Teaching in Higher Education Travel Award

The Teaching in Higher Education Travel Award supports faculty members (clinical, tenure-track/tenured, and instructional track) and P&S staff members who require support to attend a conference related to teaching in their discipline or in higher education in general. Postdoctoral Scholars/Fellows are not eligible for this award. 

Deadlines

The Council on Teaching will review applications, not as they are received, but following these submission deadlines based on the date of travel:

  • Fall 2021 (September-December travel) submit applications by August 6, 2021
  • Spring 2022 (January - May travel) submit applications by December 3, 2021
  • Summer 2022 (June-August travel) submit applications by April 1, 2022

Purpose

The focus of this travel award is for faculty/staff to gain a better understanding of teaching in their discipline or trends in higher education in general (ie., curriculum design, course design and delivery, pedagogical good practice, or assessment of learning) and then applying this new information to enhance teaching effectiveness at The University of Iowa. It is NOT, therefore, to provide travel funds to those who wish to attend conferences/annual meetings to acquire or present new information or research advances in their disciplines and then incorporate that information into their teaching here. 

Funding

Awards of up to $1,500 must be applied to the cost of travel, hotel, or conference registration, and must be submitted within 45 days following the event for which the funds were approved. Total institutional resources for these awards will not exceed $20,000 per year. No more than one award will be granted (funded) per applicant in a given fiscal year (July 1-June 30). Due to limited available funds no more than one faculty member from a given department/program will be fully funded ($1500) to attend a specific conference. An Itemized budget for the conference (travel, hotel, registration) must be included in the application.

Since individuals may not be able to travel due to the COVID-19 situation this year, we are allowing these funds to be used towards registration fees related to attending a virtual/online conference (travel is not required in order to receive the award).  

Applications

The Council will review applications following the submission deadlines listed for fall, spring and summer semesters. Applications must be received before the deadline for the time period of the scheduled conference. 

Applicants are strongly encouraged to also apply for travel funds available through their individual departments, colleges, or other sources.

Applicants who have been invited or approved to present about teaching at national conferences will be given preference.  Such presentations could include workshops, keynote addresses, seminars, demonstrations, posters, and simulations. Applicants who have been invited/approved to present at the conference will be required to upload an abstract during the application process.

Expectations

The Council on Teaching expects the award recipients to share what they have presented or learned about teaching with the campus.  For instance, a recipient could: 

  • present a workshop to a department, college, or the University in general;
  • communicate about the conference to UI administrative decision-makers (e.g., the General Education Committee, Faculty Senate, the Deans and Directors, the Provost);
  • mentor new faculty about teaching;
  • or communicate ideas and experiences about teaching through print media, including IOWA Now, the Office of Teaching, Learning & Technology newsletter, The Chronicle of Higher Education, or other UI or national media.

Follow up summary requirement: 

Following attendance at the conferences, recipients will be required to provide the Council a one-page summary of what they learned about teaching, or if they presented, a one-page summary of their presentation.  The Center for Teaching may post these summaries on the Office of Teaching, Learning & Technology and Council on Teaching web sites to encourage others to attend teaching and learning conferences. View summary examples submitted by recipients on this page.

Example Conferences

The following list provides examples of appropriate conferences that include significant teaching and learning components. This list is not a definitive, however, and other conferences may be included in award applications.

Teaching and learning in disciplines
Teaching and learning in higher education

Contact

For questions, please contact the Council on Teaching or Kimberly Nye, Office of the Provost.