The purpose of the Pilot Faculty Sponsored Project Development Program is to promote the scholarly research activity of TCSPP faculty and to foster academic excellence within the University. The goal of the initiative is threefold:
To enable researchers to conduct smaller-scale research necessary to produce preliminary data that will be used in writing externally funded grant proposals.
To increase the level of federal and private research funding activity at TCSPP, funding types which have the potential to include flexible indirect cost funds to the institution.
To promote high-quality research, scholarship, and creative activity by faculty at TCSPP.
Awards from this program should be viewed as seed funding for a project that will be developed into a full proposal to be submitted to an external funding agency after the end of the award period. Thus, proposals to the pilot program will be evaluated on the basis of the likelihood that the research will continue to evolve and flourish beyond the seed funding period.