Apply Now for a Teaching Innovation Grant (Spring 2025)!
Announcing a New Cycle of Teaching Innovation Grants & Spotlighting Recent Grant Recipients
Lia Schraeder, PhD | TIPS Oct 2, 2024
We are excited to invite new applications to the spring 2025 cycle of Teaching Innovation Grants (TIG)! You can learn more about the funds available for spring 2025 and how to apply by going to the Teaching Innovation Grant webpage. Please note applications for this cycle are due by November 1, 2024.
If you’re looking for inspiration as you apply for the TIG, consider some of the many ways TIG award winners used their grants last year:
As discussed in a recent TIPS blog post, History professor Dr. Steven Vose used his TIG to bring a guest speaker to campus to the benefit of students in History classes and the campus community.
In a course on Mechanical Engineering, MECH 3021: Introduction to Fluid Dynamics, Dr. Linyue Gao used her TIG to support the integration of Project-Based Teaching (PBT) in an impactful learning module in her course. Specifically, she created a "Hands-on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)" module by using the grant to purchase the industry's leading commercial simulation package, ANSYS Fluent. In the module, students acquired fundamental CFD skills as they applied PBT strategies in crafting solutions for real-world fluid problems.
In her Spanish course, SPAN 3025: Writing for Latinos, Dr. Gabriela Derobles, implemented a service-learning component to the course using her TIG. Since most of her students are commuters with other responsibilities outside of campus, she had to find a way to integrate service-learning so it would not be overwhelming for her students. She teamed up with Casa de Paz, a local nonprofit that works with immigrants in detention centers, and participated in their pen-pal program. Essentially, students were paired with a detained immigrant and exchanged letters in Spanish throughout the semester in order to connect with the local Spanish-speaking community in a meaningful way while also learning about the injustices of our immigration system.
In his Computer Science course, CSCI 2312: Object-Oriented Programming, Dr. Javier Pastorino, used the TIG to address a technology challenge in his class. Though his instructional team incorporated a fully cloud-based development environment for students, they realized in many cases students don't have a notebook and bring a tablet to class. Dr. Pastorino used the grant to acquire two iPads. An 8.3" iPad mini (~$450) and a 10.9" iPad Air (~$550). In a test of whether students could use the tablet for coding, the result was that the iPad mini was not as good as expected due to resolution, even when connecting to an external monitor, though the iPad Air was just like using a small computer when paired with an external keyboard.
Music professor Dr. Cecilia Wu used a recent TIG to participate in professional development at the College Music Society (CMS)/Association for Technology in Music Instruction (ATMI) National Conference. The events enabled her to share her pedagogical research and to promote dialogue on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the music technology classroom. An earlier TIG awarded to Dr. Wu helped her to acquire essential teaching equipment, including a VCV Rack Pro license and a set of acoustic and electronic instruments for her music classes. Dr. Wu reports that the grant contributed to the progression of her pedagogy, including in the area and her work on OER music education. Because of this support, Dr. Wu was able to nail down larger external funding for OER education and won the CU multi-campus OER Champion Award.
We look forward to your application and to celebrating the innovative work of future TIG winners!