College of Notre Dame of Maryland faculty members are highly dedicated teachers and scholars. Clearly focused on student achievement, the Notre Dame faculty welcomes students as partners in research--at the lab bench, in the archives or working with professional colleagues at local research centers. This page contains links to important information regarding grants and research at College of Notre Dame. Please contact the office of foundation relations if you need more information.

Recent External Awards to College of Notre Dame Faculty Members

Biology Department: Peter Hoffman, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Biological Sciences
A National Science Foundation Research Opportunity Award is supporting Dr. Hoffman's research on C. elegans with Rebecca Kohn, Ph.D., from the Department of Biology of Ursinus College.

Chemistry Department: Jocelyn McKeon, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Chemistry
A grant from the 2005 Pittsburgh Conference Memorial National College Grant Program will purchase equipment for Dr. McKeon's lab which will be used to incorporate bioanalytical subject matter and experiments in undergraduate laboratory courses. The award also supports Dr. McKeon in her collaborative research efforts with undergraduate students.

Classical and Modern Languages Department: Thérèse Marie Dougherty, Ph.D., Professor of Classical Languages
A National Endowment for the Humanities grant is funding a summer 2006 institute for middle and secondary school teachers of Latin. "Houses of Mortals and Gods: Latin Literature in Context" will offer 25 teachers the opportunity to investigate Latin literature in its historic and geographical context. After one week studying on the Notre Dame campus, the group will travel to Italy for four weeks of further study.

Education Department: Christa de Kleine, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education
A grant from the Sociological Initiatives Foundation of Boston is funding Dr. de Kleine's research to identify and address the causes of literacy difficulties among English-speaking West African children enrolled in U.S. public schools. Dr. de Kleine will write and disseminate a practical handbook for ESOL teachers who teach students from Anglophone West African countries.

History Department: Charles Ritter, Ph.D., Professor of History and Susan Barber, Ph.D., Associate Professor of History
A grant from The Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation of New York is supporting these two professors' research into sexual justice in the American Civil War. They are engaged in the first comprehensive study of the response of the Union military to allegations of sexual assault against women and girls by soldiers and civilians during the American Civil War, 1861 to 1865.

Office of Research Development Grants
Through funding available through a grant from the National Institutes of Health, the following faculty received awards for research in the 2005-2006 academic year:

• Joseph Di Rienzi, Ph.D., Professor of Physics, for "Theoretical Investigations in Atomic and Quantum Physics"
• Nancy Kreiter, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, for "Field Tests of Male Behavior in the Fishing Spider Dolomedes triton"
• Jocelyn McKeon, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Chemistry, for "Deciphering Protein-Flavonoid Binding with Capillary Electrophoresis."

Institutional Grants in Support of Faculty Research
Notre Dame faculty may apply for funds to support their scholarship through the Task Force on Faculty Research and Development, a subgroup of the Faculty Issues Committee. In December 2004, the following faculty members received grants:

• Les Bradley, Ph.D., Professor of Communications, for "A Study of On-line Teaching and Distance Learning."
• William Davis, Ph.D., Sister Maura Eichner Professor of English, for "Lady St. Helier: A Critical Appreciation."
• Christa de Kleine, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education, for "The Acquisition of Standard American English by Speakers of English-based Creole Language: West African Students."
• David Flaim, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences, for "Implicated Heavy Metal Toxicity in Marine Invertebrates as Induced by Artificial Seawater Mixes."
• Jocelyn McKeon, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Chemistry, for "Micellar Liquid Chromatography."
• Mary Beth Pope, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of English, for "Waiting for Ed McMahon: A Memoir of Alzheimer's."
• Charles Ritter, Ph.D., Professor of History and Susan Barber, Ph.D., Associate Professor of History, for "Sexual Justice in the American Civil War."

Institutional Awards

• A four-year grant of $206,267 from the National Science Foundation to Barbara Mento, Associate Professor of Computer Science, supports scholarships and special programming for Notre Dame students majoring in computer science, computer information systems, engineering and mathematics. These students are known as Cordia Karl Scholars, named in honor of Cordia Karl, SSND, Ph.D., founder of Notre Dame's Mathematics Department and one of the first women to achieve the Ph.D. in mathematics from The Johns Hopkins University.
• A five-year grant of $246,962 from the National Institutes of Health to Peter Hoffman, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, helps lead an effort to stimulate research in the biomedical and behavioral sciences. This effort will fund faculty research on campus and establish the Office of Research Development (ORD), which seeks to support faculty in their efforts to win research funding.
• A two-year grant of $150,000 from the Maryland Higher Education Commission to Diane Davis, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education supports Teacher Development Academies/Small Learning Communities.
• An 18-month grant of $30,000 from the Maryland State Department of Education to Ginny Thompson, M.S, Assistant Professor of Education, supports the preparation of new teachers with the use of student and school data and technology in the instructional process. These funds are supporting the development of appropriate learning opportunities for Notre Dame teacher candidates to meet the Maryland Teacher Technology Standards (MTTS). The Maryland State Department of Education was awarded a Catalyst Grant through the Preparing Teachers to Use Technology (PT3) program from the U.S. Department of Education. College of Notre Dame of Maryland is one of 12 higher education institutions in the state participating in this PT3 sub-grant and consortium. For more information about Maryland's participation in this program refer to the following link: http://pt3.org/stories/marylandstate.html
• A two-and-one-half-year grant of $150,000 from IBM Reinventing Education Initiative (RE3) to Sister Sharon Slear, Ph.D., Dean of Education, supports the preparation of new teachers with their use of technology. College of Notre Dame of Maryland is participating in the grant partnership with Morgan State University and Baltimore City Public Schools. Get more information about IBM's RE3 program.

Guide to External Funding

College of Notre Dame of Maryland encourages members of the College community to seek external funding for initiatives that help advance the College's mission, as set forth in the College's Strategic Plan, adopted in October 2002.The office of foundation relations assists faculty and staff in the following ways:

• Identifying potential funders
• Advising on strategy
• Assisting with project development and timeline
• Providing institutional information (enrollment data, etc.)
• Facilitating internal approval process
• Assisting with reports to funders

Below is a step-by-step guide with the tools and information grantseekers need to be successful as they seek external funding.

Step 1: Initiating Contact with the Foundation Relations Office

College employee seeking funds from a government agency or foundation of any kind must contact the Office of Institutional Advancement in the office of foundation relations at ext. 5314 prior to beginning a proposal. This avoids multiple submissions to a funder, as well as to ensure that the employee is aware of proposal guidelines and procedures. 
Please note: The final decision on grant submissions will be made based upon College priorities, as determined by the President and the Board of Trustees.

Please contact the Office of Institutional Advancement at least 60 days prior to the proposal deadline.

Step 2: Obtaining Senior Staff Approval to Begin a Proposal

The Principal Investigator or Project Director (the person who will direct and oversee the proposed project, hereby referred to as the PI) must complete the Proposal Concept Approval Form before initiating a proposal. This form is available from the foundation relations' website or from the office itself. The form will be reviewed to ensure that the project is consistent with College policies and with the availability of College resources. The form will be reviewed by the Office of Institutional Advancement before it is circulated to other College administrators for approval.

Please contact the office of Institutional Advancement at least 45 days prior to the proposal deadline.

Proposal Concept Approval Form

Step 3: Proposal Preparation Process

The PI bears the primary responsibility for writing a proposal. The foundation relations office is available to advise and assist throughout the grantwriting process, however there is no substitute for the PI's knowledge and experience in the topic covered by the proposal. The foundation relations office provides assistance to the PI in the preparation of the budget and does serve as the liaison (when appropriate) with the director of financial affairs.

Step 4: Proposal Approval Form

When the first draft of the grant proposal (including budget) is completed, it will be circulated to the appropriate parties (as determined by Mary Beth Lennon), along with a copy of the Proposal Approval Form. Modifications to the narrative and the budget should be made in response to the comments and suggestions by those officials who review it.

A second draft of the narrative and the budget showing changes will be circulated for approval.

As the final step in the proposal approval process, the foundation relations office will forward the Proposal Approval Form and the proposal to the president's office for final authorization. The ultimate responsibility for meeting a funding agency's deadline lies with the PI. This person is responsible for providing the foundation relations office with a complete copy of the proposal.

Please forward a complete copy of the proposal to Mary Beth no later than 10 days before the proposal's deadline in order to allow sufficient time for the proposal to be processed through the College's authorization process.

Proposal Approval Form (temporarily unavailable)

The College reserves the right to decline a grant award made for any proposal that did not go through the appropriate internal review process prior to its submission.

A full copy of the completed grant application and related materials will be kept on file in the foundation relations office for five years following submission of an unfounded proposal or five years following the completion of a funded proposal.

Step 5: Post-Award Responsibilities and Stewardship

The PI bears the primary responsibility for managing a grant award on behalf of the College, unless otherwise stipulated. When the PI receives notification of the grant award, the letter or email noting this should be forwarded as soon as possible to Mary Beth Lennon. She will work with the director of media relations to ensure the award is publicized.

The PI is responsible for managing the grant award. Duties include adhering to the project timeline, hiring students and others, procuring supplies, interacting with other administrative offices and managing the budget. If requested, the foundation relations office will assist the PI and the business office in setting up accounts for the expenditure of grant funds.

The PI is responsible for meeting the deadlines for all reports required by the funding agency. Copies of all reports must be forwarded to the foundation relations office for College record.

Any billing/invoice requirements will be the responsibility of the designated finance office staff in cooperation with the Project Director.

Please do not hesitate to contact the foundations relations office should you have any questions. The office is available to meet with faculty and staff during business hours, as well as in the evenings to accommodate teaching schedules and other obligations.