For the 2020-21 academic year, our funding and guidelines have been modified. Please review the specific instructions and guidelines in the appropriate application for your request.
The Professional Development Committee was established as a means to administer funds for both faculty and student professional opportunities. This three-member committee will serve three-year terms, with one member replaced annually. The committee convenes multiple times per year to consider written proposals submitted by applicants. After reviewing the proposals, the committee’s charge is to adjudicate and/or allocate funds for student travel to conferences and competitions, as well as chamber music funds for travel to competitions. Faculty opportunity grants may be used for new course development, travel for continuing education or research opportunities beyond those regularly funded by the school; or travel to conferences, workshops, and master classes, if no honorarium is involved. No retroactive proposals will be accepted as outlined in the instructions.
Deadlines for proposals to be submitted are Nov. 1, Dec. 1, Feb. 1, Mar. 1, Apr. 1, May 1, and June 1. The committee will review these proposals following each deadline.
A typical proposal consists of a 1-2 page description of the project or travel to be undertaken, a budget, and at least one letter of support (in the case of a student, the letter should come from the applied teacher or project advisor; in the case of faculty, a letter should come from the department chair).
In order to fund more applicants, the committee has placed a $1,000 cap on faculty requests and a $400 cap on student requests. Exceptions to these caps will be approved only in special cases.
All completed proposals should be emailed to the Office of Academic Affairs. If you have questions about the application and review process, please email academicaffairs@esm.rochester.edu.
Please use the following link to access the current applications for the PDC: https://www.esm.rochester.edu/academic-affairs/pdc/
Revised, March 2021