Graduate Student Innovation Grant

Award

The Provost's Office sponsors the Graduate Innovation Grant to facilitate student-generated programs and services that support UChicago graduate students.  These grants are intended to provide seed money and administrative/logistical support for launching ideas that encourage graduate students’ academic progress, professional development, or personal growth.

Last spring, we piloted the Innovation Grant by providing financial support for a project conceived of by several doctoral students in the physical and biological sciences divisions. Their Mini MBA Conference was a one-day program that provided over 100 graduate students with a crash course on fundamental business knowledge like microeconomics and finance as well as practical professional skills like leadership and public speaking. 

2013 Winners Announced!

1. Proposal Title: Essential Graphic Design for NELC Students Workshop

Student Name: Tytus Mikolajczak

Divisional Affiliation: Humanities

Abstract: This is grant proposal for Essential Graphic Design for NELC Students Workshop. The aim of the workshop is to familiarize graduate students with digital techniques necessary for the preparation of graphic and imaging materials connected with their scholarly work. The present education at NELC does not include any work on the graphic design software for the language students. Yet, these skills are necessary for graduate students to pursue successfully their scholarly careers in the world dominated by the digital media. In the workshop, the students would acquire skills to prepare materials in digital form, as required by publishers nowadays.

2. Proposal Title: Chicago Art Journal Website

Student Name: Solveig Nelson

Divisional Affiliation: Humanities

Abstract: The Chicago Art Journal is a graduate student run, peer-reviewed journal located in the University of Chicago’s Art History Department that has published articles and interviews by graduate students and emerging scholars since 1991. An innovation grant would allow us to develop a website aimed at making the journal’s contents accessible to a broader audience, raising the visibility of the journal, and improving the number and quality of our submissions. This year’s issue on Historiographies of New Media offers a particularly productive moment to initiate such an expansion – not away from print, but toward a multiplicity of formats.

3. Proposal Title: Open source tools for writing dissertations and professional documents in the humanities

Students' Names: Sarak Iker and Peter Shultz

Divisional Affiliation: Humanities

Abstract: This two-hour session will introduce graduate students to open-source software and typesetting languages (specifically, LaTeX) and their ability to facilitate the production of professional-quality, easily manageable documents.  Because many students are frustrated by the possibilities that Microsoft Word can offer, this workshop will provide students with another option for easily producing academic documents that follow appropriate formatting guidelines and look professional.  During this session students will be introduced to the intricacies LaTeX through practical application.  They will typeset a real-world examples of academic publications and presentations using the tools available through LaTeX.  Because not all students use the same computers or operating systems, they will also be introduced to additional resources for their own use, front-end editors, and suggested workflows for moving between research, writing, and typesetting.

4. Proposal Title: Disability Matters

Students' Names: Stephen Pannuto and Stephen Craig Denuyl

Divisional Affiliation: Social Sciences 

Abstract: "Disability Matters" aims to raise awareness and prompt discussion about the issues facing graduate students with disabilities.  Two public lectures by leading scholars in the field of disability studies will provide an introduction to disability as a social and cultural issue.  A professionalization workshop by the Chicago-based disability rights advocacy group Equip for Equality will provide guidance in disclosing a disability during a job interview.  Disability is diversity.  "Disability Matters" hopes to show how disability is a part of a diverse student body and a diverse social body politic.

5. Proposal Title: University of Chicago Move and Shake Women Retreat

Student Name: Alisha Jones

Divisional Affiliation: Humanities

Abstract: A 2-3 day retreat on work-life balance is a relevant initiative for women of color. We propose an event during which facilitators would expose women to solutions on how to navigate their multiple identities such as being a mother and a first-generation academic. We would receive guidance on how to constructively address issues that directly affect our research performance. This event would not exclude those who are not women of color from participating, but rather, would provide a safe space to discuss the concerns that women graduate students of color often have. Many women of color do not have a cultural reflection of themselves within the academy nor do they have women who can affirm their gendered and racialized experiences in scholastic environments. They also often find that it is difficult to ask questions concerning the intersection of professionalization and the personal life skills of women. As a result, there is a need for mentorship about how to navigate and integrate their varied identities. This event exposes participants to seasoned professionals’ perspective from outside our institution to facilitate intergenerational exchange and inquiry. Additionally, we would like to model collegiality and knowledge exchange among women who are contemplating pursuing academic paths such as post-doctoral fellowships, research abroad, tenure-track positions, laboratory research, ethnography, consulting, and administration.

6. Proposal Title: Mini-MBA

Student Name: Anthony Martinez and Michael Boles

Divisional Affiliation: Physical Sciences Division

Abstract: UChicago graduate students will leave the University to pursue careers in academia, government, and the private sector. Leadership in these arenas will require not merely the courage and ingenuity with which UChicago students arrive but also an understanding of how institutions function. In the spirit of interdisciplinary learning, we propose to make the Booth School of Business accessible to all UChicago students for one day. Free of charge, undergraduate and graduate students of this University will be able to take part in an exchange of ideas lead by Booth lecturers on topics such as microeconomics, strategies of negotiation, and managing in organizations. We see this event as a unique opportunity for all students and expect any funding GSA might provide will make a meaningful contribution to learning at UChicago. 

7. Proposal Title: Sino-US Dialogue Forum

Student Name: Xinxin Liu, Binbin Lin, and Shaolian Ma

Divisional Affiliation: Harris School

Abstract: To understand more about the U.S. and China is now significant for UChicago students to get better prepared to be a future world leader. Thus, we are launching the Sino-U.S. forum aiming at providing students at UChicago an intensive day to learn more about China and Sino-U.S. relationship while considering issues between the two countries from different perspectives. The one-day forum consists of lectures, workshops, and activities. We will also publish a post-project report to benefit all students at UChicago. We wish this project would be “one small step for action, one giant leap for acknowledge.”  To understand more about the U.S. and China is now significant for UChicago students to get better prepared to be a future world leader. Thus, we are launching the Sino-U.S. forum aiming at providing students at UChicago an intensive day to learn more about China and Sino-U.S. relationship while considering issues between the two countries from different perspectives. The one-day forum consists of lectures, workshops, and activities. We will also publish a post-project report to benefit all students at UChicago. We wish this project would be “one small step for action, one giant leap for acknowledge.

Eligibility Criteria

  • Applicant or group of applicants must be enrolled in a UChicago graduate program at the time of proposal;
  • Proposed initiative should take place between March 1, 2013 & June 2014;
  • Proposed initiative should align with the Innovation Fund’s objective to facilitate programs and services that support the academic and professional success of graduate student;
  • Proposed budget should not exceed $5,000.
     

To Apply

The 2013 Competition is now closed. Please check back here for more details on applying in 2014.  

 

Selection Process

  • Proposals are expected to vary in type and scope; they can be one-time or recurring; and they may focus on a broad or narrow graduate student audience.
  • Proposals will be evaluated on the following criteria:
    • Relevance: aligns with the objective of the Graduate Innovation Grant to support graduate students’ academic, professional, and personal success;
    • Feasibility: initiative is achievable within the perimeters of time and budget;
    • Impact: initiative identifies and addresses a need among UChicago graduate students.
  • A selection committee of university faculty and graduate-focused administrators will review applications and identify finalists by February 1, 2013.
  • Finalists will be invited to present their proposals to members of the selection committee.
  • Winner(s) will be notified by March 1, 2013.
  • Winner(s) must submit a report to Graduate Student Affairs following the funded initiative.

 

Questions

Please direct questions to Kalee Ludeks, Manager of Strategic Programming and Assessment, Graduate Student Affairs at kalee@uchicago.edu or 773.834.7926.