Faculty Innovation Fund

What is the Faculty Innovation Fund?

The Faculty Innovation Fund (FIF) provides financial support for innovative projects that seek to improve the recruitment, retention, career progression, mentorship, leadership development, and/or well-being of Penn faculty. Projects may take different forms, including research and assessment, conferences and events, and faculty development programs.

Selected proposals will advance Penn’s commitment to “grow[ing] opportunity and strengthen[ing] affinity,” as articulated in our strategic framework, and:

  • Be designed to improve the recruitment, retention, career progression, mentorship, leadership development, and/or well-being of Penn faculty;
  • Promote collaboration across disciplines, departments, and/or Schools, and
  • Generate insights that can be used to improve Penn’s faculty-related policies and practices.

Penn faculty with the rank of Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor in any track are eligible to apply. Proposals must include a one-to-one match between the School and the Office of the Provost. The maximum award per grant is $10,000.

The Spring 2025 application portal has closed. Please see the complete Call for Proposal for more information. 

2025 Awardees

Hydar Ali, School of Dental Medicine: Promoting Faculty Leadership through Effective Communication and Developmental Relationships

Joseph Kable, School of Arts & Sciences: MindCORE Retreat–Connecting Minds: Building Collaborations to Explore Human Intelligence and Behavior Across Penn

Damani White-Lewis, Graduation School of Education: On “Good” Teaching: A Qualitative Exploration of R1 Instructors’ Pedagogical Purposes, Philosophies, and Practices