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Office of the Provost

UNITAS Award

Recipients by Year

1.  Purpose

The UNITAS Faculty Research Program supports scholarly research that focuses on issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. In particular, this program supports research that responds to the goals of diversity outlined in the Villanova University Diversity Statement. The program is administered jointly by the Villanova Institute for Research and Scholarship (VIRS) and the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. The purpose of the program is to encourage faculty to use their research skills and insight to support the stated goal of exploring different perspectives, intercultural connections, and in general understanding the variety of human experiences marked by domestic and global differences.

Among the examples of research projects that might find support would be exploring immigrant student experiences in higher education, the history of racism in the field of genetics, the impact of underrepresentation of minoritized people and women in STEM professions, disparities in healthcare quality among racial and ethnic minoritized communities, implications of marketing to LGBTQIA consumers, exploring disparities in the wage gaps across the lines of gender, race, and/or ethnicity, and the influence of race in juvenile justice sentencing. These examples are meant only to be suggestive of the types of inquiries that can be pursued; others surely may be possible. Questions about topical appropriateness are welcome and can be directed to Terry Nance.

2.  Eligibility

All tenured, tenure-track, and continuing non-tenure-track faculty are eligible to apply. Post-doctoral fellows employed on nine-month contracts are also eligible to apply. Individuals may receive UNITAS Awards no more frequently than every three years.

3.  Award Amounts and Restrictions

The maximum award amount is $12,500. Allowable expenses include summer salary (up to 1/9 of the faculty member’s academic year salary, capped at $12,500), non-salary monies for research expenses, or a combination of summer salary and non-salary monies not to exceed $12,500.

Summer salary is to be paid in June or July of the summer award period and is subject to any limitations that may pertain as outlined in the University’s Compensation Policy. It is expected that recipients of a UNITAS award will spend an amount of time working on the proposed research that is equivalent to the amount of summer salary received (e.g., one month or portion thereof).

Non-salary funds may be used for equipment, supplies and books, travel, and publication costs. Funds may be used to pay students on an hourly wage basis to assist the faculty member in the execution of the project.  However, funds may not be used to provide summer stipends for graduate or undergraduate students to work on their own thesis/dissertation research. 

Other expenses may be allowable and should be discussed with either Janice Bially Mattern, Ph.D. (Director of VIRS) or Terry Nance, Ph.D. (Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) for interpretation. Non-salary funds may be spent over the entire fiscal year.

Collaborative proposals between two faculty members are permitted. For such proposals, each faculty member may request summer salary (subject to the caps indicated above).  Interdisciplinary projects are encouraged.

4.  Proposal Preparation

There is no specified format for proposals. Faculty should structure their proposals in a way that clearly articulates the nature of the activities to be undertaken, with the understanding that proposals will be evaluated based on the five criteria given below in section 6. Proposals should state the anticipated significant outcome that will result from the UNITAS Award, such as: scholarly publication in a high impact peer-reviewed professional journal, presentation of a paper at a major national or international professional conference or symposium, preparation and submission of a proposal for an external grant directly related to the research supported by the UNITAS grant, or other significant and unique scholarly outcomes that enhance the stature and visibility of the faculty member. Proposers should be cognizant that review committee members may not have expertise in the specific topic of every proposal. Proposals would benefit from minimizing discipline-specific terminology or jargon, and/or defining discipline-specific terminology when it cannot be avoided.

Proposal narratives should not exceed 12 double-spaced pages with 1-inch margins, using no smaller than 12 pt. font. In addition to the narrative, proposal must include a bibliography (6 pages maximum) and a vita (maximum 2 pages). If non-salary monies are requested, a budget for these monies should be included, with succinct justification. Applicants must also complete the Unitas application form available online via the InfoReady portal. Do not specify faculty summer salary dollar amounts anywhere in the proposal, rather, indicate the portion of summer month requested (e.g. 1 month, ½ month, ¼ month).

5.  Proposal Submission

All application materials are to be submitted via Villanova’s InfoReady portal. The application will be available by January 2024. Emailed PDFs and hard copies will not be accepted.

6.  Proposal Evaluation and Review Criteria

Each proposal will be peer reviewed by an Evaluation Committee based on the following criteria (the last four of which have been adopted from the American Council of Learned Societies):

  • Consistency of the proposed project with the topic of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
  • The potential of the project to advance the field of study in which it is proposed and make an original and significant contribution to knowledge.
  • The quality of the proposal with regard to its clarity, methodology, scope, theoretical framework, and grounding in the relevant scholarly literature.
  • The feasibility of the project and the likelihood that the applicant will execute the work within the proposed timeframe.
  • The scholarly record and career trajectory of the applicant.

7. Critical Dates

  • 2024 Proposal submission deadline: March 8, 5:00 pm EST

8. Post-Award Requirements

Recipients of UNITAS Awards will be asked to share their research at a research symposium organized by Villanova’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. 

After receiving an award, and in order to be eligible for future awards, the recipient will be required to submit a brief report (no more than one page) that includes the significant outcome resulting from the UNITAS Award in relation to the anticipated significant outcome as stated in the initial proposal.  Reports are due on June 15 following summer for which the UNITAS Award was made.  Instructions about how to submit reports will be provided to awardees at least two months in advance of their due date.

9.  Questions?

Questions about proposal preparation or review can be addressed to either Terry Nance, Ph.D., Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion or Janice Bially Mattern, Ph.D., Director of VIRS. 

10.  Members of the Evaluation Committee

  • Aronte Bennett, PhD, Associate Professor of Marketing and Business; Associate Dean of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
  • Janice Bially Mattern, PhD, Director, Villanova Institute for Research & Scholarship
  • Edward Fierros, Associate Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, CLAS
  • Terry Nance, PhD, Vice President, Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
  • Narda Quigley, PhD, Professor of Management