Overview

The Provost's Office is launching a new initiative to support faculty engaged in cross-divisional, collaborative research. We are inviting proposals for Research Clusters, groups of three to seven faculty members from two or more divisions engaged in similar research that cuts across disciplines and academic domains. Successful proposals will receive grants of up to $20,000 per year for two to three years. 

The purpose of the Clusters is to promote collaboration among faculty members in their scholarly work in known or emergent areas of common interest that may also intersect with and help inform the university's strategic direction. The Research Clusters are intended to bring greater internal and external attention to New School faculty research, deepen its cumulative impact, and help leverage external funding for sustained collaborative efforts.

Research is construed broadly to include basic and applied research as typically understood in the liberal arts and a range of scholarly, creative and performance practices and knowledge production in the context of design. The nature of the collaborations can vary, but support is predicated upon individual faculty members bringing their own agendas into a group context that will in turn help them re-shape and extend their own work.

Award Amounts and Outputs
 

Selected Clusters will typically receive an award of up to $10,000-$15,000 per year, and in exceptional cases, up to $20,000 per year. Awards and multi-year support are pending available funding, satisfactory progress, and the expectation of collaboratively producing:

• A proposal to an external funding organization (foundation, government agency, association, NGO, etc.) for support to continue and deepen the Cluster's work at the university by the end of the first year
• Periodic presentations of the Cluster's work to the university community
• Published or otherwise publicly available work in some form

Priority Considerations
 

• Projects that leverage other secured internal sources of support such as the Faculty Research Fund, Mutual Mentoring Grants, or other sources.
• Projects in which participating faculty members commit some or all of their base research funding ($2,000 in research funds plus up to $4,000 for research assistance) to the activities of the Cluster; this type of cost-share should be identified in the budget.

Who is Eligible?
 

• This funding program is open to full-time faculty (tenure, tenure track, extended employment track, and renewable term) and part-time faculty with post-probationary, annual, multi-year, or grandparented status as defined by the ACT-UAW contract.
• The Research Cluster must be formed from faculty members working in at least 2 divisions of The New School.
• A Research Cluster can also involve student participation and/or external partners, although neither is required.

Program Timeline

• Application deadline: December 14, 2012 at 5:00 p.m. (Applications received after this date will not be accepted or reviewed in this cycle.)
• Awards announced: Late January 2013
• Initial budget and award period: February 2013 - June 2014

Application Process
 

There is no online application form. A proposal must be submitted by two Co-Project Directors (co-PDs) as designated "leads" affiliated with different divisions of the university. The proposal must list, by name, a core group of faculty members who will actively participate in the cluster. A cluster can range from three to seven individuals.

The proposal should address the following key components. (Note: Applicants can use the following subheadings to organize a proposal or they can choose another format. However, every application must address all the points below so the reviewers can properly evaluate the proposal.)

1. Rationale
   Identify and provide the purpose, rationale, or need for the Cluster to convene and address a particular research theme, topic or question.  
2. Scope
   Discuss how the Cluster's cross-divisional collaboration will enhance or amplify the university's overall work in the area. Applicants should also discuss the significance and impact of the proposed work on their broader field(s) or discipline(s) and on other external stakeholders or audiences.
3. Activities Outline
   List the key activities the Cluster proposes to engage in and an expected timeline to implement the activities that covers at least two years (projects of shorter duration are ineligible).
4. Anticipated Outcomes, Deliverables or Products
   Provide a detailed description of the anticipated outcomes or deliverables of the Cluster over two to three years.
5. Budget and Budget Narrative
   Submit a line-item budget and a budget narrative that describes the major costs associated with the work, including travel, materials, equipment, meetings, and consultant or vendor costs. The budget narrative should convey in detail relevant anticipated costs and a description and calculation of costs for each category. Cost-sharing, while not required, is encouraged and should be identified if included in the overall budget. As the program is funded from February 2013 to June 30, 2014 applicants can plan and propose an 18-month budget in their request. Multi-year support beyond this period is pending available funding and satisfactory progress.
6. External Funding Plan
   Provide a preliminary plan for the custer to identify and pursue external funding opportunities to develop the Cluster's research at the university.

Application Formatting Guidelines and Submission
 

• The body or narrative of the proposal is limited to eight pages (excluding the cover sheet, budget, budget narrative, and any appendices), single-spaced, using 12-point type and standard one-inch margins.
• A line-item budget should be included as a separate spreadsheet, or it can be attached to the narrative in another format. A separate budget narrative describing expected costs in detail should also be included.
• A completed cover form must be attached to the proposal and budget documents.
• Appendices can be included limited to five additional pages. Graphics, bibliographies, data tables, charts, and/or images should be included as appendices.

Submit the entire application as a single PDF file to ProvostFRF@newschool.edu with "Research Clusters: [Applicant Last Name]" in the subject line.

Questions
 

Please direct inquiries about the Research Clusters program to ProvostFRF@newschool.edu. Or, you may contact Robert Gutierrez, director of research support, at 212.229.8947 x2768, or gutierrj@newschool.edu.