Funding-SEC Visiting Faculty Travel Grant Program; December 2, 2013

Dear Department Chairs and Center Directors,

The Southeastern Conference (SEC) Visiting Faculty Travel Grant Program is intended to enhance faculty collaboration that stimulates scholarly initiatives between SEC universities.The travel grant program provides faculty from one SEC university the opportunity to travel to another SEC campus to exchange ideas, develop grant proposals, and conduct research. 

The University of Kentucky will select a maximum of six faculty members to receive 2013-2014 grants for transportation, room, board, etc.  (The total SEC allocation to each university is $10,000, therefore the maximum award is capped at $2500, with requests of lower amounts encouraged). Travel dates for these visits must be between January 1, 2014 and July 15, 2014. After receiving approval from their department chair, the faculty member will contact the host unit they wish to visit, in order to determine that unit’s receptivity and availability. The selected faculty members will be responsible for arranging coverage of their duties during their absence. After the visit, the faculty member will submit a brief report, describing the outcomes of the visit to their department chair, who will forward the outcomes to the Office for Faculty Advancement.

We are requesting your assistance in getting this information to your faculty members.

To apply, the faculty member is to  submit the following document electronically (in one PDF file) by December 2, 2013 to rwilkie@uky.edu :

• Faculty member information:

o Name and  Title(s)

o College/Unit  and Department

o Campus Address, email address and phone number

o Biography (no more than 250 words)

• Host institution information, including contact person at host institution

• Letter of invitation from the host unit (usually the relevant department chair) specifying the dates and the specific expectations of the faculty member

• Visit dates

• Anticipated activities while on visit

• Statement of the relevant benefits of visit for UK and host institution

• Brief letter of support from department chair, confirming the arrangement of duty coverage.

Below are SEC Visiting Faculty Travel Grant Program guidelines containing a  list of SEC universities, and  FAQ. Please note that while the SEC guidelines request information be returned to them by September 30^th, the information was not distributed to UK until October.

Southeastern Conference Visiting Faculty Travel Grant Program

(Revised: October 4, 2013)

The Southeastern Conference (SEC) Visiting Faculty Travel Grant Program is intended to enhance faculty collaboration that stimulates scholarly initiatives between SEC universities. It gives faculty members from one SEC university the opportunity to travel to another SEC campus to exchange ideas, develop grant proposals and conduct research. The program may not be used in conjunction with outside employment,

and universities are not permitted to carry over unused grant funding. (Any unused funds must be returned to the SEC office.) Each university is responsible for developing its own application and selection process to identify participating faculty. General program procedures are as follows:

- Each SEC university will be able to access up to $10,000 per year from the Southeastern Conference for faculty members participating in the travel grant program.

- The travel grant funds should be used during an appropriate period, such as a sabbatical leave, the summer or a designated university break.

- A faculty member’s home institution will distribute the travel grant funds for transportation, room, board, etc. Checks will be written from the SEC to the university and must be applicable to all university travel grant recipients for the year.

- A faculty member may visit any SEC institution, and consideration must be given to how many other visiting SEC faculty will be on a particular campus that year and/or in the same timeframe.

- Faculty members will be responsible for arranging coverage of their duties at their home institutions.

- A faculty member will contact a host unit (e.g., department, research center, school etc.) that he or she wishes to visit to determine that unit’s receptivity and availability.

- The visiting faculty member may consult with faculty and/or students, offer lectures or symposia, or engage in whatever activities are agreeable to the visitor and host unit.

- After the visit, the faculty member will submit a brief report to the Provost’s office of his or her home institution describing outcomes of the visit.

If a university wishes to host a faculty member, the following basic guidelines will apply:

- The host unit should issue a letter of invitation to the visiting faculty member specifying the dates and any particular expectations of the faculty member. Examples of visiting faculty activities include presenting a recital, delivering a series of lectures, meeting with graduate students, etc.

o A copy of the invitation letter must be sent to both the faculty member’s home institution travel grant contact and the anticipated host unit’s travel grant contact.

- Once a host unit has accepted a visiting faculty member, another faculty member should be designated as a personal host for him or her. In consultation with the host unit and university, the personal host is responsible for advising the visiting faculty member concerning temporary housing and for making arrangements concerning office space, telephones, computers, parking and any specialized research facilities.

- The host unit should announce the faculty member is visiting and the planned activities.

The following information must be provided to the Southeastern Conference by the home institution’s

faculty travel grant contact (or designee) by September 30 each year:

- A list of visiting faculty members participating in the program. This list must be received BEFORE travel grants will be awarded, and it should include:

o Name and Title(s)

o Discipline

o Home Institution and Host Unit

o Visit Dates and Anticipated Activities

- Copy of host unit’s invitation letter to the visiting faculty member

- Visiting faculty member’s contact information (i.e., office address, email address and phone number)

- Visiting faculty member’s biography (no more than 250 words)

- Visiting faculty member’s professional head shot (color, 600 dpi resolution and jpeg format)

Southeastern Conference Member Universities

University of Alabama – Tuscaloosa, Alabama

University of Arkansas – Fayetteville, Arkansas

Auburn University – Auburn, Alabama

University of Florida – Gainesville, Florida

University of Georgia – Athens, Georgia

University of Kentucky – Lexington, Kentucky

Louisiana State University – Baton Rouge, Louisiana

University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) – Oxford, Mississippi

Mississippi State University – Starkville, Mississippi

University of Missouri – Columbia, Missouri

University of South Carolina – Columbia, South Carolina

University of Tennessee – Knoxville, Tennessee

Texas A&M University – College Station, Texas

Vanderbilt University – Nashville, Tennessee

Southeastern Conference Representative

Torie A. Johnson

Executive Director, SECU

2201 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. North

Birmingham, Alabama, 35203-1103

Email: tjohnson@sec.org

About SECU

The SEC Visiting Faculty Travel Grant is one program included in the SECU academic initiative. SECU is the main way the Southeastern

Conference sponsors, supports and promotes collaborative higher education programs and activities involving administrators, faculty and students at its fourteen member universities. The goals of the SECU initiative include highlighting the endeavors and achievements of SEC faculty and universities; advancing the merit and reputation of SEC universities outside of the traditional SEC region; identifying and preparing future leaders for high-level service in academia; increasing the amount and type of education abroad opportunities available to SEC students; and providing opportunities for collaboration among SEC university personnel.