Nyenhuis Grants

The Jacob E. Nyenhuis faculty development grant program provides funding for summer research. 

It is funded through the generosity of many donors who have established a collection of endowed funds to support faculty and, in some cases, their student collaborators in their development as scholars.

The program is named for Provost Emeritus Jacob E. Nyenhuis, whose diligent efforts to promote faculty scholarship have resulted in a climate of scholarly excellence notable for a liberal arts college that prioritizes teaching as its highest purpose.

Sample of Research Interests Supported by Nyenhuis Grant Donors

Below is a sample of research priorities supported by a portion of our Nyenhuis donors. This is not an exhaustive list.

• Arts and Humanities collaboration
• Economics
• Education
• Health-related fields
• Humanities
• Music
• Natural & Applied Sciences
• Philosophy
• Relating sciences to Christian faith
• Relation between church and society, focus on national and global issues
• Relation between church and society, focus on state and regional issues
• Religion
• Research in contemporary religious thought
• Scholarship and teaching

• Submission Deadline: Friday, January 10 at 5 p.m.
  
• Final report deadline:  September 15

The Office of Sponsored Research provides samples of successful Nyenhuis proposals. Note that the Nyenhuis process changed slightly in 2024, especially for student-faculty collaborative scholarships. Thus the elements required below are slightly different than the elements you see in the sample proposals. 

Proposal Guidelines

Individual/Collaborative Faculty

$4,500 maximum stipend per person for up to eight summer weeks

Faculty-Student Collaborative

$4,500 faculty stipend maximum, plus student stipend for up to eight weeks of work, following the summer research pay structure.

Convergent Scholarship

Awards (up to $4,500 per faculty plus student stipend) will be made for a convergent collaboration of two faculty from two different department (ideally from two different divisions) working with two student collaborators.

The Deans’ Council — acting in support of the college’s 2015 strategic plan — is pleased to offer these grants from the Nyenhuis summer program to support teams of two professors from two departments (and ideally from two divisions) working with two students on a project that involves transdisciplinary methods and understanding of a significant scholarly problem or issue.

Convergence is a paradigm that can yield critical advances in a broad array of sectors, from healthcare to energy, food, climate and water. It involves the bringing together of different fields of study through collaboration among research groups and the integration of approaches that were previously viewed as distinct and potentially contradictory (MIT, 2011).

Teams wishing to submit a proposal for the Convergent Scholarship grant should follow the Faculty-Student Collaborative guidelines and application instructions. On the form, select "Convergent Grant" as the grant type. Then simply double the standard (single team) budget request. The same eligibility requirements/restrictions apply to Convergent Scholarship grants.

Eligibility

Eligible Participants

• Full-time faculty except those described as ineligible below
• Faculty with external summer support may apply for a Nyenhuis, but may not receive total funding in excess of college policy.
• For Faculty-Student Collaborative Grants: Current Hope students who will continue into the following academic year (as they will be required to present their research findings after the summer research is complete)

Ineligible Participants

• Endowed professors
• Faculty who have reached their limit on internal and/or external summer support.
  • Note: For Faculty-Student Collaborative grants, faculty who are ineligible due to receiving internal support, maximum external support or being endowed professors may still apply for student funding using student budget guidelines.
• Faculty who have not submitted a final report from previous Nyenhuis awards
• Tenured faculty who have received Nyenhuis grants in each of the past two years
• Faculty who will not have a contract for the following academic year

Faculty-Student Collaborative Grants

• Students will be identified using the Summer Hope Academic Research Program application portal. Portal is available for project entries in December, and faculty are encouraged to submit their project ("pending funding") even before Nyenhuis funding is secured. Students start looking for summer research opportunities in late December and early January.
• See "Budget" (below) for information on student stipends and direct expenses

Budget

Faculty Stipend

• Maximum $4,500/person ($562.5/week for up to eight summer weeks)
• Faculty may elect to reassign any portion of their stipend toward direct expenses
• Budget revisions must be submitted to the Provost's Office (provost@hope.edu) by June 1

STUDENT STIPEND (for faculty-student collaborative grants)

• Stipend for up to eight weeks of work, following the summer research pay structure
• Students are expected to work a 40-hour week. Due to overtime restrictions, no other campus employment is allowed during the grant period.

Direct Expenses

• $400 per faculty (plus any stipend redirected to direct expenses)
• Travel and/or supplies
• For Faculty-Student Collaborative Grants: Travel and/or supplies for students includes $400 designated for student dissemination travel

Prepare and submit your proposal

Application

• Complete the application in Google Forms
• Prepare your proposal narrative in advance. You will be asked to attach your proposal narrative as a .pdf document as the final step in the Google Form
  • Name the proposal file LastName.FirstName.GrantYear.pdf (for example: Doe.John.2022.pdf)
• An automated email will confirm your submission 

Proposal Narrative

Provide a brief but comprehensive description of the proposed work without jargon. The proposal (not including the cover sheet) should not exceed five pages (six pages for Faculty-Student Collaborative grants) with a minimum font size of 11 points and must include these sections:

• Summary of the Project (250 word maximum)
  Provide an executive summary of your project written for a general audience. This summary should briefly describe major elements from the Project Description, Deliverables, Assessment, Significance, Path toward External Funding, and Student Involvement (if relevant) sections.
• Project Description (500 words maximum)
  Explain clearly and directly in plain language what you plan to do in your project, including the specific aims and measurable goals for your project, as well as a timeline of your expected activities.
• Prior Work (250 words maximum)
  Describe the prior work you have completed in this area to date, including previous studies or pilot data, related projects or literature reviewed. Clarify how this project builds on or fits with your ongoing program of scholarship.
• Deliverables (250 words maximum)
  Provide a timeline and description of tangible products (e.g., submitted papers, datasets, conference presentations, literature reviews, performances, exhibits) will arise from your project and how you will assess if you met your goals.
• Significance (250 words maximum)
  Highlight the significance of this project to your field, your professional development and/or the broader community.
• Lay Summary (250 words maximum)
  Provide a lay summary (also known as lay impact statement) that is clear and understandable to a non-specialist. This resource gives examples of best practices for compiling a lay summary.
• Future Pathways (500 words maximum)
  Clearly describe how this project will contribute to your professional development, including possible publications and broader research goals, or prepare you to be more competitive for external funding, either immediately or in the future, including the potential funder(s) and mechanism(s) to which you intend to apply and an anticipated application timeline.
• Student Involvement (500 words maximum) For student projects only
  The faculty member should describe how the student will participate in the project and the student's anticipated benefit from receiving this grant. Detail opportunities for student collaboration in the project, including tasks and pre-professional development.

*Overall word limits: 2,250 words max (2,750 words max for student projects)

Category Selection: These categories will reflect the amount of research experience the PI has already established in this area of inquiry. Any category can be selected for any of the proposal types (individual/faculty-collaborative, student-collaborative, or convergent). On the application you will be asked to select one grant category that best applies to your project.

• Development Grant: These grants are for developing novel ideas where PIs have little or no experience and are designed to catalyze a new area of scholarship. Funds will help scholars research a topic or break new ground in a domain of inquiry.
  
  
• Building Grant: These grants are for building on ideas or projects where PIs have some experience and are designed to support a recently established program of scholarship Funds will help scholars add to their initial research in a domain and develop momentum in generating a strong research program in a particular area.  
  
  
• Advancement Grant: These grants are for advancing ideas or projects where PIs have considerable experience and are designed to support an ongoing program of scholarship. Funds will help scholars make significant advancements in their area of inquiry or make substantive contributions that build on their prior work. 

Submission

Completion of the Google Form application will automatically submit your proposal and coversheet to the Office of the Provost (provost@hope.edu). Receipt of your proposal will be acknowledged via automated email. If you do not receive an acknowledgment within two days of your submission please contact the Provost's Office (x7970 or provost@hope.edu).

Review and selection

Criteria

• Quality of the conception, definition, organization and description of the project and the applicant's clarity of expression
• Intellectual significance as outlined in the lay summary
• Feasibility: Applicant(s) ability to successfully complete the proposed work as outlined in the prior work section and timeline portion of the project description
• Impact as outlined in the significance section and (if applicable) student impact section
  • Applicant's long-term development
  • The field of study
  • The college community and broader society

Priority

Eligible continuing faculty are invited to apply. As research and creative activity are part of the responsibilities of pre-tenure and tenured faculty, priority is given to student-faculty collaborative projects, pre-tenure faculty, any post-tenure faculty re-engaging scholarship or a new research direction, and projects that do not have funding from other sources.

These funding priorities will increase the number of students who can engage in the high-impact practice of collaborative research and invest in faculty scholarship across career stages. 

Faculty must have demonstrated good stewardship of previous Nyenhuis awards (if applicable) through the production of tangible outputs that have advanced their research program. The application will ask for a past report upload or summary of work completed since the last Nyenhuis award.

There will be three possible funding decisions:

• Fund (as proposed)
• Revise-and-resubmit
• Decline

Adapted from NSF, NIH AND NEH guidelines

Review Committee

The review committee consists of the members of the Status Committee and the Deans' Council.

Notification

Award notifications will be sent in late February.

Final Report Deadline

September 15

The report must provide evidence that the stated objectives were met. Submit electronic copies to the Office of the Provost (provost@hope.edu), your dean and department chair. A final report from all previous Nyenhuis award must be on file in the Provost's office prior to reapplying.