Unlocking the Potential of Seed Grants for Research and Innovation
Dive into the benefits of seed grants, which serve as initial investments to kickstart projects, leverage external funding, and foster interdisciplinary collaboration. Learn how seed grants can facilitate mentorship, bridge funding, and leadership training, ultimately driving research success.
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Presentation Transcript
What is a Seed Grant Good For?
What does seed grant mean? SEED GRANTS are: competitive awards that are focused on the feasibility of a concept, assembly of compelling, qualified interdisciplinary investigator teams, identification of appropriate extramural funding targets, the quality of a proposal development plan and concrete activities and milestones that have high likelihood to result in advancing research, scholarship, and creative activity*. * we suggest using the language around research, scholarship, and creative activity in order to include disciplines that traditionally do not think of their work as research Typically this means A modest investment that is generally funded through internal sources to help develop a project to the point where external funding can be obtained.
What is a seed grant program good for?: Return On Investment Opportunities Traditional ROI: additional external funding, stimulated by seed grant activities Tracking, amounts, follow-through, There is some published and anecdotal evidence that seed grants do Increase the likelihood that the grantees will submit an additional request for external sponsorship on the seed grant topic Increase the success rate of those application, compared to similar faculty who do not receive a seed grant Explanations for success Accountability Timing/preparation Reciprocity Risks/Concerns Self-selection bias: traditional normative approach that systemically advantages the majority Most analyses explicitly acknowledge that financial metrics do not fully capture the benefit of seed grants So
What else can a seed grant program be good for? Bridge funding (between programs) Incentivize mentorship (Professors Helping Professors) Incentivize campus team formation Facilitate topic, focus, or funder switch Facilitate leadership training Incentivize and/or develop external team formation, research partnerships and relationships Other ideas
Stand Your Ground Exercise: Choose your raison d etre Outline opportunities and risks/concerns Share out (if you choose New Ideas list what other things Seed Grants can be good for) Return on Investment Incentivize Mentorship Bridge Funding Topic Switch External Research Partnerships Leadership Training New Ideas!
What a seed grant program can be good for: Bridge Funding Institutional support for a researcher or research team in between externally-funded research periods Opportunities Retain productive researchers Encourage researchers to take risks May be paradoxically critical during times of macro-economic financial stress Risks/Concerns Unproductively extend a career, deplete internal resources Bridge funding programs are particularly vulnerable to reinforcing existing systems that exclude researchers Many use Cost-Benefit Analyses to allocate funds (Benefit side of the ledger can reinforce existing systemic bias) Potential Mitigation May include fairness, social justice and contribution or alignment with other strategic objectives of the institution
What a seed grant program can be good for: Mentored Seed grants Opportunities: Incentivize mentorship (Professors Helping Professors) Pre-Submission review by an external scholar (mini-version of external mentorship) Network extension Risks/Concerns: Nested resources may be vital Accountability can be high or low Considerations about external mentoring May create conflict a potential outside letter writing for Promotion and Tenure Mitigate promotion and tenure conflict of interest Potential Mitigation:
What a seed grant program can be good for: Topic Switch Opportunities: Facilitate topic, focus, or funder switch Acknowledged by federal agencies as valuable: NSF (Mid Career Advancement https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2021/nsf21516/nsf21516.htm) and NIH (K24) Responsive to trends in the field It can allow faculty to remain intellectually engaged Risks/Concerns: Are women faculty less likely to switch topics or pursue new directions? How is risk aversion distributed by demographics among faculty? Do URM faculty join **NEW** teams? Potential Mitigation:
What a seed grant program can be good for: Facilitate Leadership Training Opportunities: Pre-submission training Team Science training prior to team Seed Grant comps (required?) Risks/Concerns: Is the goal of Leadership Training an inclusive one? Potential Mitigation: Carefully drafted solicitation to ensure inclusivity
What a seed grant program can be good for: Incentivize external research partnerships, relationships Opportunities: Initiate new or strengthen existing partnerships Develop Community Engaged Scholarship Expand diverse collaborative research teams Risks/Concerns: Without long term commitment, CES relationships can suffer damage Potential Mitigation: Set clear expectations
Other ideas? Demonstrate institutional support Incentivize grant getting training (e.g. fellowship type stipend, small grant) Build capacity - e.g. shared instrumentation Publication, graphics costs
