Faculty-Led Initiatives

The Center for Community Engaged Learning welcomes proposals for Faculty-Led Initiatives (FLI) in order to promote an integrated and sustainable culture of community engaged learning at Fordham and to respond to the institution’s mission. Such initiatives include, but are not limited to speaker series, workshops, faculty collaborations, archival research projects, and faculty-led immersion programs and trips, and student success programs.

Learn more about our newly awarded FLIs for the 2023-2024 Academic Year.

Faculty-led initiatives must meet the following criteria:

Interdisciplinarity
Each project must have a minimum of two faculty PIs representing two or more departments at Fordham.

Partnership
Each project must engage in an asset-based and robust partnership with a non-Fordham organization, community group, program, or school. Partnerships must be grounded in Fordham’s culture and practice of Community Engaged Learning; preference will be given to initiatives that engage with partners working with underserved, underrepresented, or vulnerable populations. Preference will be given to place-based partnerships in the immediate areas of Fordham’s Bronx and Manhattan campuses.

Research
Initiatives must create and disseminate a unique contribution in the area of community engaged learning or engaged research. Outputs include but are not limited to articles, chapters, book proposals, open papers, websites, and conference/symposium presentations.

Course Creation
Each project must promote the creation or reconfiguration of CEL courses.

Mission
The project must demonstrate an integrated and active understanding of Fordham’s mission and engaged scholarship.

Proposals should include:

  • A comprehensive overview of the proposed project or initiative;

  • A robust evaluation mechanism;

  • A list of collaborators;

  • A letter of support from a relevant chair or dean;

  • A letter of support from community partner or plan for developing partnership with the Center

  • A proposal to support CEL course creation;

  • Suggested research outputs;

  • A comprehensive budget. (While we will consider all proposal budgets, typical initiatives are funded in the range of $2,000 to $10,000.)

If you have any questions, please email  Julie Gafney, Executive Director.