Contract Faculty Research and Professional Development Fund

UWOFA’s Contract Faculty Research and Professional Development Fund was established in 2017. A call for applications goes out each fall.

Purpose
The purpose of this funding is to support the participation of UWOFA contract faculty Members in professional development activities, academic conferences and research.

Amount
UWOFA is to provide up to $10,000 in funding each year, of which $5,000 is available for Limited-Term Members (which includes Members in a Limited-Term Appointment created under Clause 1.1 of the Article Transition Provisions of the 1998-2002 Collective Agreement and Members on a Limited-Term Appointment without a specified end date) and $5,000 is available for Part-Time Members (those holding a Limited-Duties Appointment or a Standing Appointment). However, if the adjudication committee determines that the total of the fundable applications from either the Limited-Term or the Part-Time applicants is less than $5,000 it may allocate the difference to the other group.

Administration and Adjudication
The UWOFA Committee for Contract Faculty is responsible for ensuring that the funding is advertised, setting an application deadline and appointing an adjudication committee. The adjudication committee shall have five members, three of whom shall be members of the Committee for Contract Faculty. The funding shall be advertised on the UWOFA website and to all Members on UWOFA’s contract faculty email lists.

Eligibility
Only UWOFA contract faculty Members are eligible to apply for the funding. Each
Member can submit only one application in any given year. A Member who receives funding in a year is not eligible in each of the next two years.

Application
An application must include:

  • (a) for research projects, a description (not more than 1000 words) of the project including its rationale, methodology, projected timeline and results (anticipated or actual) and the role of the Member in the project;
  • (b) for professional development activities, a description (not more than 500 words) of the activity and a justification for the Member’s involvement in it (it is expected to be relevant to the Member’s career);
  • (c) for attending a conference, a description (not more than 500 words) of the conference and the Member’s expected involvement in it (such as presenting a paper or poster) and a copy of the call for presentations and other promotional materials for the conference;
  • (d) for all applications, a budget setting out and justifying all expenses relating to the project or activity and indicating the amount of funding sought (see for assistance the UWOFA Reimbursement Policy);
  • (e) for all applications, details of any other funding (received, applied for, or to be applied for) for the same project or activity;
  • (f) for all applications, a description (not more than 500 words) of the Member’s qualifications, both in general and as they relate in particular to the project or activity. Applications must be submitted, by the deadline, to the person and in the form specified by the UWOFA Committee for Contract Faculty.

Conditions
Funded activities or projects must either have been completed in the twelve
months prior to the submission deadline or be completed within the twelve months following the submission deadline, although in exceptional circumstances in the latter situation an extension may be granted by the Committee for Contract Faculty. If the research project requires approval from Western Ethics Research Board or Animal Use Subcommittee, a copy of the approval documentation must be submitted with the application or forthwith once it is obtained.

Selection
The adjudication committee shall determine the recipients of the funding within one month of the submission deadline and shall so advise the President. Among other considerations, it shall consider the merits of each project or activity, the qualifications of each applicant, and the financial circumstances of each project or activity. An application may be funded in full or in part. Up to ten Limited-Term and up to ten Part-Time applicants may be funded in a given year.

Disbursement
The funding will normally be provided as reimbursement, after the funded Member submits receipts for expenses to UWOFA. In exceptional circumstances, a funded Member may request the funding in advance, in which case receipts must be submitted later. In all cases receipts must be submitted within one month of being selected for funding or completing the project or activity, whichever occurs later.

Acknowledgement and Reporting
Funded Members shall, in the project or activity, take reasonable steps to acknowledge UWOFA’s financial support. Funded Members shall, in a timely manner, provide UWOFA with a written report (not more than 500 words) on the completed project or activity. The Committee for Contract Faculty shall provide an annual report to the President on the applications which indicates the number of applications received and summarizes the sorts of projects and activities for which funding was sought.

Approved: Board of Directors – February 3, 2017

Amended: Board of Directors – September 14, 2022

List of funding recipients

2023
Brianna Anderson (Education)
Christine Bell (Schulich Medicine & Dentistry)
Oana Birceanu (Schulich Medicine & Dentistry)
Jorge Cruz Lopez (Social Science)
Michael Dove (Social Science)
Oleksa Drachewych (Social Science)
Pejman Habibie (Education)
Mitchell Hammond (Social Science)
Sarah Hennessy (Education)
Kate Korycki (Arts and Humanities)
Peter Krats (Social Science)
Sarina Vera (Education)
Andrew Wenaus (Arts and Humanities)

2022
Elaine Fournier (Education)
Michael Herbert (Health Sciences)
Bethany Horst (Music)
Angela Park (Music)
Jason Sandhar (A&H: English)
Danielle Sirek (Education)
Peter Timmins (Anthropology)
Marnie Wedlake (Health Sciences)
Natascha Wesch (Health Sciences)

2020
Hida Behzadi (Faculty of Information & Media Studies)
Melanie Chambers (Arts & Humanities)
Monda Halpern (Social Science)
Les Kalman (Schulich Medicine & Dentistry)
Niki Sharan (Science)
Zachary Spicer (Social Science)
Olga Tararova (Arts & Humanities)
Jana Weerasinghe-Seijts (Ivey Business School)
Andrew Wenaus (Arts & Humanities)

2019
Robert Barney (Health Sciences)
Pejman Habibie (Education)
Olga Kharytonava (Arts & Humanities) Read Olga’s Story
Khoa Nguyen (Science)
Karyn Olsen (Social Science)
Shannon Potter (Social Science)

2018
Luke Arnott (Information and Media Studies)
Robert Cockcroft (Physics and Astronomy)  Read Robert’s Story
Jeremy Copeland (Information and Media Studies)
Isha DeCoito (Education)
Kane Faucher (Information and Media Studies)
Peter Krats (History)
Angela Pollak (Information and Media Studies)
Geoffrey Stewart (History)
Richard VandeWetering (Political Science)
Nina Zitani (Biology)

2017
Andrea Allen (Women’s Studies and Feminist Research)
Laura Cayen (Women’s Studies and Feminist Research)
Andrew Iarocci (History)
Lori Kirkpatrick (Education)
Catherine E. Pratt (Classical Studies)
Bridget L. Ryan (Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry)
Jeffery Vacante (History)