Please see the full solicitation for complete information about the funding opportunity. Below is a summary assembled by the Research & Innovation Office (RIO).

Program Summary

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute announces a new competition in the Inclusive Excellence (IE) initiative for institutional transformation grants in science education. The objective of the HHMI IE initiative is to challenge听U.S. colleges and universities to substantially and sustainably increase their capacity for inclusion of all students, especially those students who belong to groups underrepresented in science.

Schools awarded grants in this competition will join the Inclusive Excellence community. Each grantee college or university will:

  • Develop an understanding of its institutional context and define what 鈥渋nclusive excellence鈥� means to the institution;
  • Identify the institutional barriers to inclusion and equity;
  • Support serious efforts to engage all faculty in making meaningful contributions to the institution鈥檚 growth in capacity for inclusion;
  • Build a context-specific theory of change with measurable milestones, establish meaningful methods to assess progress, and use evidence to continuously inform program design and implementation;
  • Continuously reflect on how the activities supported by the grant influence institutional values, rewards systems, the campus environment, and progress toward genuine capacity building;
  • Actively participate in the Inclusive Excellence learning community

Adopting an inclusive excellence stance requires the commitment of the whole institution. Among the several ways by which the school can demonstrate its commitment, here are three:

  • Alignment with current programs. Planning a new grant proposal for the Inclusive Excellence initiative is an important opportunity to synergize with existing campus efforts to achieve diversity, equity, and inclusion. By building on effective current activities, the new program can represent a significant advance for the institution. Engaging the entire campus in defining its shared vision and cultivating distributed leadership is integral to capacity building.
  • Selection of the HHMI program director. The program director plays a critical role in managing the complex dynamics of establishing the new program and negotiating how it will fit into the evolving institutional environment. The institution has the responsibility of selecting a program director who will bring not only experience in research, education, and grant administration, but also the strong interpersonal relationship skills required of a collaborative leader who cultivates authentic shared ownership of the program.
  • Sharing the financial responsibility. It is important that the institution signal its commitment to the HHMI program. While grant funds may be used for various programmatic costs 鈥� e.g., hiring new personnel to administer the program, faculty stipends, course releases, facilitated workshops, course materials, and small equipment 鈥� HHMI funds cannot be spent on the salaries of the program director and other members of the core leadership team who are already employed by the school.

Deadlines

CU Internal Deadline: 11:59pm MT June 5, 2019

Sponsor Intent to Apply Deadline: July 31, 2019

Sponsor Pre-proposal Deadline: January 14, 2020

Sponsor Finalist Proposal Deadline (invitation only): December 1, 2020

Internal Application Requirements (all in PDF format)

  • Project Summary (3 pages maximum): Describe what the institution aspires to become in the context of inclusivity, identify the challenge on which the institution proposes to focus, and provide the reviewers insights about the readiness of the institution and the persons who will lead the project.
  • PI CV / Biosketch
  • Budget Overview (1 page maximum): A basic budget outlining project costs is sufficient; detailed OCG budgets are not required.

To access the online application, visit:

Eligibility

To be eligible to participate in the IE3 competition, the institution must be a not-for-profit, accredited, four-year college or university in the United States that confers four-year baccalaureate degrees in one or more of the natural sciences.

Limited Submission Guidelines

Only one intent to apply per eligible institution is allowed.

Award Information

Award Amount: $1,000,000

Award Duration: 5 years

Number of Awards: HHMI expects to award grants to up to 30 schools.