According to the Foundation guidelines, only Commonwealth Campus faculty are eligible for this award. Eligible departments grant a BS or MS degree in chemistry, but not a Ph.D.
The Jean Dreyfus Lectureship awards provide an $18,500 grant to bring a leading researcher to a primarily undergraduate institution to give at least two lectures in the chemical sciences. One of the lectures should be accessible and promoted to a wide audience that includes the general public. The remaining lecture(s) may be more technical. The lecturer is expected to spend more than one day at the institution to substantively interact with undergraduate students and a broad range of faculty over the period of the visit. Prior to August 2016, the program was known as the Jean Dreyfus Boissevain Lectureship for Undergraduate Institutions.
A portion of the award is to support two undergraduates in summer research. The undergraduates engaged in summer research are expected to work with mentors in contemporary chemistry.
Eligibility
Applications are accepted from departments in the chemical sciences at primarily undergraduate institutions in the States, Districts, and Territories of the United States of America. Eligible departments grant a BS or MS degree in chemistry, but not a Ph.D. Institutions are restricted to only one application annually for this program. Institutions that receive an award are not eligible to re-apply for five years. Applications not funded in the year of submission will remain in contention for two additional years, though updated applications may be submitted during this period.
Selection
The application is evaluated based upon the following:
- One or two examples of the proposed invited lecturer, a schedule for the visit, which is expected to be a minimum of two days, and a description of how the lecturer’s research would fit into the department’s activities. The potential lecturer(s) may be contacted in advance of the proposal submission to gauge interest and to allow for planning a better integration of the visit with departmental initiatives.
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A description of the department’s efforts in scholarly research and education in the contemporary chemical sciences. Cited examples of the latter should include, but are not limited to:
- descriptions of the faculty research programs
- external research support
- undergraduate participation in research
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In addition, the following may also be included:
- the historical number of chemistry majors, and the number of those that go on to graduate school in the chemical sciences
- special educational or outreach efforts
Nominations are reviewed by distinguished faculty in the chemical sciences.
Budget
The award total is $18,500. Of this amount, $2,500 is an honorarium for the lecturer, and $5,000 is to be allocated to the support of the lectures (for example: travel, accommodation, receptions and/or dinners, etc.). The remaining $11,000 is to support the summer research of two undergraduate students. Each stipend is to be no less than $4,500. The balance may be used to defray costs associated with the research and/or the scientific advancement of each student—e.g., travel to scientific meetings. Charges associated with indirect costs or institutional overhead are not allowed.
Submit your notification using the button in the InfoReady competition to provide your contact information no later than 4:00 p.m. on the internal submission deadline:
Office of Foundation Relations is the designated institutional contact responsible for communicating with the Foundation. For questions concerning the application process or other foundation-related questions applicants should please contact Alan Gibson, Assistant Director, Foundation Relations (ajg6181@psu.edu or 973-202-1935).