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A. Eligibility

Only tenured or tenure-earning faculty are eligible to submit proposals under the FRSP.

B. Types of Awards

1. Category I funds are provided for non-salary awards to support research grants in the Humanities and the Arts or to complement research initiatives with potential for extramural funding among eligible faculty in all disciplines.


• Awards: up to $5,000 (approximately 10-12 for 2007-08).


2. Category II funds are provided for tenured-track and tenured faculty. Priority is placed on the "seed funding" concept to develop research initiatives with potential for extramural funding. Proposals for tenure-track Assistant Professors will receive special considerations (see Award Review Process below).
   
   
   • Awards: up to $20,000 (approximately 7 for 2007-08).
   • Use of funds from Category II awards toward salary during the Summer semester is restricted to the equivalent of a first course buy-out (currently 12.5% of the faculty member's 9-month salary)

C. Application Process

• Faculty may be an applicant or a co-applicant on only one proposal. Joint submissions will be judged by the same standards as individual proposals.
• Submit the complete proposal at the following FRSP Web Portal: http://utsteweb.fiu.edu/ResearchApp/. The entire package must be received by the deadline specified below.  Proposals are declared ineligible if the guidelines are not followed or if all components of the proposal package are not received by the deadline.

D. Selection Process

1. General Considerations:
   1. The FIU FRSP program supports original research, scholarly, and artistic activities by FIU faculty.
   2. Activities funded by the FRSP program must advance the research career of the individual faculty member as well as the research status of the University.
   3. The expertise, past achievement, experience, research competence and dedication of the investigator(s) should be appropriate, and adequate to ensure successful completion of the project.
   4. The proposed research designs, available research populations, and facilities are adequate to the task.
   5. The proposed project timeline is reasonable.
   6. The proposed budget should be appropriate, and reflect current salary rate.
   7. The project will enable continuing research/scholarship with extramural sponsorship.


2. Review Panels:

Six review panels will be formed for the review process in each discipline area:

1. Arts, Architecture and the Humanities.
2. Engineering and Computing Sciences.
3. Biomedical and Life Sciences.
4. Business and Education.
5. Physical and Applied Sciences.
6. Social and Behavioral Sciences.

3. Award Review Process:
   • Applicants may indicate which Review Panel they wish to evaluate their proposal.  However, RUGS, in consultation with the Faculty Senate's Research Council, will determine the final allocation of proposals to the six Review Panels based on most appropriate fit.
   • Applicants will be informed of the Review Panel in which his/her proposal is placed prior to review.
   • RUGS and the Faculty Senate's Research Council will develop a “pool” of potential members of Review Panels and make the final membership selection.
   • Review Panel members will evaluate applications using objective criteria developed by RUGS and the Faculty Senate's Research Council. RUGS and the Research Council will make every effort to avoid assigning evaluations to reviewers who might have conflicts of interest with applicants.  Reviewers will be asked to recuse themselves if they have a conflict of interest not anticipated by RUGS or the Research Council.
   • All applicants will receive brief written evaluations of their application.
   • Applications from Assistant Professor will be favorably weighted (10% added).
   • The Review Process will consist of two stages:
     1. The Faculty Senate's Research Council will manage (with assistance from RUGS staff) the conduct of the reviews by the six Review Panels and provide funding recommendations to the Vice President for Research and FIU’s Foundation.
     2. The Vice President for Research will make final funding decisions, taking into consideration the recommendations of the Faculty Senate's Research Council.

E. Funding Conditions

• Funds are available beginning with the Summer B 2008 term until the end of the Summer A 2009 term. Final Reports are due in the Office of Research (MARC 430) no later than July 17, 2009.
• Failure to provide a Final Report will disqualify individuals from applying in the future to the FRSP.
• RUGS and the Research Council will organize an annual FRSP Conference during which selected program recipients will exhibit their findings through oral and poster presentations. The Conference will take place at the end of the Spring Semester each year. For the 2007-08 awards, the Conference will take place early during the Fall 2009 Semester.

F. Adherence to Proposal Submission Guidelines

Adherence to all proposal submission guidelines and deadlines will be strictly enforced. Proposals failing to adhere to any submission guidelines and requirements will be returned without review. This practice is in line with that of most funding agencies, including NIH and NSF. Additionally, the Office of Research does not have the staffing capacity, given ongoing pre-and-post-award grant management, to engage in a process of review and resubmission of incomplete applications. All applications must be submitted electronically in .pdf format by the submission deadline.

G. Proposal Package

All proposals submitted for consideration must contain the following elements in the order specified:

1. Internal Clearance Form: Chairs and Deans signatures must be obtained when funding is announced.
2. Budget:Proposals requesting funding for Category I or II will be considered. You may use these funds in any of the categories listed on the budget form.  Salary requests should specify the term (either Summer B 2007 or Summer A 2008) that funds are requested.
3. Format:

I. Title and Abstract:

• The title should be clear and concise.
• The abstract is limited to 250 words.  It should be written in lay terms and free of jargon.  The abstract should be page 1 of the proposal, and nothing else should appear on this page.

II.      Type of Proposal

III.     Narrative[not to exceed 4 pages. Pages must           be letter size (8.5x11 inches), Arial 10 point           or Times New Roman 11 point, single spaced           with 1 inch margins]

• Problem: Clearly state the question/theme/hypothesis to be explored.
• Methods: Discuss the research design, data collection methods, analysis, write-up, and dissemination of the results. Delineate the time frame for the project, and the availability of equipment and facilities.
• Goals: State clearly and concisely the specific short and long term goals. In particular, explain how the project will lead to enhancement of your professional career, and contribute to the University’s mission.
• Funding History: Summarize your successes and attempts to obtain research funding over the last three 3) years.

4. Resume(s): Attach a one-page resume for each person involved.

5. Appendices: Appendices may not exceed two pages.

H. Internal Permits and Approvals

• Any proposed activity involving human and /or animal subjects must be in compliance with applicable human and animal subjects care guidelines, and must have prior IRB and/or IACUC approval.
• Any work involving recombinant DNA, biohazardous (or other potentially hazardous) materials/activities, and/or export controls must have prior approval to the time that the funding is announced.