PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – Researchers at Prairie View A&M University had a rare opportunity to participate in a two-part series that provided direct engagement with program directors from the National Science Foundation (NSF). They were afforded this occasion through the Research & Innovation Training Institute (RITI), which meets on Zoom every Monday from 1-2 p.m.
“RITI is a virtual platform that supports researchers by presenting professional development training. Since its inception, RITI has impacted over 1,400 participants with 33 sessions,” said Vice President of Research and Innovation Magesh Rajan, Ph.D. “Using current technologies, RITI removes the geographic boundaries, expenses, and access to experts that would typically limit the possibilities of providing high-level, strategic training prospects. We recognized the need to engage our faculty with external funders such as NSF.”
The two-part NSF RITI sessions in October were developed to provide awareness and training for faculty researchers. They complemented the Fall 2020 Junior Faculty RISE – Grant Writing Program, a new initiative by Rajan designed for new tenure and tenure-track faculty and junior faculty. The Junior Faculty RISE Program recently completed training for its first cohort, and participants were tasked with completing a successful external proposal submission in the coming months.
“Establishing direct contact with external sponsoring agencies, such as National Science Foundation and its program directors and program managers, is an important aspect for research faculty to increase the awareness and familiarity of various research funding opportunities,” said Rajan. “The Division of Research & Innovation is well equipped and provides services to support faculty at various stages of the proposal and grant lifecycle.”
NSF Program Directors Claudia Rankins and Brandon Jones sought to make researchers aware of funding options available for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). They provided tips for increasing the possibility of funding success.
“Program officers at NSF are committed to ensuring that the best ideas in STEM research and education are submitted by faculty from all types of institutions of Higher Education, including HBCUs,” Rankins stated. “We want to make sure that the faculty at Prairie View A&M University know about the latest funding opportunities and feel welcome and confident to send their proposals to NSF.”
Rankins and Jones shared that in addition to STEM funding, there are funding opportunities for non-STEM research as well. The program directors advised the size of PVAMU and its research capabilities’ depth and breadth indicate possibilities for numerous NSF funding options.
“PVAMU represents the type of institution that the NSF seeks to establish relationships. As an HBCU with multiple STEM-related programs, PVAMU is poised to take advantage of the many funding opportunities that NSF has to offer to help build its research capacity,” stated Jones.
RITI will continue to offer training in support of research and innovation as part of its commitment to elevate the university’s research enterprise.
By Karen B. Cotton