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Inside Iowa State, a newspaper for faculty and staff, is published by the Office of University Relations.

April 28, 2006

Funding for grant program grows to $45,000

by Anne Krapfl

Professional and scientific employees who seek grants for student recruitment or retention projects this year will be asking for a piece of a bigger pie. Last month, President Gregory Geoffroy approved the P&S Council's request for $45,000 for the annual competitive grant program administered by the council. Funding for the program started at $25,000 in 1994 and has been $30,000 since 2000. Funds come from the president's office.

Martin Hall director Michelle Boettcher shares some 'Martin Moolah' with residents

Martin Hall director Michelle Boettcher shares some "Martin Moolah" with residents (l-r) Nils Hovland, Jack Guidarelli and Russell Strope. Boettcher will be one of the presenters at a May 5 noon forum that will feature recipients of this year's student recruitment and retention grants. Moolah, received for good study habits and academic success, can be exchanged for raffle tickets in a prize drawing at the end of the semester. Photo by Bob Elbert.

Since its inception, yearly request totals have varied from about $55,000 to more than $235,000. Individual grants awarded have ranged from $350 to $5,000.

Mary Darrow, co-chair of the council's recruitment and retention committee, said the additional funds will allow the program to continue to support, at least partially, new recruitment or retention initiatives. It also gives the review committee some flexibility to fund proposals for more than one year, she said. As the grant program evolves, the committee is putting more emphasis on variables such as outcomes and a grant team's willingness or ability to leverage matching funds.

"A multi-year approach makes it easier to track the impact of a program over time, but we also recognize it's risky to commit funds to a program for several years," Darrow said. "We would ask people to re-submit their proposal for subsequent years, so we build in a review process before awarding another grant."

Still year-to-year

The program will remain in its year-to-year status. Geoffroy declined the council's request for a 3-year funding guarantee. However, the early commitment for next fall will allow the R&R committee to change the application timeline at least for one year. The call for proposals will go out May 5, with proposals due Friday, June 19. Grant awards will be announced by Friday, July 28. Darrow said this will allow grant teams to use the funds for fall kickoff events and programs. In past years, grants weren't awarded until late September.

Get some ideas

A half dozen recipients of grants this year will present summaries and results of their efforts during a noon forum Friday, May 5, in the Memorial Union Pioneer Room. All are welcome to attend. Each team will present a 3-minute summary to the large group. The rest of the hour will be a fair-type format, with attendees visiting stations to ask presenters for specifics about their projects or programs. Scheduled presenters will talk about:

  • Podcasts by the department of foreign languages and literatures
  • Martin Hall incentive program that encourages students to be successful academically
  • First LEGO League program at Iowa State
  • 'Major' fair in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
  • Use of the national "Guaranteed 4.0" workshops, which teach students to "learn how to learn"

Summary

President Gregory Geoffroy approved the P&S Council's request for $45,000 in funding for the annual student recruitment and retention grant program. Funding for the program started at $25,000 in 1994 and has been $30,000 since 2000.