UW Bothell Investment Fund

UW Bothell Investment Fund: 2023-25 Biennium Process & Guidelines

January 3, 2023

UW Bothell has set up an Investment Fund of $2 million for the 2023-25 biennium. This resource will be used to fund a broad range of projects developed by academic and administrative units across UW Bothell for up to two years.

To ensure that we can fund multiple projects, project requests should be in the range of $100,000 to $500,000 per project for the biennium. Fully developed proposals will be evaluated by the Chancellor’s Executive Team. Final funding approvals will be made by the chancellor.

Proposals with the best chance of receiving funding are those that will have the most impact on supporting our mission, strengthening the sustainability of our infrastructure and advancing our strategic priorities.

Priorities for funding in this cycle include:

• Curricular changes that serve pre-major students across the student life cycle, with a preference for cross-disciplinary exploration courses at the sophomore level.
• Bridge funding that allows schools to diversify academic program offerings to meet regional needs with preference for a) programs that provide pathways (beyond what we currently offer) to in-demand careers within our region and b) programs that provide access to adult learners.
• Programs/projects that will help us prepare to serve a more residential student body.
• Projects that enhance our ability to offer high-quality hybrid, hi-flex, and distance learning.
• Projects that enhance staff and faculty engagement.
• Projects that enhance our capacity for inclusive excellence.
• Projects that enhance the on-campus student experience.

Collaborative and/or cross-divisional projects are strongly encouraged.

Working timeline:

• One-to-two page Letter of Intent to chancellor (with email CC to CET sponsor): Friday, Feb. 3, 2023.
• Full Proposal due to chancellor (with email CC to CET sponsor): Friday, March 17, 2023.
• Initial CET review completed and additional info requested, if any, by: Friday, April 7, 2023.
• (Optional) Revised proposals due: Friday, May 5, 2023.
• Funding announcements (with feedback to unsuccessful requests): Monday, May 22, 2023.
• Funding availability period: July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2025.
• Half-yearly progress reports due to chancellor (with email CC to the vice chancellors) at the end of December and June. Project Final Report due: July 1, 2025.

Letter of Intent

The Letter of Intent should provide a short abstract of the proposed project, the strategic priority or need it seeks to address, proposed budget and timeline. Submit Letter of Intent by email to the Office of the Chancellor (with email CC to CET sponsor).

Full proposal guidelines

• No more than five pages excluding appendices; submit by email to Office of the Chancellor.
• Proposal should be sponsored by a Chancellor’s Executive Team member(s).
• Proposal must include the following:
  • Project overview
  • Action plan:
    • Timeline of main tasks, key milestones, deliverables,
    • Roles and responsibilities for the project team,
    • Participating units with sign-off from relevant unit leads, and
    • Potential impacts to current services during the funding period.
  • Completed Budget Appendix (see below)
  • Alignment Details:
    • Demand/market studies for a new academic programs,
    • Priorities for this funding cycle,
    • Intended impact and measurements of success at the first-year milestone and at the conclusion of the funding period, and
    • Congruence with campus goals of equity, fairness and student success.

Prioritization criteria (not in order of weight or preference):

• Alignment with campus priorities as outlined above;
• Feasibility of proposal and measurable success as detailed in the action plan;
• Financial self-sufficiency post investment fund, where appropriate;
• Proposing unit commitment and investment;
• Support for the Collaboration Principles; and
• Balancing investments/funding across different campus units.

Limitations and restrictions

• Investment Fund is based on temporary funding. Therefore, successful recipients cannot use awards for permanent positions (unless there is an acceptable sustainability plan).
• If investment funds are sought for projects that will extend beyond the biennium, a plan for transitioning to financial self-sufficiency must be provided.
• Unused funds must be returned to IPB and should not be diverted to other uses (without the chancellor’s express approval).
• Project reports will be due and reviewed on a half-yearly schedule (Dec. 31 and June 30). If reports are not submitted on time, funding may be withdrawn.

Funding allocation details

To ensure that we can fund multiple projects, project requests should be in the range of $100,000 to $500,000 per project.

Funds not used in the 2023-25 biennium will be returned to the Investment Fund pool fund, unless a carryover is explicitly authorized by the chancellor.

If a project is funded, detailed expenditure plans and an expenditure timeline is due to the Office of the Chancellor (with email CC to the CET sponsor) as soon as possible and in any event before September 15, 2023.

The expenditure plans should have details of proposed expenditures (stipends/salaries, equipment purchases, travel and operational expenses) in the budget appendix. The funded unit will be responsible for expending the funds as planned, following appropriate UW procedures. Half-yearly reports should provide comparisons of budgeted and actual expenditures.

All Letters of Intent, Proposals and half-yearly reports should be submitted to uwbchlr@uw.edu with email CC to the sponsoring CET member(s).

Appendix: UW Bothell Investment Fund 2023 – 2025: Budget Request