1, 2013: Estimated start date pending any required compliance approval(s). (e.g., IRB, IACUC)
Budget Information
All travel costs, services, supplies, equipment, salaries, fringe benefits, and insurance should be listed in the proposed budget. As the funds for this program are not fringe-bearing accounts, fringe benefits must be included in the budget for all salaries and calculated at 10.1 percent for graduate students and 17.2 percent for faculty and staff. Health insurance premiums must also be included and rates can be found at http://www.tamus.edu/assets/files/budgets-acct/pdf/Fringe-benefit-FY2013.pdf. For additional information regarding these benefits, the applicant should contact his/her departmental businessperson. Facility and administrative (indirect) costs are not allowed. Applicants must justify all expenses only as they directly relate to the research work proposed.
Project Period
Competitive awards are for a maximum of 12 months. One 90 day no-cost extension may be requested. Any funds remaining in the principal investigator’s account at the end of the project period will be returned to the Office of the Vice President for Research within five days of the end of the grant period (or the end of the ninety-day no cost extension if one has been granted).
Criteria
A peer-review panel from Texas A&M will evaluate each submitted proposal based upon the following major criteria:
- The potential of the proposed project to result in outstanding research, scholarly, or creative work.
- The potential for significant scholarly or creative outcomes from the proposed project – including a series of peer reviewed articles in major journals, a book manuscript published by a major academic press, presentation of creative work in a major peer-reviewed venue, or a successful application for an external award or externally funded grant.
- The potential for the proposal submitter(s) to successfully complete the proposed project.
- The qualifications of the applicant to pursue the project successfully.
Upon Selection
Faculty who receive an award should contact their business office before making any final commitment concerning expenditures. Expenses beyond the amount of the PESCA award will not be reimbursed by this office.
Expectations
Project results are expected to be reported or presented in appropriate scholarly forums, such as articles in journals, presentations at professional meetings, scholarly books and peer-reviewed creative work. Project results should also be the basis for a sustained program of research, scholarship, or creative work that is supported by external awards or funding. Those who receive a PESCA award are required to send a final progress report to the Office of the Vice President for Research detailing how the grant funds were used thirty days after the end of the 12-month funding period. This report will be due by June 1, 2014. The form can be downloaded from the following link: http://vpr.tamu.edu/resources/forms/pesca-final-reporting-form, and upon completion should be submitted to Dr. Jim Izat, PESCA program coordinator, at jizat@tamu.edu. Those who do not submit this report will not be eligible to participate in future research enhancement programs supported through the Office of the Vice President for Research. A follow-up report of any publications or other outcomes three years after the preliminary final report is also required. A reminder notice will be sent to all award recipients.
Travel Requests
Scholarly and Creative Awards may be used for approved university travel. PESCA awards may also be used for foreign travel provided it is within the guidelines of the University rule on foreign travel (see http://rules-saps.tamu.edu/PDFs/21.01.03.M1.pdf ).
Compliance
If the proposed scholarly or creative activity involves a compliance issue (for example, the Institutional Review Board (IRB) or the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)), applicants must check the appropriate box in the general information section of the online application to signify that oversight is needed for this research. Principal investigators are encouraged to contact either the IRB or IACUC in advance of submitting their proposals to determine if such oversight is necessary before submitting their proposals. The appropriate compliance forms must be submitted and approved, and copies of approval documents must be forwarded to Dr. Jim Izat, PESCA program coordinator, at jizat@tamu.edu before funding can be disbursed.
Format
All proposals submitted for the Program to Enhance Scholarly and Creative Activities must be submitted electronically using the on-line application system at https://eproposal.tamu.edu. Applicants must have a NEO account to complete the internal grants proposal submission (E-Proposal) application. This registration can be completed at http://gateway.tamu.edu. A proposal will consist of the information listed below. The abstract, project description, investigator resumes, and current and pending support should be uploaded in a PDF format (only) in the designated location of the application. Though the E-Proposal system automatically converts word files to PDF files, to ensure that special characters and formatting are accurately reproduced, it is strongly recommend that faculty use Adobe Acrobat or Microsoft Word to convert Word files to PDF files before using E-Proposal. Please do not scan paper documents and upload the scans in PDF format. Incomplete or unreadable proposals will be disqualified.
- General information (online): Contact information for each investigator, compliance reporting, key words for project, and report codes. Select the department through which the proposal should be routed. Assign a descriptive title.
- Abstract (upload): A summary briefly describing the project's objectives, proposed methodology, and anticipated results in terms easily understandable to faculty outside the researcher’s discipline. The abstract should not exceed 150 words and must use Times New Roman 12-point font with one-inch margins. List five key words associated with this proposal.
- Project description (upload): A narrative of the project up to three pages in length using Times New Roman 12-point font with one-inch margins. The project description should include any illustrations, figures, data, or other information and:
- applications must demonstrate the capability and credibility of the principal investigator to perform the research. If graduate students are to take part, describe their contribution’s relevance to their graduate study and the supervision planned for their participation,
- provide background information about the project and discuss its potential impact on the discipline,
- describe external funding opportunities that might sustain or extend the proposed project,
- state the specific objectives of the project,
- describe the work to be performed, the tasks of each person, and the timeline for the project,
- describe the anticipated outcome(s) of the project expected within one year of the award,
- describe the potential for external support, and
- describe any interdisciplinary linkages involved in the project.
- Investigator resumes (upload): Up to two-page resumes listing recent publications or creative works for all investigators must be attached to the application.
- Current and pending (upload): List the source, title, date, and amount of relevant internal and external funding support received and pending, as well as for applications submitted but not funded during the previous three years (for all investigators).
- Reporting data section/key words (online): All fields are required to be completed.
- Budget (online): Not to exceed US $10,000 for a single author, US $18,000 for co-authored proposals, and US $25,000 for proposals with three or more authors.
- Budget justification (online): Up to 3,000 characters, including spaces, specifically itemizing each budgeted item. Justify each item in the budget, including a summer salary request if applicable, in terms of the goals of the project.
All applications must be submitted online through the E-Proposal system only. Incomplete applications will be disqualified. As a precaution it is advised to keep a backup copy of your application.
The online application should be submitted no later than 5:00 p.m. on Monday, October 31, 2012.
A single no-cost extension requested prior to the end of the award year may be granted, with adequate justification, for a maximum of 90 days from the final day of funding for that fiscal year.
Request for Proposals: http://vpr.tamu.edu/funding/scholarlycreative
On-Line Application System: https://eproposal.tamu.edu
Questions should be directed to:
Dr. Jim Izat
Program Coordinator
Phone: 979.862.1860
E-mail jizat@tamu.edu
Fax: 979.845.1855
Dr. J. Martin Scholtz
Executive Associate Vice President for Research
Phone: 979.845.8585
E-mail jm-scholtz@tamu.edu
Fax: 979.845.1855
Technical questions or issues should be directed to:
webapp@vpr.tamu.edu