The Big Idea Challenge at the University of Oklahoma encourages the formation of transdisciplinary, convergent research teams focused on solving global grand challenges. BIC is designed to help nucleate teams and ideas and create opportunities for new and significant external funding that will position OU as a national and global leader in the areas of inquiry proposed, charting new pathways to discoveries, innovations, and social and policy solutions, while training the next generation of future interdisciplinary talent.
The VPRP/Faculty Senate COVID Relief Fund (CRF) is intended to offer research support to those faculty members whose research/scholarly and creative activities were severely and continually impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Many scholars faced severe challenges during 2020-2022 due to illness, travel restrictions, interruption of sabbatical, care for children or other family members, or increased departmental duties in support of colleagues facing these challenges. The CRF program, to be administered through the Research Council, provides a one-time funding opportunity to assist faculty members in regaining their scholarly momentum.
The Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts seed grant program is designed to enhance research and creative endeavors for faculty at OU. Recipients of this funding commit to developing their project to a stage of impactful publication or other forms of significant recognition for research and creative activity (such as performances, exhibits, digital media, and/or community-based research). SSHA recipients also commit to developing their project for major grant and fellowship applications within two years of the seed funding’s conclusion.
Fast-tracked seed grants for short-term projects with the goal of positioning OU Norman campus faculty and their collaborators to effectively compete for significant external funding opportunities related to the topic of inequalities in the academic research and creative activity enterprise and the impact of such inequalities on knowledge creation and dissemination.
The Office of the Vice President for Research and Partnerships (OVPRP) invites applications for a new matching funds program to stimulate and enhance OU research and creative activity efforts through partial support for a postdoctoral researcher position on externally funded grants. For successful applicants, the OVPRP will provide 25% of the postdoctoral researcher's salary and fringe benefits for a one-year time period, provided that such a position was budgeted for in an external grant application that in FY24 (July 1, 2023 - June 30, 2024) (i) was awarded, (ii) is currently pending or (iii) is planned. The matching funds are expected to help drive enhanced project outcomes and increase the numbers of postdocs at OU. The VPRP match is valid only if the external grant is awarded.
The Initiative for the Humanities and Arts in Society (IHAS) Seed Grant Program aims to accelerate research and creative activity of tenured or tenure-track faculty on the OU Norman and Tulsa (Norman Campus programs) campuses in the humanities and arts through convergent and collaborative projects addressing the grand challenges. Some areas of interest include, but are not limited to, the medical humanities; ethics and technology; data and the definition of the human; disparities and security; and culture, energy, and environment.
