Internal Funding Programs

Faculty Research Grants Program

2025-2026 FRG Program Updated Deadline: November 13, 2024)
Note: The Niner Research system, InfoEd, is scheduled for maintenance on November 8, 2024

 Please adhere to Research Administration Policy 20.2. 

UNC Charlotte, through its Office of the Vice Chancellor for The Division of Research, sponsors an internal Faculty Research Grants (FRG) program designed to assist faculty in conducting well-defined, purposeful, new research or creative or scholarly activities. The program is divided into two categories: continuing faculty, and newly appointed assistant professors.

The 18-month program allows each individual project to have a maximum budget of $8,000, including a stipend of up to $4,200. Faculty submitting joint proposals may request up to $16,000 ($8,000 per faculty member; maximum stipend of $8,400).

Proposals must be uploaded electronically as a single PDF file to Niner Research, UNC Charlotte’s electronic research administration portal. See the FRG Guidelines for more information on Niner Research. Name your file in the following manner: Last name_first name. Joint proposals should use the last names of both faculty members.

Proposals for the 2025-2026 program are due Wednesday, November 13, 2024 by 5:00pm (all applicants) (Updated to adhere to Research Administration Policy 20.2.  or Friday, March 21, 2025 by 5:00pm(new assistant professors enrolled in Proposal Development Workshop only*), but please read the FRG Guidelines carefully to note the details of the new Niner Research submission process.

Resources for the 2025-2026 program:

For FRG final reports, please use the FRG Final Report Template.

For more information, contact Dr. LaVerne Ellerbe, CRE Director by email or at (704) 687-1880 or Dr. Mel Atkinson, FRG Committee Chair, by email or at (704) 687-7055.

Ignite Planning Grants

Ignite Planning Grants promote new collaborative research efforts and facilitate the development of interdisciplinary teams focused on preparing competitive, large-scale collaborative proposals for significant external funding. Ignite planning grants are intended to enhance existing areas of excellence, accelerate the development of emerging research strengths, and foster interactions between UNC Charlotte faculty and potential collaborators at other institutions. The program aims to lower and eliminate barriers to building collaborative teams and coordinating, planning, and preparing large, interdisciplinary multi-investigator research proposals by providing funds to (1) convene conferences and meetings, (2) coordinate workshops, (3) support travel costs for potential collaborators from other institutions, (4) hire grant-writing consultants and content specialists, and (5) conduct other proposal-development and team-development activities.

Request for Proposals is now closed.

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Program

The scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) involves the disciplinary, cross-disciplinary, and inter-disciplinary study of teaching practice and student learning. UNC Charlotte’s SoTL program has an impact beyond the individual teacher, classroom, department, an

Ignite for Centers Grants (IC) Program

Announcing bold new investments in centers across all colleges at UNC Charlotte (Ignite Centers)

The Division of Research is excited to announce bold new investments in 14 centers and pilot centers from proposals to the Ignite Centers call. Through this initiative, we are building from the Areas of Excellence Report and positioning ourselves to achieve the “Shaping What’s Next” Strategic Plan’s aspirations for very high research activity through connectivity and partnerships between faculty, staff colleges, and department/programs!

Watch for more information, including each center’s vision, impact and opportunities for broader engagement in a joint communication from the Division of Research and the Colleges in upcoming weeks. The lead college is listed below with the center name, although all of these involve cross-college collaborations.

Fully Supported:

Track 1:

  • Center for Leadership Science (Lead: Belk College of Business)
  • Center for the Environment and Health (Lead: College of Computing and Informatics)
  • Center for Innovation, Translational Research and Applications of Nanostructured Systems (CITRANS) (Lead: College of Liberal Arts & Sciences)
  • Center for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Education (CSTEM) (Lead: Cato College of Education)
  • Charlotte Aviation Innovation and Research Institute (Lead: The William States Lee College of Engineering)

Track 2:

  • CIPHER (Lead: College of Computing and Informatics)

Partially Supported:

Track 1:

  • AI Institute for Human Digital Twin and Computational Health (Lead: College of Computing and Informatics)
  • UNC Charlotte Violence Prevention Center (Lead: College of Health & Human Services)
  • Center for Migration and Diaspora Studies (Lead: College of Liberal Arts & Sciences)
  • Center for Community-engaged Arts and Design Research (CADRe) (Lead: College of Liberal Arts & Sciences)
  • Charlotte Center for Trustworthy AI for Model Risk Management (TAIM2) (Lead: College of Liberal Arts & Sciences)
  • Center for Community, Heritage, and the Arts (CHArt) (Lead: College of Arts + Architecture)
  • Center for Education Measurement and Evaluation (CEME) (Lead: Cato College of Education)

Track 2:

  • Center for Geospatial Sensing and Analytics (GeoSAN) (Lead: College of Liberal Arts & Sciences)

2023 (FY24) IC Program

The Division of Research (DR) is pleased to announce a new grant program, Ignite for Centers (IC), which is an extension of the Ignite Planning Grants. Centers and institutes are established within the University to strengthen and enrich multidisciplinary programs of research, public service, or instruction conducted by the faculty and staff. Centers facilitate synergistic interactions to create knowledge that foster finding solutions to societal challenges. The IC program is divided into two categories: Track 1 for Emerging Pilot Centers and Track 2 for Existing Centers. Current or proposed center directors may serve as the principal investigator.

IC grants are designed to support and incentivize stronger interdisciplinary research collaborations, and ultimately, accelerate UNC Charlotte’s success in attracting extramural funding, especially in the areas of focus and distinction identified in the Top-tier Research Commission Report.

The 24-month IC program anticipates awarding up to six one-time grants of up to $50,000 per year ($100,000 maximum direct costs). Facilities and Administrative costs are waived. A DR/Recipient match of 2:1 is required for all IC grants.

Proposals must be uploaded electronically as a single PDF file to Niner Research, UNC Charlotte’s electronic research administration portal. See the IC Proposal Niner Research Guidelines for more information. Name your file using the following convention: PI Last Name_PI First Name.

Proposal request for the 2023(FY24) program is now closed.

Resources for the 2024 IC Program:

  • Spring 2023 Request for Proposals
  • IC Budget Worksheet
  • IC Niner Research Guidelines
  • IC Information Webinar Registration

For more information, contact Dr. LaVerne Ellerbe, Director, Center for Research Excellence by email lellerb1@uncc.edu. or at 704-687-1880.

Artxsci Collaborative exploration Grants

Spring 2024 Request for Proposals (NOW CLOSED)

The Division of Research and the College of Arts + Architecture are pleased to announce the spring 2024 ArtXSci request for proposals. This program promotes innovative interdisciplinary research and fosters collaborations between faculty in the College of Arts + Architecture (CoAA) and scholars in STEM fields. The goal of this program is to cultivate active/intensive exchange and sustained dialogue among those engaged in artistic and scientific inquiry within the University and the broader Charlotte region.

Interdisciplinary teams can apply for one-time grants of up to $30,000 for up to 22 months. Facility and Administrative (F&A) costs are not required. We anticipate funding 2-3 awards in FY2025. Preliminary reports detailing the project activities and outcomes to date will be due on the anniversary date of the award. Final reports will be due 45 days after the end date of the project. The expected start date for FY2025 awards is August 1, 2024. The expected end date is May 31, 2026.

Proposals Due: May 31, 2024 by 5 PM.

Resources for the 2025-2026 program: