Information Session October 13, 2016 2016/2017 PSIEE Seed Grant Information Session October 13, 2016

PSIEE themes Please Note: Proposals in the Health and Environment theme will not be accepted in this call for proposals. Proposals covering that theme will be deferred to a separate multi-institute seed grant competition covering Health and Environment which will be announced later this fall

2016/2017 Seed grant priority topics Water Energy Nexus Climate Change Future of the Electric Grid

Preferred activities for funding Development of new interdisciplinary research teams to position them for substantial external funding success Novel and collaborative research in theme areas, especially high-risk proof of concept projects New collaborations between junior and senior faculty for research development and mentorship

Goals of the Seed Grant Foster basic and applied research focused on strategic themes Seed grants are intended to foster: Development of new research teams to position them for substantial external funding success Collaborative interdisciplinary research in theme areas, especially high-risk proof of concept New collaborations between junior and senior faculty for research development and mentorship Particular consideration given to proposals addressing priorities of: Water Energy Nexus Climate Change Future of the Electric Grid

Seed Grant eligibility All faculty members holding an appointment of half-time or more Tenured Tenure track Fixed Term New investigators will be given preference

Funding availability Approximately $300,000 is available through this solicitation Funding levels $25,000 – innovative partnerships of investigators from multiple colleges and/or campuses $10,000 -two or more faculty from the same college (University Park) or Commonwealth Campus $5,000 – single investigator proposals Award period: April 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018

Allowable expenses Graduate and undergraduate student support Instrumentation fees and sample analysis to collect preliminary data Equipment, supplies, and/or participant payments Travel associated with the conduct or reporting of seed grant research Hosting a research planning meeting for an interdisciplinary team Planning and hosting conferences and symposia Funding for data conversion technology and wages to support data conversion

Unallowable expenses Summer or supplemental salary support for faculty Postdoc salary Travel support to attend conferences **Please note: single college funding, even with several departments, is not allowed at the $25,000 level.

Key dates Nov. 2, 2016: Pre-proposals due no later than 5:00 pm Dec. 2, 2016: PIs notified of pre-proposal results; full proposals requested Jan. 25, 2017: Full proposals due no later than 5:00 pm Beginning of March 2017: Seed Grant funding decisions announced Grant funds will be available by April 1, 2017 to be expended by June 30, 2018 Sept 30, 2018: Final report due

PSIEE 2015/2016 Seed Grant Evaluations - PRE-PROPOSAL Review criteria PSIEE 2015/2016 Seed Grant Evaluations - PRE-PROPOSAL Relevance to strategic priorities Creativity and Innovation Significance of Goals and Results Soundness of Research Plan Evidence of new or expanding collaborations   Multi-investigator proposals 3 Highly relevant 3 Highly creative and innovative 2 Highly significant; could revolutionize the field 2 Well thought out and detailed research plan 5 Includes Senior and Junior faculty mentorship opportunity with collaborations across 2 or more colleges or campuses 2 Moderately relevant 2 Moderately innovative 1 Positive and incremental advance 1 Research plan included, but more detail needed 3 Complementary interdisciplinary team across 2 or more colleges or campuses 1 Slightly relevant 1 Sound but standard approach 0 Some but limited potential for impact 0 Limited research plan 0 Team members have similar expertise and from same college/campus 0 Not relevant 0 Approach seems like unlikely to work Summary Evaluation: “Request Full Proposal” or “Do not pursue this year”

Questions regarding the program should be submitted to: psiee@psu.edu Contact information Questions regarding the program should be submitted to: psiee@psu.edu More information and the full RFP can be found at http://psiee.psu.edu/seedgrant