Harrison Awards aim to spark undergraduate research

The Harrison Undergraduate Research Awards Program, administered by the Faculty Senate, will fund outstanding undergraduate research projects in the spring and/or summer of 2001 for current second and third-year undergraduate students. Working in collaboration with a faculty sponsor, an awardee will plan and implement a substantial and significant research project. Forty awards of up to $3,000 each will be granted on a competitive basis. The application deadline is Nov. 8.

In the course of carrying out a research project, an awardee will be expected to read and research the topic, create a bibliography of relevant background materials, establish contacts with professionals in the field, produce a final product (e.g. final paper, creative project, presentation) that summarizes her or his findings, and present them at the Harrison Awards Symposium.

Applicants are urged to think creatively in conceptualizing their research projects. Proposals focusing on any of the undergraduate fields represented at the University will be considered. Applications that integrate different areas and approaches are encouraged. One might examine the overlap of two disciplines such as philosophy and medicine, where important new realms, such as bioethics, have emerged. Projects might involve travel, either within or outside of the U.S., to take advantage of resources that would be otherwise inaccessible. Projects requiring laboratory work might call for the purchase of equipment that could not be obtained without an award of this kind.

An honorarium of $1,000 will be awarded to the faculty sponsor. Faculty who do not wish to claim an honorarium should so indicate at the time of the application. Foregone honoraria will be added to the funding pool available for student awards.

The application should consist of:

• a concise, one-page description of the proposed research project

• a one-page resumé that includes relevant course work and prior experiences

• a letter of support from the student's faculty sponsor

• a budget of anticipated expenditures (half a page maximum), including travel, living expenses, research supplies and materials.

Students who wish to apply for an award should submit six copies of the materials by 2 p.m. on Nov. 8 to the Faculty Senate Committee on Research and Scholarship, c/o Frances Peyton, Faculty Senate Office, The Rotunda. Materials may not be submitted electronically.

Notification of the award recipients will be made on or about Dec. 6.

Questions may be addressed to Frances Peyton at ftp7e@virginia.edu or by phone at 924-7643.