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Supporting faculty research in online learning.

eCampus Center Research Fellowship

About the Fellowship

The eCampus Center is announcing the launch of the 2020-2021 eCampus Faculty Research Fellowship. This fellowship will provide online faculty with funding to conduct research that benefits online faculty and students at Boise State University.

The purpose of the fellowship is to encourage faculty activity in the scholarship of online teaching and learning. Three to five faculty who are chosen to be a part of the program will be provided with up to $5,000 to support them in their research with additional funding available for travel to present their research. Additionally, they will receive mentoring and support from the eCampus Center Research and Innovation Team in conducting effective, inclusive, and ethical research.

The Research Fellowship runs on a yearly basis with the next cohort beginning in Fall of 2020 for research which will end in the Summer of 2021.

For the 2020-2021 Cohort, we are especially interested in Fellows who pursue research on the following topics:

  • Open Educational Resources – utilization of OER, impact of OER on student success, student and faculty perceptions of OER, OER and inclusion
  • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in online learning environments – Best practices in creating inclusive online classrooms and learning materials, identifying barriers to marginalized students in online learning environments, integration of anti-racism into online learning
  • Engaging Students Online in the Pandemic – Investigations of the challenges and opportunities associated with teaching and learning online during the Pandemic
  • Implementation of new technologies in online learning – research on technologies that address issues related to online student success and retention
  • High-enrollment Online Courses – effective strategies for designing and teaching high-enrollment online courses, evaluation of support models for high-enrollment courses
  • Supporting Scalability in Online Learning – Utilization of templates/common courses for a consistent student learning experience

Applications are now CLOSED.

Fellowship Details

Fellowship Goals

  • Support the growth of online learning research at Boise State
  • Fund research that is actionable and that impacts students’ learning online
  • Create bridges between online faculty and the services of the Research and Innovation Team
  • Promote effective assessment of online learning at the course and program-levels at Boise State
  • Support Boise State online students success and retention through evidence-based practices
  • Improve and inform Boise State online scholarship and practices

Fellowship Deliverables and Applications

  • White papers/reports from fellowship participants documenting their study results
  • Presentations from faculty fellows about their research to eCampus Center staff and faculty
  • Possible presentations at local and national conferences, and/or journal publications

Selection Criteria

  • All Boise State faculty, including adjuncts, are encouraged to apply. Graduate students are currently not eligible to receive funding
  • Participant indicates a commitment to staying with the institution for the duration of the research fellowship
  • Research project needs to be focused on fully online settings (as opposed to hybrid, remote or technology-enhanced)

Project Budgets

Each project will be given up to $5,000 to fund the research.  The proposed amount will be paid out in three equal payments via budget transfer according to three milestones on the project:

  • Milestone 1: Submission of IRB (end of Fall 2020)
  • Milestone 2: Completion of data collection and submission of a mid-project report (end of Spring 2021)
  • Milestone 3: Completion of white paper/report (end of Summer 2021)

In addition, a travel allowance may be available for the faculty member to present their research at a conference (subject to university travel restrictions).

Each proposal should include an itemized budget of how project money will be spent.  Sample budgeted items may include:

  • Compensation for faculty time to conduct research
  • Funding for research or graduate assistants
  • Incentives for research participation
  • Software or equipment for the study

Required Proposal Components

  • Information about the principal investigator (name, department, college, contact information, department chair name and contact information)
  • Any collaborators who will be integral to the project’s success and their intended contributions
  • Information about the proposal (project title, sponsoring department, sponsoring college)
  • A statement of the online student-centered problem (research gaps) or question the research project plans to address (contextualizing the problem or question within already-existing literature is highly recommended)
  • The planned method to address the problem or question
  • Intended project outcomes
  • A plan for evaluation and measurement of outcomes
  • A project timeline
  • A project budget
  • A brief statement of support/email from the department head, or equivalent, to participate for the duration of the fellowship
  • A statement regarding how research aligns with Boise State University Statement on Diversity and Inclusion

Review Process

The review criteria for the fellowship will include the following components:

  • How well the proposed work aligns with the goals of the eCampus Center Research Fellows program
    • Support the growth of online learning research at Boise State
    • Fund research that is actionable and that impacts students’ learning online
    • Create bridges between online faculty and the services of the Research and Innovation Team
    • Promote effective assessment of online learning at the course and program-levels at Boise State
    • Support Boise State online students success and retention through evidence-based practices
    • Improve and inform Boise State online scholarship and practices
  • Other additional submitted items to be reviewed include:
    • The statement of the problem or research question
    • The method to address the problem or question
    • Intended project outcomes
    • A plan for evaluation and measurement of outcomes
    • Project timeline
    • Project Budget

Please direct inquiries about the research fellowship to Rob Nyland, Ph.D.