The Rural Futures Institute is accepting proposals for 2017 RFI Competitive Awards. Deadlines are March 1 and March 15.
Since 2013 these awards have fostered important discoveries and opportunities for rural people and places thanks to the contributions of 160 University of Nebraska faculty members from all four campuses and 200 community, education, government, organization and company partners.
“We continue to be impressed by the quality and ongoing impact of the projects from this program,” said Chuck Schroeder, RFI executive director. “Now, we are asking for bold, innovative and transdisciplinary research and teaching ideas to be brought forward for 2017. The knowledge and applications that come from these projects are critical for the future success of rural communities.”
Applicants for the 2017 awards are strongly encouraged to collaborate across disciplines, campuses, fields, organizations and institutions. RFI Competitive Awards Director Kim Peterson can assist in identifying potential partners.
There are two types of awards:
Teaching and Engagement, due March 1: These awards foster faculty-led community engagement and service learning. Community engagement and service learning pedagogies develop a structure that forms partnerships between faculty and community agencies/programs and encourages college student involvement in providing services to meet the community’s needs.
Research and Engagement, due March 15: These awards develop research and engagement that addresses critical challenges and opportunities facing rural Nebraska and the Great Plains. The projects are to function as “seed grants” that are designed to lay the foundation for larger requests to funding sources external to the University of Nebraska.
Kirk Dombrowski, professor of sociology, is currently leading the RFI Competitive Award project, “Identifying the Interrelationships between Social Determinants, Self-identity, and Public Health in Minority Rural Communities.” Through this project, he and his team are working closely with the Lexington, Nebraska, community to create a cost-effective, research-driven community health planning model that gives a statewide voice to diverse communities.
“RFI’s funding provides an extraordinary opportunity to build a bridge between the Great Plains and my life’s work in rural Alaska and Puerto Rico,” Dombrowski said. “It has given our team an opportunity to discover and test innovative research instruments that can help us better understand the changing rural health landscape and be active participants in keeping Nebraska the ‘good life.’ Discovering ways to use research to strengthen communities is at the core of my professional mission.”
For more information about RFI Competitive Awards, including full details and how to submit, click here.
