PCAL Quick Turn-Around Grant

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Quick Turn-Around Grants
2024 - 2025

 

Overview

Quick Turn-Around Grants are small grants in the amount of $1,000 - $3,000 for research and creative activity, funded by facilities & administrative costs accrued through the external grant process. These funds are provided to support critical and immediate needs and are intended to be spent within three months of being awarded (though projects can occur outside of the three-month time frame). Requests of less than $1,000 will not be considered.

QTAG is meant to provide funding for research and creative activities, specifically travel/shipping/other expenses to conduct research/creative activities, or the dissemination of research/creative activities. Examples of QTAG activities are travel to conduct research, money to pay research assistants, costs associated with shipping artwork for an exhibit, purchase of lab supplies to further existing research, costs for materials or supplies for a project, costs associated with staging a production or exhibit, and/or costs associated with mailed survey materials. Conference travel is not eligible for QTAG funding.

 

How to Apply

To submit a QTAG application, a faculty member should take the following steps:

• Complete the QTAG application form below.
• Create a PDF file (as a single file) with the following items:
  • A cover sheet that includes your name, department, and a line item list of all requested expenses, with a total at the bottom. The total must match the amount requested in the QTAG submission;

• Documentation of each expense. This should include a PDF print or a screenshot of the price quotes for each individual expense [hotel, airfare, etc.]. Please include screenshots from the airline website, the hotel website, or whatever the source of the price quote is in the single PDF. All travel expenses must follow university policies as outlined below. Please do not use this part to repeat or expand upon your application. It should contain the budget justification and supporting documents only.

Submit this as a single PDF document to Jeff Budziak.

 

Rules and Limitations

Faculty may only receive one QTAG award per academic year. Applications for funding can only cover a single event/trip/thing. Unsuccessful applications may be revised and resubmitted for subsequent funding cycles. If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact Jeff Budziak.

All spending is subject to the following policies:

• Discretionary spending
• Travel and reimbursement
• Purchasing Policy
• Printing
• Purchasing Card (ProCard)
• Personal Services and Contracts
• Spending Code of Ethics
• Per Diem rates:
• Domestic
• Foreign
• Breakdown rate based on above two links
• Mileage:
• In-state
• Out-of-State (Nashville Airport is 75 miles each way)

For spending not covered above, see the Division of Finance and Administration -- Travel Applications that request money for non-expendable supplies or equipment must:

1. Include a justification for why that particular piece of equipment is critical for the project;
2. Explain that no similar equipment type is available, either through the TRC or the department, or;
3. Explain why the requested equipment must be used in place of existing equipment. 
4. Show that research materials (including books) are not already available in the WKU library or available online.

For example, if a project requires the use of a microphone, the "Equipment Justification" section needs to explain why the microphones already available for faculty in the TRC or in departments are not adequate for the proposed project. All non-expendable supplies or equipment purchased with QTAG funds are property of WKU, and must be turned in to the department chair at the end of the QTAG period. 

If the project involves human subjects, animal subjects, export control issues, rDNA/RGZ microbe, or bio-hazards, appropriate institutional approval(s) must be obtained before the project begins and funds are spent. Contact Robin Pyles (ori@wku.edu) in the Office of Research Integrity for further information or visit https://www.wku.edu/compliance.

 

Funding Periods

The remaining QTAG funding periods in the 2024 - 2025 year:

October (Applications due by end of business September 27th) [All money must be spent by January 15]
November (Applications due by end of business October 31st) [All money must be spent by February 15]
December (Applications due by end of business November 29th) [All money must be spent by March 15]
January (Applications due by end of business December 31st) [All money must be spent by April 15]
February (Applications due by end of business January 31st) [All money must be spent by May 15]
March (Applications due by end of business February 28th) [All money must be spent by May 15]
April (Applications due by end of business March 31st) [All money must be spent by May 15]

Leftover funds from one period will be re-distributed equally across the remaining funding periods.

 

Award Process

QTAG applications will be evaluated by the PCAL Research and Grants Committee. The committee will evaluate the applications based on the timeliness of their need, the likelihood that the project will produce external grant funds at a later date, and the importance of the project to a faculty member’s prospects for tenure and promotion. Projects that function as pilots for potential external grant submissions are particularly likely to be awarded. All applicants will be notified by the 15th of the month following the due date. For those awarded a grant, all funds must be spent within 90 days of that date, with the exception of March and April, which must be spent by May 15th, 2025. Funds for QTAG activities will be spent through the departmental office and then reimbursed via interoffice account from the PCAL Dean's Office. Successful QTAG recipients must submit a post-award report detailing the use of the funds before the funds will be transferred. That report form will be included in the notice of award.