The Montana Tech Faculty Development Initiative is an occasional funding opportunity established to enable and accelerate research and creative scholarship by growing the number of research-engaged instructional faculty and their research/creative productivity.

Tenured and tenure-track academic/teaching faculty (including Highlands College) are eligible. These six-month grants provide up to $7,000 each. Funding may be used for summer salary, adjunct course coverage, materials, supplies, equipment, and travel clearly related to enabling and accelerating research and creative scholarship by the applicant.  Proposals are typically due in November, in the years the opportunities are open.

The Faculty Development Initiative proposals are reviewed by the Dean’s Council, chaired by the Provost.

Past Awardees and Projects

2017 - 2018
2017 Department Proposal Title for 2017 Report out in Spring 2018
Autenreith, Dan OSH A Pilot Study Examining the Effect of Head Protection Weight on Muscle Loading in the Cervical Spine.
Graff, Joel Bio Increasing the Amount of Internet Content Used in Biology Course
Hailer, Katie Chem Metal Accumulations & Genetic Changes in a Human Population in an Open-Pit Mining Community
Khalil, Mohamed Geophysical A Static Shift Correction for 2-D Resistivity Data Through Frequency Domain Electromagnetic Data
Koontz, Brian CS Identifying & Developing User Interfaces to Efficiently Present High-Volume Real-time Data in the Electric Power Industry
Pramanik, Brahma Mech/Gen Eng Developing an Efficient Model-Experiment Strategy for Predicting the Ability of Composite Material in Impact Energy Absorption
Richards, Lee Pet Eng. Treatment of Produced Water Utilizing Flare Gas
Stewart, Jerry Highlands Construction of Simulation Boards for the Automotive Technology Program
Yang, Xufei Env Eng. Characterization of Carbonaceous Aerosols Emission from Wood Stoves.

2016 - 2017
2016 Department Proposal Title for 2016 Report out in Spring 2017
Campos, Isabel LibStudies The Sputnik & Fizzle Publishing Series.
Cox, Alysia Chem Unraveling the Mudpot Mystique
Elakovich, Denise Highlands Merging Psychology Concepts with Math Tereby Increasing Students' Retention and Math Success
Hoffman, Todd Pet Eng An Improved History Matching Methodology
Lovell, Elyse Highlands Merging Psychology Concepts with Math Tereby Increasing Students' Retention and Math Success
Roos, Chris Min Eng Evaluating the Variability in Estimates of Loading Productivity
Smith, Larry GeoEng Optically stimulated Luminescence Dating of Pleistocene & Holocene Lakes, Montana & California: Towards Climate Histories.
Stack, Theresa SHIH Standing Up on the Job for Improved Health
Wang, Lei GenEng Robust design Methodologies for Geotechnical Design of Geothermal Foundation
Webb, Michael Chem Study of Small Molecule Therapeutics for the Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease
Wesenberg-Ward, Karen Chem Incorporation of Aronia Berry Extract into an Edible Film to control Oral Multispecies Biofilm Formation.

2015 - 2016
2015 Department Proposal Title for 2015 Report out in Spring 2016
Amtmann, John SHIH Effects of Swim Strokes in Labor-Wear with and Without a Personal Flotation Device (PFD) over 25 Yards
Apple, Martha BioSci Glacier National Park Snowfield Plants Project Completion and Developing a Grant Proposal on the Interactions of Treeline Dynamics with Snowpack and Snowmelt Hydrology
Capoccia, Stella Bio Sci Manuscript Completion: Biodiversity of Amphibians, Flying Icon: Feral Pigeons and their Human Ecology & The Conceptualized Environmentalist; Perceptions. Grant Proposal to Study the Sustainability of Backyard Chickens.
Gammons, Chris GeoEng Exploring New methods to Remove Nitrogenous Compounds from Mine Wastewater
Hill, Bryce ElecEng Mining Telecommunications Network
Kuenzi, Amy BioSci Climate Change and Ecological Processes Determining Sin Nombre Virus Activity in Montana
Kukay, Brian GenEng Predicting the Wood Density and Flexural Properties of Pine-Beetle Infested Pinus Contorta (Pine Beetle Kill) in South-West Montana
Miah GeoEng Design, Build and Test a Versatile Fiber-optic Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) System for the use in Seismic Applications
Mitra, Atish MathSci Cohomological Asymptotic Dimension
Nagisetty EnvEng Assessing the Effectiveness of Riverine Wetland in Processing the Nutrients for Blacktail Creek in Butte, MT
Shaw, Glenn GeoEng Identifying Source Waters to the Boulder River, MT: Installation of Soil Monitoring Equipment
Sorenson, Karen PTC Manuscript Completion: Cosmos and the Rhetoric of Popular Science
Southergill, Glen PTC Serious Game Strategic Communications