Funding Opportunities to Support Faculty Professional Development & Curricular Initiatives 

There are several small but effective competitive grant opportunities available to faculty for support of professional development and curricular enhancement activities.  See the URL listed for each of the programs for further information on how to apply.

Proposals for the Research, Professional, and Teaching Development Grants submissions are submitted on a cyclical basis.  Undergraduate research stipends that are not linked to a Research or Professional Development Grant may be requested at any time by using the on-line application form.

University College

Research Development Grant (RDG):

The Penn State DuBois Research Development Grant (RDG) program is a source of financial support for the research and scholarly activities of Penn State DuBois tenured and tenure track faculty members. It is intended to foster new research and scholarly activities, rather than to sustain established research programs.

Professional Development Grant (PDG):

The Professional Development Grant (PDG) program is a source of financial support for the developmental activities of non tenure-system faculty in the University College. It is intended to support faculty in their efforts to stay current in their discipline.

Teaching Development Grant (TDG):

The Teaching Development Grant (TDG) is designed to provide a source of financial support for the instructional activities of full-time faculty members in the University College.  It is intended to improve instruction and enhance the quality of teaching and learning.

Additional University Grants

COIL (Center for Online Innovation in Learning):

The purpose of the Center for Online Innovation in Learning’s Research Initiation Grant Program is to provide seed funding during the development and proof of concept stages of research projects that have the potential to enhance teaching and learning through online innovation. It is expected that most of the project teams funded by COIL will use the preliminary evidence generated to pursue external funding for larger-scale and subsequent studies.  

Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence (SITE) Grants:

SITE's mission is to advance and inspire excellence in Penn State’s teaching and learning community. To achieve this they do offer a variety of avenues to support Penn State faculty as they explore new teaching methods, exchange ideas with colleagues, and/or engage in national forums. They also collaborate with individuals or units who are pursuing support from external funding agencies for projects that have a curricular or pedagogical focus and that inform undergraduate education practices at Penn State.

Outreach and Continuing Education Funding Opportunities

Program Innovation Fund:

This innovative program development initiative serves as a catalyst to strengthen and expand the University's outreach activity, particularly that activity which can be self-sustaining. The specific goals of the fund include the following:  1) to facilitate innovative program development that enhances the quality or delivery of Penn State Outreach programming in new and innovative ways; 2) to support programs that address unmet educational needs and serve new audiences or existing audiences in new ways; 3) to provide for program ventures that generate sufficient revenue to recover full costs; 4) to develop sustainable outreach programs that address the strategic goals of the academic colleges and Outreach units; and 5) to leverage funding for programs from sources external to the University

Outreach Partnership Fund:

The primary purpose of this fund is to provide seed funding to support collaborative needs assessment, program development and program delivery projects among Penn State Outreach and Cooperative Extension units. The goal is to increase outreach programming and benefit Pennsylvania citizens, organizations and communities.