Crown Institute Collaborative Seed Grant Program

Cover Page:

• Project title and contact information for each applicant
• Three sentence summary of project
• Amount requested

Narrative:

• One paragraph lay summary/abstract (i.e., non-technical language) This should include text which connects this project to prior funded projects, if relevant.
• Brief overview of the issue or need to be addressed
• Primary research question(s) or purposes. Project plans and timeline should be described.
• Intended audience and demonstrated need. Explain the need for the proposed project, including issue(s) or problem(s) it seeks to address and if the project is responding to a direct request. Describe external partners and/or constituents, including pertinent demographic information.
• Methodological approach/research design
• Evaluation measures to assess project impact or potential
• Brief Timeline
• Anticipated challenges and strategies for resolution
• Team member details
  • CU faculty/staff/researcher/student roles
  • Partner roles: If there is a partner outside of CU, please describe the role of the project partners and how the partnership will mutually benefit faculty, students and community participants.  

• Strategy for future funding (be sure to include specific ideas of foundations or funding  sources)  

• References

• If applicable, letter of support from community partners  

Budget Information

Funding requested: Total dollar amount of funding requested

Budget narrative: Specifically explain how your budget will support the activities and  people described previously in your proposal.

Provide a justification of the items requested in the budget. Particular attention should be given to justifying budget items that may not be immediately clear to reviewers who are familiar with (but not experts in) your specific field. Up to 2 pages total (approximately 1 page for the budget and 1 page for the budget justification). (Note: this is not included in the 5 page limit for the narrative.)

• Expense breakdown: Provide dollar amount and a brief description of the projected  expenses and identify each expense in one of the following designated categories:
  • Personnel Salary: Faculty (academic year course buyout or summer salary), Research Associates, Graduate Assistants, Undergraduate Students, etc.
  • Fringe Benefits as posted here.
  • Consultants or contracts (e.g., for compensating partners)
  • Participant incentives
  • Travel
  • Materials/Supplies
  • Technology/equipment
  • Other Direct Costs: (include required tuition and fees if GRAs are part of the project)

Please note the following parameters for budgets to be funded through this RFP:

• We cannot cover overhead or indirect costs with this funding.
• Budget requests are intended to support postdocs, graduate students or undergraduates at the University of Colorado Boulder.
• Requests solely for faculty salary support are discouraged; however, applicants may request:
  • Up to two weeks of summer salary, or
  • Academic year course buyout (Note: the amount will vary by unit.)

If you choose to fund an academic course buyout, please briefly explain the reason for an academic course buyout in terms of the work that is needed for the project.

• Up to 12.5% of annual salary for RAs/SRAs with appointments of 50% or more.

Proposals will be evaluated by the Crown Institute Seed Grant Review Committee based on the following criteria: 

• Alignment with Crown Institute vision and mission
• Significance and potential public and academic impact of the proposed work
• Strength and interdisciplinarity of the team (cross-departmental, cross-sector, or community collaboration)
• Responsiveness to community needs and/or research-practice relevance
• Clear strategy for leveraging seed funding into external support
• Appropriateness and justification of the budget

• Participate in an interdisciplinary learning community . This learning community will look to enhance the strength of our individual projects and the collective work of the Crown Institute through shared inquiry and reflection.
• Present your project to the broader community of Crown Institute affiliates and partners at least one time.
• Complete a Best Practice Review Worksheet annually to ensure alignment with Crown Institute best practices and standards.
• Complete a public-facing report describing your findings or lessons, which can be shared on the Crown Institute’s website and distributed to public audiences that you identify within 30 days after the grant ends.
• External funding: Recipients are strongly encouraged to submit a proposal for external funding (for related work) within 18 months of receiving the grant.