RIPS STARS Academy Call for Applications

2024 Cohort

The Division of Research and Innovation Partnerships Strategic Transdisciplinary Art, Research, and Scholarship Faculty Academy (RIPS STARS Academy) is accepting applications for its 2024 cohort. The RIPS STARS Academy seeks applicants from all colleges and strongly encourages applications from a wide range of disciplines inclusive of the breadth of NIU research, scholarship, artistry, and engagement.

Program Description

The RIPS STARS Academy offers professional development centered around external funding success. While RIPS STARS Academy targets early career faculty, eligibility is not limited to tenure track faculty. Individuals with demonstrated potential and a clear expectation for attracting external funding for their research, engagement, scholarship, or artistry may apply. RIPS STARS Academy programming includes onboarding, professional development, networking/building community, and mentoring.

Each RIPS STARS Academy participant will attend an individual onboarding meeting with the STARS director(s) at the beginning of the program year to discuss expectations and participation and solidify goals and objectives for their participation in the program.

Participants will attend a series of professional development sessions on Friday mornings approximately once a month which are exclusive to the STARS cohort (see RIPS STARS Academy 2024 Schedule). Sessions will be held in person and are structured to include presentations on specific topics related to external funding success, dedicated time for participants to reflect on and apply presented concepts, and networking time for STARS faculty to engage with each other, guest speakers, STARS leaders, and university officials. Session content will be announced before the schedule begins and will include or expand upon topics in previous STARS Academies such as research career development, research identity, effective collaboration/building a research team, politics of higher education and funding, funding portfolio development, and more. STARS participants will be encouraged to partake in additional information sessions offered by RIPS units related to research. The STARS cohort will also have an opportunity to participate in one or more social networking events and to engage with NIU senior leadership at various points throughout the year.

STARS also provides professional mentorship opportunities, including one to one mentoring relationships with established career faculty and ad-hoc topic-based mentorship as needed (e.g., broader impacts/public impact, science communication and visualization, developing a brand identity, budgeting, lab management, grant writing, and more).

Expectations of RIPS STARS Participants ¹

RIPS STARS Academy participants are expected to actively engage in academy offerings in order to get the most out of the program. Active engagement generally translates to attending a brief onboarding meeting at the beginning of the program, attending 75% or more of the professional development sessions, partaking in additional RIPS-provided trainings when relevant, and engaging with one’s assigned mentor, all with the goal of forwarding the participant’s declared objectives. Actively engaged STARS participants will be recognized at an awards ceremony in late spring and will receive ongoing support from STARS program staff, mentors, and affiliates.

“Research” in this paragraph is inclusive of research, scholarship, artistry, engagement, and external funding.

RIPS STARS Academy 2024 Schedule ²

Professional development sessions will be held in person in the 71 North Innovation Space in Founder’s Memorial Library from 9:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. unless otherwise noted. Drinks, light breakfast, and lunch will be provided.

Application, Selection, and Onboarding Process

Applications are currently being accepted for the 2024 STARS cohort. All individuals interested in participating in the 2024 RIPS STARS Academy must submit a brief application in the NIU InfoReady internal competition space and be nominated by their department and college. The RIPS STARS InfoReady application will require:

• A summary description of the applicant’s scholarly goals and achievements
• The applicant’s objectives and expected outcomes for participation in the RIPS STARS Academy
• A current CV
• A commitment to actively engage in the RIPS STARS Academy. (See Expectations of RIPS STARS Participants for details on active engagement). Applicants whose circumstances prevent them from actively engaging will be able to explain and propose alternate arrangements.

The application will route to the department and college for confirmation of nomination, including indication of support for the applicant’s full engagement in the cohort year. Individuals who plan to apply are encouraged to discuss their plans with their department.

Applications must be submitted in InfoReady by December 6, 2023 for forward to the department and college.

¹ “Research” in this paragraph is inclusive of research, scholarship, artistry, engagement, and external funding.

² Session topics are being developed and will be provided during onboarding. Dates will only change if necessary.