Madison Rodak
marodak@ursinus.edu
The call for proposals for Ursinus’s Inclusive Community Grants for the 2019-20 academic year is out. Ursinus’s President’s Office webpage states that the proposal submission deadlines for the grants are September 20, October 25, and February 3. Applicants must send their proposals to Dr. Heather Lobban-Viravong, the Vice President for Campus and Community Engagement.
The overall goal of the Inclusive Community Grants centers around improving the campus atmosphere for students and faculty alike. In an email addressed to faculty, staff, and students, Dr. Lobban-Viravong explained, “This program, created last year, is designed to support the college’s efforts to create an even more inclusive campus environment.”
In the email, Dr. Lobban-Viravong specifies that $250 to $2,500 in funding is provided for a number of projects. The President’s Office website specifies that grants between $250 and $500 are rewarded to a number of projects, while grants between $1,500 and $2,500 are rewarded to a smaller amount of projects.
The President’s Office webpage states, “In order to foster a collaborative and inclusive approach, proposals should be submitted by multiple teams, units, departments, or student organizations who want to address a campus climate concern in partnership with each other.”
The campus-wide email from Dr. Lobban-Viravong also explains that there is a welcome invitation for faculty, staff, and students who submit proposals to present their projects during MLK Week 2020 to the Ursinus community.
Lobban-Viravong discussed her favorite aspects about the school’s efforts to creata a more inclusive campus.
“I think it’s wonderful that some students have felt confident in their ideas and are willing to work with different groups in order to pursue a project that they think would be meaningful to the campus. I was really pleased with the number of proposals that we received last year, and my hope is that interest will only increase in the years to come. The work of inclusion and equity takes time, not only at Ursinus but at pretty much all campuses across the country. This is why I feel it is so valuable to have this highly public institutional commitment to inclusion–that commitment will carry us far,” she said.
Dr. Xochitl Shuru, Associate Professor of Modern Languages, is currently an Inclusive Community Fellow for 2019-20. According to the President’s Office website, Dr. Shuru was a part of the project “Strengthening the Latino/a/x Community of Ursinus,” along with Dr. Chisu Teresa Ko, ALMA, L.A.X., and Latin American Studies. The project has a goal of creating a more inclusive campus for the Latino/a/x community.
Proposal submissions must include a one-page description of the project, a 50-word synopsis, and a detailed budget. For more information, go to the President’s Office website.