Experiential Learning Program
C-ShaRP welcomes collaborative proposals for educational efforts that leverage Stanford’s Shared Research Facilities to enrich scientific learning journeys with hands-on experiences, thereby facilitating research progress and promoting real-world skills to prepare scientists for successful careers at Stanford and beyond. These proposed educational efforts may include shared facilities access in support of registered coursework, teaching workshops using hands-on research techniques, preparation of high-quality on-line learning materials which support in-person experiences, and other similar efforts which benefit from core facility participation in disseminating educational curricula and community building. All proposals should have the aim of providing experiential education and training to Stanford researchers, and may also reach a wider community where mutually beneficial.
The C-ShaRP Shared Facilities and others span SOM, SOE, H&S, and SDSS, and are an essential community for researchers; they include nanofabrication and characterization (SNF, SNSF), mass spectrometry (SUMS), NMR, imaging (BioX, c-EMc, CNI, CSIF, Lucas Center, Wu Tsai Neuro), life sciences/medicine (ChEM-H, FACS, SGSC, TASC, BSL-3) and sustainability (SIGMA, Geochronology, EMF, SIBL), among others on campus, as well as shared Stanford facilities at SLAC. Proposals may be submitted by faculty, instructors, or shared facility staff, in collaboration as appropriate.
Each educational effort should provide its own proposal in response to this RFP, e.g., a course involving one or many shared facilities, a workshop spanning one or several days; closely related activities, e.g., a series of quarterly workshops, should be grouped into a single proposal. C-ShaRP funding is intended to enable shared facilities to do more in support of education to develop more effective researchers. C-ShaRP funding is provided to support the shared resources staff, instrument, and materials costs involved in the educational experience. It is not to be used to replace existing funding from other sources for existing activities pre-dating C-ShaRP.
Proposals should target one of the following categories:
- Seed proposal (1 year) - pilot program supporting shared resource staff time to flesh out new ideas, plan, test, and collaborate to develop full Curriculum or Workshop proposals. Short term funding with a goal of growing into one of the below categories.
- Implementation (1 year)
- Non-Curriculum Implementation proposal - for non-registrar activities with a short fuse to transition to other funding, most often through registration fees or other external support. Typically led by shared resource(s).
- Curriculum Implementation proposal - to incorporate experiences in the shared resources into formal Stanford courses. Typically led by faculty/instructor.
Curriculum Sustainability proposal (up to 3 years) - funding at a minimum baseline level to maintain shared resource support in established courses with a maximum three year commitment, with funding contingent on annual reporting. Typically led by faculty/instructor.
Budget. The total budget of any submitted proposal should not exceed the limits below, though higher requests will be considered for exceptional cases with strong justification.
- Seed proposal: $15K
- Implementation proposals (Curriculum and Non-Curriculum): $35K
- Curriculum Sustainability proposal: typically up to $10K/year
Unspent funds remaining at the end of the award period will revert back to the C-ShaRP funding pool to support future awards.
No-cost extensions. An awardee can request a single 1-year extension of the funding period by submitting a clear explanation of the extenuating circumstances leading to the need for the extension. The bar for extension of a seed grant is particularly high. No additional funds are provided in association with such a request. Unspent funds remaining at the end of the extension period will revert back to the C-ShaRP funding pool to support future awards.
Supplemental Funding. Experiential learning programs with an active C-ShaRP award will have the option to submit an off-cycle request for supplemental funding to plan and develop a new activity or a major modification to an existing activity in the ongoing course or workshop. Typical requests are expected to be up to $5K.
Reporting & Participation Requirements. The PIs of the funded proposals will be required to deliver a brief report on use, budget, and outcomes, and to assist in collecting feedback from participants in the learning experience. Photos and short videos of the experience in action are also highly recommended. They will participate in a periodic Instructors’ Forum and may also be called upon to be reviewers for future rounds of C-ShaRP Education funding.
FY25 C-ShaRP Experiential Learning proposal call schedule:
- Monday April 8, 2024 - call for proposals issued
- Monday June 10, 2024 - proposals due
- Mid August - decisions sent
Application. Proposals should be submitted online at seedfunding.stanford.edu; follow the links below to the opportunity listing for each type of Experiential Learning proposal:
Contact
Yang Bai, Sr. Program Manager, email ybai3@stanford.edu, office number 650-497-9454.