Conference and Workshop Development Fund

This call for proposals is now closed. Please read instructions carefully for changes.

Proposal timeline:

  • Proposals are due on or before March 3, 2025
  • Awards announced in April 2025

Fund information:

Rice University’s Conference and Workshop Development Fund fosters the development of conferences and workshops that enhance the scholarly reputation, interdisciplinary activity, global engagement and quality of scholarship across the University.

Program Goals

This fund fosters events that:

  • Align with Rice's Building Momentum Together priorities: Health & Well-Being, Sustainable Futures and Urban Communities
  • Promote interdisciplinary collaboration across schools, departments and institutes
  • Enhance student involvement (undergraduate and graduate)
  • Build external partnerships and raise Rice's global visibility

Faculty are especially encouraged to engage the various University institutes such as the Baker Institute, the Synthetic Biology Institute, the Ken Kennedy Institute, the Humanities Research Center, the Kinder Institute, Rice Space Institute, and the Smalley-Curl Institute, among others where appropriate.

Award Details

  • Up to $50,000 for international conferences
  • Up to $10,000 for focused disciplinary workshops
  • Events are expected to take place at Rice University, Rice Global Paris or Rice Global India

Note: Funds cannot be used for faculty salary, subcontracts, purchase of research equipment, or reducing teaching responsibilities. Proposals with other additional funding sources may be viewed favorably. To support new conference topics, awards for repeat conference requests may receive reduced funding. There is an expectation that events are to be held at Rice University, Rice Global Paris or Rice Global India in most cases to further our reputation as a center for scholarly discussion.

Eligibility:

  • Open to all full-time and research faculty at Rice
  • Proposals may be submitted individually or jointly by faculty groups
  • Department chairs should be informed of submissions

Review process:

The review of proposals will be carried out by the Vice President of Research. Under special circumstances, proposals can be submitted off-cycle for emerging topics.

Selection criteria:

Proposals will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

  1. The quality, significance, and potential impact of the project;
  2. The contribution the project makes particularly in the following:
    • Raise Rice’s research and scholarship profile;
    • Promote Rice’s interdisciplinary activity;
    • Engage Rice’s various institutes, as appropriate;
    • Raise Rice's global visibility;
    • Engage with diverse external constituencies (e.g., Rice students, Rice alumni, the city of Houston, or others).
    • Attract external support (federal, industry, international and philanthropic)
    • Bringing the world to Rice (hosting global participants)
    • Conferences held at Rice, Rice Global Paris or Rice Global India

How to apply:

Proposals must be submitted using this webform by March 3, 2025 at 11:59pm.

Proposals must include the following in a single PDF document:

  1. A conference/workshop description that includes topics, potential speakers and a tentative schedule (no more than two pages (in 12-point type), including figures);
  2. A single-page budget indicating how the requested funds will be expended (as well as the identification of other funding resources supporting the request);
  3. A curriculum vitae for each applicant of no more than three pages per CV.

Award Requirements:

  • A mid-year review to assess progress
  • A final report with outcomes and financials following the event