$500,000 Awarded to UC|21 Projects

The honors scholars program, distance learning, undergraduate education and teaching, international activities, and more will benefit from $500,000 in UC|21 funds awarded to 11 projects.
 
The UC|21 seed grants, announced by President Nancy L. Zimpher, are made possible from individual and corporate gifts as well as faculty and staff donations. “Our university has made great strides on all six UC|21 goals, and we continue to work toward even greater progress. These projects are all aligned to our objectives and academic priorities,” said President Zimpher.

The funded projects and their award amounts are:

• Preparing Honors Students to Lead in the 21st Century - $50,000 - to strengthen the leadership theme in the Honors Scholars Program in support of the 21st-century learning academic priority. Project coordinator: Raj Mehta, director, Honors Scholars Program.
• COSMIC Development and Completion - $50,000 - to implement Phase 2 development of the Cincinnati Online System for Managing International Collaboration (COSMIC), a searchable system that provides user-friendly access to the university’s international agreements, international faculty research, patterns of study abroad and much more. Project Coordinator: Mitch Leventhal, vice provost, International Affairs.
• Distance Learning Development Seed Grants - $50,000 - to fund seed grants to develop and launch new Distance Learning initiatives in colleges, departments, divisions and programs. Project Coordinator: Melody Clark, academic director, Office of Distance Education.
• Academy of Fellows for Teaching & Learning (AFTL) - $45,000 - to allow two or three of the inaugural new teaching and learning fellows to do course releases and support center fellows and the AFTL. Project Coordinator: Wayne Hall, vice provost, Faculty Development.
• 24/7 Computer and Library Study Space - $40,000 - to provide SmartBoards, projectors, moveable tables and chairs for a 24-hour-computer lab and study space the UCit and Universities Libraries plan to open at Langsam Library in winter quarter 2008. Project Coordinator: Victoria Montavon, dean and University Librarian, and Michael Lieberman, Dean, Instructional Research and Computing.
• STEM2 at UC - $50,000 - to create a web portal that connects prospective students to UC’s pre-college, undergraduate and graduate programs in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine (STEM2), along with related recruitment, marketing and public relations materials. Project Coordinator: Tom Cruse, associate provost.
• Building Teaching Competencies that Enhance 21st Century Learning  - $50,000 - for programs, workshops, services, enhanced peer mentoring and external speakers offered through the Center for the Enhancement of Teaching & Learning (CET&L), all geared to faculty and graduate assistants’ teaching. Project coordinators: BJ Zirger, interim director, CET&L, and Wayne Hall, vice provost, Faculty Development.
• Integrated Core Learning:  The Year of the Capstone - $25,000 - for pilots, all geared better undergraduate learning. The funds would allow faculty to explore how e-portfolios might help to assess General Education and program/major specific outcomes of the capstone course, to develop “best practices” that could guide other faculty in the use of e-portfolio and capstones, and to build additional faculty-community partnerships for capstone courses. Project Coordinator: Wayne Hall, vice provost, Faculty Development.
• Learning Community Peer Leaders as Student Scholars - $50,000 - for peer leaders who mentor freshmen to get them off to a good start in their first year of college, working with the new students in small, 20-student groups called “learning communities.” Project Coordinator: Pam Person, director academic, Center for First Year Experience and Learning Communities.
• Strive/Center for Urban Education (CUE) - $45,000 - to support interdisciplinary research on evidence-based models for Strive programs. Strive is the regional partnership committed to successful students and thriving cities. Project Coordinator: Robert Yinger, professor, Education Studies.
• Center for the City - $45,000 - to expand the center’s City Fellows and Seed Grants programs and support its work in coordinating UC's participation in shared regional civic agenda process called Agenda 360, the city-wide economic development initiative known as GO Cincinnati, as well as ongoing promotion of development efforts in Uptown Cincinnati. Project Coordinators: Mary Stagaman, executive director, Center for the City, and William S. Ball, professor, biomedical engineering.