UCITE Course Innovation Grants (UCIGs)

UCITE Course Innovation Grants ARE AVAILABLE: APPLY BY MAY 13, 2024 

UCIGs support the design and implementation of innovative teaching and learning pedagogies for new and existing courses. Examples of innovative pedagogical approaches include:

• Experiential and Service-learning instructional activities
• Problem-based learning opportunities
• Multiple approaches to instruction, student engagement, and assessment using the Universal Design for Learning framework
• Course-based scholarship and research opportunities for students
• Advancement of inclusion, internationalization, diversity and equity within curricular materials and activities

UCITE recognizes that innovation may appear differently from one discipline to another, and among interdisciplinary collaborations. If you have an idea for a UCIG, or if you have questions about developing an idea, UCITE staff are available to assist you in drafting a proposal. Contact us at ucite@case.edu. 

To help faculty identify more specifically how course innovation might be realized, UCITE has adapted a collection of Principles of Effective Teaching and Learning from The University of Texas at Austin Center for Teaching and Learning. UCIGs may be awarded to teaching faculty who seek to engage with one or more of the principles as they create substantial revisions to an existing course or as they develop a new course for the upcoming academic year.

Funding

UCIG recipients will be awarded a $2,500 grant to help complete course development or course revision innovation. Grant funding will be accessible for one-year. Funds must conform to the guidelines of the recipient’s department and school, as well as those of the university.  Funding may be used for expenses related to the development, delivery, and assessment of new or revised courses, including:

• Course equipment or materials
• Compensation for Teaching Assistants
• Fees associated with course activities (e.g. transportation or admission costs)

UCIGs may not be used for supplemental or summer salary for faculty.

Eligibility

Full-time CWRU teaching faculty are eligible to apply for a UCIG. Adjunct faculty and graduate students may collaborate as team members with a full-time faculty member serving as lead applicant. 

Application Procedure

Faculty need to complete three steps to apply for a Course Innovation Grant, and all materials will be uploaded through a convenient Google Form:

1. Complete an online application form (Google Document version for planning located HERE). Remember: UCITE Staff are available to help you draft a UCIG proposal.
2. Upload an existing course syllabus or a course syllabus proposal (for a planned new course)
3. Upload a letter of support from your department chair or dean

The review committee will consider each UCIG application using the following criteria:

• Description of course innovation and student learning goals 
• Description of measurement of course innovation goals
• Justification for course innovations, including proposed use of grant funding

UPDATE: UCIGs ARE AVAILABLE for the 2024-2025 academic year. The application window is now open, and UCITE will accept applications through Friday, May 10, 2024. Award recipients will be notified by the end of May, 2024. Funds will be available for use starting in August 2024.

UCIG Learning Community

Faculty receiving a UCIG will complete three planned activities. The first activity will consist of a meeting between each individual recipient and a member of the UCITE staff, prior to the start of the fall semester. We will work with faculty to help support the success of your innovations and to identify potential university partners that may serve as resources for you and your students. The second and third activities will involve in-person meetings with the UCIG Learning Community, that is, all UCIG recipients for a particular award year. These two in-person UCIG Learning Community meetings will focus on sharing and support of innovations among grant recipients:

• First meeting in September, following the add/drop period
• Final meeting in April, prior to the last week of classes

Learning Community meetings will be n-person, and snacks/light lunch will be available. UCITE also encourages faculty to engage with fellow UCIG recipients through informal interactions.   

Reporting and Presentation of UCIG Results

Within two months after the course has concluded, the grant recipient will file a report with UCITE that documents project goals, accomplishments, and impact on student learning. This report may be completed in written or video format. Reports will be published on our website as a teaching and learning innovation resource.

encourages faculty to engage with fellow UCIG recipients through informal interactions.   

Course Innovation Grant Recipients

The following faculty have been funded through the UCIG program.