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COMMUNITY-BASED COURSE DEVELOPMENT & RESEARCH AWARDS

The Swearer Center is pleased to offer a range of grants and support for community-based courses and research. These resources are intended to provide assistance to faculty to integrate research, teaching, learning and community work.

Invitation to Submit

Grants and CTRFs: Faculty interested in either grants or CTRFs are encouraged to submit a one page letter of interest to Kerrissa Heffernan, Director of Faculty Engagement at the Swearer Center for Pubic Service. After receiving the letter faculty members will be contacted to discuss the proposal further. All proposals will be reviewed by representatives from the Swearer Center and the Office of the Dean of the College, the College Curriculum Committee, and/or the Office of the Vice President for Research as appropriate.

UTRAs: Faculty interested in UTRAs should submit their proposals to the Office of the Dean of the College through the usual UTRA process. Proposals will be reviewed by staff of that office and the Swearer Center.

Award Type	Description	Award	Eligibility
Individual community-based learning course development award	Offered to faculty interested in redesigning an existing course or developing a new course. This includes but is not limited to first year semi-capstone courses	Up to $4,000	All faculty
Collaborative community-based learning course development award	Offered to two or more faculty who collaborate to develop and teach a community-based learning course	Up to $4,000	All faculty
Individual award for communitybased research	Offered to faculty who propose community-based research	Up to $10,000	All faculty
Dissertation/thesis award	Offered to Brown students who are engaged in an outstanding community-based dissertation or thesis	Up to $1,000	All students
Community-based UTRAs	Offered to students working with faculty engaged in community-based teaaching and/or research. Awards can be team, international, research or teaching focused.	Up to $3,500	All students

Grants

The Swearer Center offers grants to support the integration of public or community work with research and classroom learning, with funds to cover expenses such as summer salary, material support or graduate/ undergraduate assistance.

Course development grant selection criteria

• The course demonstrates academic rigor: the community-based work serves course goals, is connected to specific cognitive outcomes (e.g., acquisition, synthesis, integration of knowledge) and is integral to course organization.
• The course demonstrates capacity: proposal demonstrates an understanding of the demands of engaging students in specific neighborhoods, social issues, or with agencies, organizations and populations.
• The proposed work is sustainable: The community-based component has potential for sustainability beyond the time constraints of the course and the faculty member is committed to working with partners through challenges or transitions.

In addition, faculty are required to participate in two meetings a year to discus the experience and work with the Swearer Center’s Director of Faculty Engagement to develop materials documenting the experience of integrating community-based learning into their course.

Research grant selection criteria

• The proposal demonstrates academic rigor: the community-based research utilizes disciplinary theories and practices and abides by guidelines established by Brown IRB regarding human subjects protocol.
• The proposal demonstrates an understanding of the demands of engaging students in research with social issues, or with particular neighborhoods, agencies, populations, organizations.
• The research is accessible to the public or allows an opportunity for the community to enter into a conversation with researchers.
• The faculty member has considered the implications for failure and potential impacts on the community.

In addition, faculty are required to participate in two meetings each year to discuss the experience.

UTRAs

Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards (UTRA’s) fund collaborative projects students undertake with Brown professors. UTRA’s provide students with opportunities to work closely in research with faculty members, to participate integrally in process of course development and revision, and thereby to experience first-hand the work of the college.

The Swearer Center works with the Office of the Dean of the College to encourage and support a category of UTRAs focused on community based teaching and research. Community based UTRA’s could be team, international, research or teaching focused but the commonality would be proposals that serve the public good. These awards will be made through the usual UTRA process of the office of the Dean of the College, in collaboration with the Swearer Center.

UNDERGRADUATE COMMUNITY TEACHING/RESEARCH FELLOWS (CTRF) PROGRAM

In addition to funding assistance, faculty may request a Community Teaching /Research Fellow. The Community Teaching/Research Fellows Program trains Brown undergraduates to assist faculty who are using community or public work in their teaching or research. Community Teaching/Research Assistants enroll in a seminar on the theory and practice of community work and community-based learning. The program serves all disciplines at all levels, from first year seminars to capstone courses.

Teaching assistants

CTRF’s are responsible for assisting students in the classroom as well as serving as the faculty ‘eyes and ears’ in the community. Fellows work with faculty and community partners to ensure that students engaged in community work understand the complexity of working in diverse communities and to ensure that the community experience facilitates the learning goals of the course.

Research assistants

Fellows may also serve as research assistants to faculty who are engaged in community-based research. This experience should introduce undergraduates to methods of community-based research including the benefits and challenges to communities and the scholarly or disciplinary perspective on community-based research.

Grants for course development and research are made possible by a generous grant from the Silverton Foundation.