This information is for the LEO Inclusive Teaching Professional Development Fund on the Ann Arbor Campus only.
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For the Flint Lecturer's Inclusive Teaching Professional Development application, deadlines and other information, please see this PDF.
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For the Dearborn Lecturer's Inclusive Teaching Professional Development application, deadlines and other information, please see this PDF.
Inclusive Teaching Professional Development Fund for LEO Lecturers
The 2024-2028 collective bargaining agreement between the University and the Lecturers’ Employee Organization (LEO) provides for a designated fund called the Inclusive Teaching Professional Development Fund (the “Fund”) for LEO Lecturers on the Ann Arbor campus. This program will offer awards of up to $1,500 to eligible Lecturers each academic year, beginning Winter 2025*. The purpose of the Fund is to provide professional development funds for lecturers seeking to develop and enhance skills to better engage in inclusive teaching practices at the University of Michigan. It is funded by the Provost’s Office and applications are due May 15 of each year.
Past Awardee Testimonials
Sally Clegg, Stamps School of Art & Design
In the summer of 2023, I was awarded funding to attend a workshop for women and non-binary individuals at the SamBeauford Woodworking Institute in Adrian Michigan. As a LEO lecturer in the Stamps School of Art & Design, I have the privilege of guiding diverse groups of students through their first experiences in our woodshop. Unfortunately, bias and access challenges have resulted in unequal representation in many shop spaces, something that I experienced in my own education, and something I want to contribute to correcting. This professional development opportunity allowed me to deepen my own skill set for the benefit of all my future students.
Diane Aretz, Marsal Family School of Education
As a two-time LEO Inclusive Teaching Grant recipient, I am extremely grateful for the ways in which this grant impacted my teaching, and my students’ experiences in my classroom. With these funds, I was able to receive training in restorative justice practices in the classroom, and to develop a workshop on restorative classroom practices to my first-year interns, who are learning about (and learning to problematize) the notion of classroom management.
The beauty of what this award facilitated is that it helped me in my own work with students (I use restorative practices in my work as a teacher educator) and it gave my interns tools for building relationships and creating just and equitable classrooms in their work with students all over the world. Many of my students shared that the workshop of restorative justice was one of the most impactful experiences at UM, and it wouldn’t have been possible for me to provide this opportunity without the LEO Inclusive Teaching Grant.
Eligibility
- Any Lecturer who has an active appointment or who is on an approved leave of absence at the time a proposal is submitted may apply for an award from the Fund.
- A successful applicant must also demonstrate that they have a reasonable belief that they will hold an appointment beyond the time the award is disbursed.
- The applicant must demonstrate that they have applied for any other inclusive teaching professional development funding available within their academic unit(s) prior to submitting a proposal to the Fund.
Selection Criteria
- Successful proposals should enhance but not duplicate existing department inclusive teaching initiatives. Proposals must include a project plan or detailed description of how the Lecturer intends to engage in activities that enhance skills to better engage in inclusive teaching practices (such as attending a conference, incorporating inclusive teaching practices into syllabi, etc).
- The project plan may include focus on current national events and the impact to the student population that the Lecturer is teaching.
- It is the expectation that the inclusive teaching professional development funds will meet the majority of the criteria below to be eligible for funds.
Criteria
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What knowledge or skills will the Lecturer gain and bring to their teaching as a result of these funds?
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What specific research, training, activities, or other resources will be accomplished with the funding?
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How will the Lecturer utilize the knowledge, skills and other resources provided by the funding in their pedagogy to support a more inclusive learning environment?
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What, if any, specific deliverables or results will the Lecturer be able to share regarding the enhanced inclusive teaching practices with a broader scholarly community?
Note: For the Ann Arbor campus, up to half of the Lecturer Inclusive Teaching Professional Development Fund money can be used to pay stipends to Ann Arbor Lecturers participating in the ODEI-CRLT Lecturer Inclusive teaching Fellows Program.
Required Materials
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Online application, including signed statement from Chair/Director or Dean
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Brief (1-2 page) description of the proposed inclusive teaching professional development activity that demonstrates how it will develop and enhance a Lecturer’s skills to better engage in inclusive teaching practices and specifically addresses each of the criteria above as well as demonstrate an understanding of the basic principles and goals of inclusive teaching. Applicants are encouraged to review CRLT’s inclusive teaching resources and strategies and CRLT's overview of inclusive teaching to aid in developing their application.
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Itemized budget (including verification and allocation of any additional grants or funds also applied for and/or approved and/or received relevant to the content explored in this application). Approved budget items may include salary paid to the Lecturer in compensation for additional preparation and research required to meet the objectives of the proposed activity; salary paid to graduate or undergraduate students to provide project support; equipment; workshops, conferences, and training and related travel. Items not eligible for funding include but are not limited to community service, volunteer work.
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Brief curriculum vitae
Application Procedure
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Applications must be completed, and submitted using the following link: Application. If a hard copy application is necessary, please contact Academic Human Resources at [email protected] or (734) 763-8938 to make necessary arrangements.
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The applicant must provide the required materials listed above, and must obtain the signed statement from the Chair/Director or Dean.
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Applications received by the May 15 deadline will be evaluated, and Applicants will be informed of decisions. Please contact Academic Human Resources at 734-763-8938 with questions about the application procedure.
Funding Decisions
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Proposals will be reviewed by a committee consisting of faculty, Lecturers, and academic administrators.
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Preference will be given to Lecturers who have been appointed for at least two semesters at the time the proposal is submitted.
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The awards will be announced after timely review by the Committee.