Conville Endowment for Community Engaged Teaching and Research Award

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Application due May 15 

The Conville Endowment for Community Engaged Teaching and Research was established to honor Dr. and Mrs. Richard L. Conville and to support and reward excellence in community-engaged teaching and research. Multiple funding awards are given each year to faculty for the purposes of: 

• Conducting or developing community-engaged research or service-learning research
• Implementing and planning a new, significant, and sustainable community engagement initiative
• Advancing and promoting service-learning or community engagement at USM
• Integrating service-learning or community engagement into a college or department degree plan
• Developing or re-designing a service-learning class
• Collaborating across disciplines or institutions on community engagement initiatives

Eligibility
Awards are open to all faculty members except recipients from the previous year. Previous recipients must wait one year before applying for another Conville Award.  

Definitions
Community-engaged research involves university and community members working collaboratively to conduct research for “the purpose of solving a pressing community problem or effecting social change” (Community-Based Research and Higher Education, Strand et al., 2004, p.3). 

Academic service-learning is a “course-based, credit-bearing educational experience in which students participate in an organized service activity that meets identified community needs, and reflect on the service activity in such a way as to gain further understanding of course content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, and an enhanced sense of personal values and civic responsibility” (Bringle and Hatcher, 1995, p. 112).. Service-learning partners usually include nonprofit organizations or governmental agencies, PK- 12 schools, or the philanthropic arm of a for-profit organization. 

Community engagement describes reciprocal partnerships between campus and community members that are designed to serve a public purpose and to build the capacity of individuals, groups, and  organizations involved to understand and collaboratively address issues of public concern. 

Award Funds
Applicants can request up to $2,000 for a project. Award recipients will receive the funds in July and the funds must be expended by June 1 the following year.  Funds may be used for (but not limited to) travel, supplies, wages, books, audiovisuals, meeting costs, community partner expenses, training, and/or other resources. Gift card purchases must follow USM’s gift card policies and procedures.

Timeline
Application open Feb. 1st and due May 15
Awards announced – end of spring semester
Funds available – from July 1 until June 1 the following year
Funds not used by the recipients will be returned to USM Foundation.

Criteria for Selection

• Potential for and extent of impact on a) underserved communities or b) students' civic responsibility
• Feasibility of project
• Project innovation
• Applicants’ previous experience with community engagement/CCE
• Thoroughness of application
• Anticipated impact on the University

To apply, submit the below information using the online application that opens Feb 1.   

1. Application Information
Name of Applicant
Academic Rank of Applicant
College and School of Applicant
Title of Proposal
Total Funds Requested (up to $2,000)

2. Application Narrative
The application narrative is limited to a total 1000 words (approximately equal to one page - single-spaced, 12-point font). The narrative should include:

• Applicant’s background with community engagement/CCE
• Description and purpose of project
• Timeline for project
• Budget (with a justification for each expense)
• Existing resources/partnerships to support project
• Long-term plans for project and/or plans for related scholarship

3. Vita
Applicants should include a current vita, limited to three pages

Past Recipients
2024-2025
2023-2024 
2022-23 Vickie Reed
2021-22 Ann Marie Kinnell & Christopher Foley 
2020-21 Jo Hawkins-Jones 
2019-20 Jessica Lee 
2018-19  Stacy Creel
2017-18  Carmen Carracelas-Juncal
2016-17  Charkarra Anderson-Lewis 

About the Conville Fund

In 2015, Dr. Richard L. Conville, professor emeritus of communication studies and service-learning at The University of Southern Mississippi from 1978-2013, together with his wife established the Richard L. and Mozella P. Conville Endowment to support the Center for Community Engagement. Its purpose is to provide students and faculty with experiences to enhance their ability to learn and teach through community service.

As Ernest Boyer has said, “The aim of education is not only to prepare students for productive careers, but also to enable them to live lives of dignity and purpose; not only to generate new knowledge, but to channel that knowledge to humane ends; not merely to study government, but to help shape a citizenry that can promote the public good” (Scholarship Reconsidered, 1990, 77-78).

If you’d like to contribute to the Richard L. and Mozella P. Conville Center for Community Engagement Fund for Excellence, you can do so online or by contacting the USM Foundation at foundation@usm.edu or 601-266-5210.