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 next Faculty Innovation Fund application will open in spring 2027.
2026 Awardees
Chenoa Flippen, School of Arts & Sciences: CSERI Early Career Book Conference
Ravi Radhakrishnan, School of Engineering and Applied Science: Rising Stars in Engineering in Health Workshop
Vincent Reina and Matt Fowle, Stuart Weitzman School of Design: Commonwealth Housing Solutions Initiative
Mallika Sarma, School of Arts & Sciences, and Dorit Aviv, Stuart Weitzman School of Design: Walk to Work: Examining Health Impacts When Navigating Philadelphia Urban Walking Infrastructure Under Heat Stress
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