CONTENTS

BFRF Supported Activities
General Policies 
BFRF Funding Criteria 
Deadlines  
Announcement of Awards  
Responsiblities of the Applicant  
BFRF Proposal Format  
BFRF Full Proposal Cover Sheet Forms   
Mini-Grants Application Information  
BFRF Mini-Grant Form

QUESTIONS

If you have any questions or comments on the applicationprocess, contact the BFRF coordinator, Susan Chern, x-5339, or any of the BFRF members listed on the Staff pages.

INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD - IRB

Babson now has an IRB (Institutional Review Board).  All Faculty and Staff involved in doing research with human subjects, including student projects, must now submit an IRB application through the electronic form located on the IRB website.  Please direct questions to  the IRB Administrator, Britt Hackmann.
The BFRF must have a copy of your IRB approval letter (forward the IRB approval email) before any funds can be allocated or contracts can be signed.

BFRF Supported Activities

The BFRF invites proposals for research that are designed to result in publications. Publication outlets are those customarily used by the American professional learned societies in the fields covered by the proposal.

The BFRF does not normally support proposals for curriculum development, case writing or textbooks. However, to the extent that such activities demonstrate thought leadership and scholarly work and are designed to result in publications, exceptions may be made in special cases.

Babson faculty members are ultimately responsible for managing their own research activities. It is not the proper role of the BFRF to attempt to determine what path of professional development is most appropriate for any faculty member. BFRF members may offer advice on research matters relating to career paths, when solicited, but this should supplement, not replace, the role of the Division Chairs and Dean of Faculty in this regard.

The BFRF provides financial support for meritorious projects, but cannot guarantee that all worthy projects are funded. Rather, through a competitive process, the BFRF allocates available funds on the basis of its judgment as to which faculty proposals have the most promise of advancing the objectives set forth in the BFRF’s mission statement.

The BFRF shall consider only proposals by full-time, tenured or tenure-track faculty members on a current contract. Only endowed chair holders and current BFRF members are ineligible to apply for BFRF support. Proposals by term chairs and faculty receiving other research-related support will receive equal consideration and funding. When such proposals are of comparable quality to proposals by faculty who do not have term chairs or other research related support, preference will be given to the latter group.The BFRF especially encourages proposals of untenured faculty in the early stages of their professional development.

The BFRF provides support for research and writing in the following ways:

1. major awards
   
2. course releases 
   
3. summer stipends 
   
4. other research-related expenses 
   
5. external funding 
   
6. publications program

1. Major Awards
The BFRF normally awards a single course release or summer stipend for an approved project. Occasionally, however, the BFRF may award a package that, for example, includes two course releases within an award period, two successive course releases, a course release and a summer stipend, or the like, with the stipulation that the product of each item in the sequential package must be approved before the next item in the sequence shall be authorized. The timing of such approval(s) will be agreed upon by the BFRF and the award recipient before work on the project begins. We anticipate no fewer than 3 major awards in a year.

2. Course Releases
The BFRF may grant release time from teaching or administrative duties to accomplish research and creative activity. The applicant may apply for release time equivalent to a one-course reduction for work on such projects.

If applicable, proposals should include a budget to cover necessary expenses incurred in carrying out the projected work. Expenses might include provision for travel, secretarial costs, graduate assistant costs, etc. (A more detailed description of guidelines for support may be found in the section below entitled “Application and Submission Procedures.”)

Course releases carry with them the obligation that evidence be presented in suitable form to the BFRF that the project or part of the project for which a course release was obtained has, in fact, been satisfactorily completed during the semester in which the release was given.

3. Summer Stipends
The purpose of Summer Stipends is to provide faculty members with an opportunity for funded research or creative activity. Recipients receive a set salary amount, which may vary from year to year. The present amount is set at $7,500. The BFRF, in consultation with the Dean of Faculty, may recommend differing amounts based upon budgetary matters and inflation. The stipend money can be used with other resources to buy a course release. The receipt of a summer stipend does not affect a recipient’s decision as to whether he/she wishes to teach during the summer session.

If applicable, proposals should include a budget to cover necessary expenses incurred in carrying out the projected work. Expenses might include provision for travel, secretarial costs, graduate assistant costs, etc. (A more detailed description of guidelines for support may be found in the section below entitled “Application and Submission Procedures.”)

BFRF approved projects that carry a stipend will specify the nature of the product the BFRF expects to receive in return for the stipend and a target date for completion of the work. The BFRF will withhold twenty-five percent of the stipend pending determination that the project has been satisfactorily completed. Funds do not roll forward to the subsequent fiscal year; if the balance of the stipend is to be paid, projects must be submitted and accepted by the BFRF prior to the end of the fiscal year in which the award was made.

4. Other Research-Related Expenses
For amounts up to a limit stipulated by the BFRF and the Dean of Faculty, the BFRF’s chair has been authorized to approve payments at his/her discretion. For amounts above the stipulated limit, faculty will need to obtain authorization from the full BFRF and the Dean of Faculty. Faculty should contact the BFRF coordinator as the first step in applying to the BFRF for the necessary support. The current limit is $2,500.

The BFRF may, as funds allow, provide funding for a variety of research-related expenses. The following categories are illustrative examples:

Travel. Travel is supported for research purposes, but not for travel to conferences or professional meetings. Travel to study materials, to learn new techniques, to collect data, etc., will be considered only when it is an integral part of a research proposal. Travel expenses may include transportation and an allotment to be used for food and lodging. Every effort should be made by the applicant to submit his/her travel proposal to the BFRF during the regular school calendar. If it is absolutely necessary to submit a proposal at other times, the maximum request is $2,500. If an amount over this is needed, the full BFRF must consider it, and four of the five members must support it. This process could take 30 days or more. A budget must be pre-approved. Every effort should be made to minimize travel costs.

Equipment. Equipment is defined as item(s) for use in research or creative activity with a useable life of one (1) year or longer. Specific cost requirements such as shipping, installation or service contracts must be specified. Applicants must explore existing resources of the College to determine if adequate equipment is already available to perform the proposed work.

Other Expenses. This category is to be used when the other categories do not cover the major aspect of funding. Faculty members are likely to incur a variety of expenses in preparing papers for possible publication or presentation at professional society meetings, and writing of monographs and books. Illustrative expenditures may include those for typing of manuscripts, editing services, statistical consulting, outside computer time, library materials including texts related to a research project, and other necessary expenses. If people other than the applicant are to be employed, the applicant must describe their specific duties. The applicant who requests research funding associated with the cost of publication of a book or manuscript must submit a copy of the publisher’s contract to the BFRF.

5. External Funding
In the interest of enhancing the Colleges’ resources for faculty research projects, the BFRF will cooperate with the Babson’s external funding office.  In addition, the BFRF invites Mini-Grant applications to cover external grant application expenses up to $1000. Click here for additional information on external funding and services provided by the Corporate, Foundation, and Government Relations Office.

6. Publications Program
The BFRF sponsors a Working Papers Series, which publishes manuscripts produced by faculty to satisfy the final product requirement of a BFRF stipend or course remission award. Other monographs produced by faculty working independently are also eligible for consideration. Royalties will not be paid from the sales of monographs until the BFRF has recovered the costs of publication.

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General Policies

1. Royalties/patents/copyrights are governed by the guidelines of the College.
2. The BFRF will not retroactively fund research projects. 
3. Funds for overhead are not allowed.
4. The BFRF will not usually provide support for continuation of previously funded research projects after the fact unless the entire scope of the project has been evaluated.
5. The BFRF will not provide funds to support research that is part of degree requirements (e.g., dissertation). Work that represents an extension of completed doctoral research will be considered. 
6. The BFRF may choose to support certain aspects or phases of a proposal and not others, and to make grants conditional. These conditions may be on the applicant’s obtaining supplementary funds or obtaining statistical/methodological guidance. 
7. BFRF funds not used by award recipients do not roll over into the next fiscal year, and final stipend or expense payments are forfeited by individuals who do not complete their projects within the fiscal year for which the award is given. Only exceptions are for major awards that are approved for a longer duration.

BFRF Funding Criteria

Inevaluating proposals, the BFRF takes the following factors into account. The order given does not necessarilyreflect relative weighting.

1. Quality and feasibility of the research:
   Proposals will be evaluated on the basis of their clarity, readability, technical quality, and feasibility. Technical quality and feasibility will be assessed based on the literature review, research design/methodology, work plan, expected product, type and degree of collaboration, dissemination plans, and the individual’s personal qualifications and past performance on previously funded research.
   
2. Appropriateness of funds requested for the project’s scope and requirements.
   
3. Significance of the research in relation to the College's reputation in the academic and business world:
   Research plays an important role in increasing the public visibility and the reputation of the College, which in return not only attracts students to come here, but also influences employers to hire Babson students. The College's research efforts also increase the involvement of other academic and government institutions and corporations with Babson in collaborative projects.
   
4. Significance of the research to the professional development and reputation of the faculty member: A particular project may have different significance for faculty at different stages of their careers or at different stages of development of a research stream.  
5. Performance on previous BFRF-sponsored research:
   For applicants who have received prior awards from the BFRF or other Babson College research facilities, preference will be given to those who have demonstrated a timely performance in completing their contractual arrangements, resulting in high quality research products.