Moving on to Big Ideas, Phase 2
 Congratulations to our faculty members whose hiring proposals were selected by the Research Advisory Committee for the next phase of our Big Ideas initiative. The proposals were selected based on their potential for impact and distinction through research and integration with education and community engagement.
McKenna Brown and Antonio Espinoza
Migration Studies: Focus Latin America
Deirdre Condit
Human Securities Studies Master Initiative
Richard Godbeer, Kathy Ingram and Myrl Beam
Faculty Hiring Initiative in LGBTQ Studies
Puru Jena
Cluster Recruiting for Energy-Materials – Science and Technology
Jennifer Johnson
Digital Sociology Initiative
Shiv Khanna
Cluster Hires for Developing Novel Nanomaterials
Ryan Smith
Digital Humanities Initiative
Qin Wang and Yongjia Song
Cluster Hire Initiative in Big Data Science
Phase 2 focuses on Big Ideas aimed at (a) recruiting multiple faculty in focused hiring initiatives or (b) recruiting high-impact individuals. The candidates in Phase 2 have been asked to submit a more detailed outline of their proposal to the Research Advisory Committee by November 15. |
Next Week: Billie Jean King at VCU
 The Humanities Research Center along with several co-sponsors welcomes Billie Jean King to the Siegel Center on October 27th. As part of their speaker series, Celebrating Forty Years of LGBTQ Activism at VCU, King will will talk about the struggles she faced and how she eventually overcame adversity. The talk will begin at 6:00PM and is free and open to the public. Learn more.
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Reclaiming Richmond’s African Burial Ground
 As part of VCU's Common Book Initiative, Dr. Shawn Utsey will be screening his 2009 film, Meet Me in the Bottom: The Struggle to Reclaim Richmond’s African Burial Ground on Tuesday October 18th. This will be followed by a panel discussion and a Q&A session. The screening of the documentary will begin at 5:30PM in the Harris Hall Auditorium, room 101. Admission is free and all are welcome. Learn more.
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Next Cycle for Global Impact Awards
 The Global Education Office has announced the opening of the 2017-18 Quest Global Impact Awards cycle and encourages you to learn more at upcoming information session on Wednesday, October 19th from 12:00 - 1:00PM in the Forum Room of the Student Commons. These awards will fund proposals from VCU academic units to develop new and innovative programming. The online submission forms will be available on October 30, 2016. Applications are due by January 15, 2017 at 5:00PM. Learn more. |
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Panel on Latin American Immigrants
 The Global Education Office and the Division for Inclusive Excellence will be co-sponsoring a panel on Latin American Immigrants in Virginia, The Challenges They Face on Tuesday, October 18th from 6:00PM to 8:00PM. The event is being held at VCU Globe (830 West Grace St), room 1030-J. Admission is free and all are welcome! View the flyer. |
Commercialization of Research Fund
 A total of $300,000 in two rounds of funding will be awarded in the 2016-17 academic year to support the Commercialization of Research initiative through the Quest Innovation Fund. The funding (up to $50,000 per project) is intended to advance VCU inventions to a more mature stage and thus improve their chances of being brought to market. Applications are due by November 15th at 12:00PM. The application and additional information can be found here. For questions please contact, Sue Patow. |
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The Press and the Presidential Campaign
 The Robertson School will be hosting a lecture and reception on The Press and the 2016 Presidential Campaign featuring Dr. Bob Levey, the Virginius Dabney Distinguished Professor of Journalism at VCU, on Thursday, October 20th. He will speaking about the race to the White House starting at 7:00PM in room 1164 of the Temple Building. Admission is free and open to the public, but you must RSVP here, because space is limited. If you are unable to attend, the event will be live-streamed. Learn more.
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Dean Fuentes to Speak At TEDxRVA
 Dean Montse Fuentes will be one of the featured speakers of the upcoming TEDxRVAWomen event on Friday, October 28th at The Byrd Theatre. The event is centered around coming together to see women empowering other women. Dean Fuentes will speaking in the second session which is from 11:15AM - 1:00PM as part of this day long event. Registration is required. Learn more. |
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New Student Org for Latinx
 Latinx Graduate Student Association (LGSA) was created with hopes to establish a supportive community for Latinx graduate students and their peers who may be interested in learning more about the Latinx community. The organization will also provide opportunities for networking, social activities, community service, professional development, leadership positions, and volunteer experiences. Read more at VCU News, on Facebook, and on RamsConnect. |
Be Recognized for Your Scholarly Work
 Every year the College honors Faculty Authors, Scholarly Award Winners and Principal Investigators of major grants at our Faculty Scholarship Reception. If you were the primary author or editor of a book published between July 1, 2015 and June 30, 2016, or if you were the winner of a national award presented during the same period to recognize scholarship or scholarly works, please complete this form. If you have published more than one book or won multiple awards, please complete a separate form for each work you feel deserves recognition. Please share this information with your colleagues! |
Faculty Scholarly Leave Requests
The College recognizes the importance of scholarly leave to the professional growth and intellectual renewal of our faculty. Leave is designed to help faculty invigorate their research and teaching activities, and faculty requesting leave should have compelling and specific reasons for that request. Requests for scholarly leave for the 2017-2018 academic year will be due on Monday, November 21, 2016. As per the instructions, please email the request form, your narrative and your CV to Winnie Chan. |
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Nominations Open for STEM Awards
 The Science Museum of Virginia is now accepting applications for Virginia's Outstanding STEM Awards. Faculty from any field of the sciences—including math, technology, and physical, biological, or health sciences—are eligible. Application materials include the nomination form in addition to at most six suggested support letters. If you would like a nomination from the Dean, please send these materials to me Winnie Chan no later than October 21, 2016. Nominations and are due by November 4th. Learn more. |
Majority of Quest Global Impact Award Winners from the College
The Global Education Office has awarded ten of the fourteen Quest Global Impact grants to projects that come from within the College. These grants support the university's global priorities to improve the recruitment and retention of international students and scholars, increase the global engagement of VCU students and faculty, and expand VCU’s global footprint through research, teaching and global engagement. Read more for a list of all of our award winners. Congratulations to all! |
Alumni Volunteer Service Awards
 Join VCU Alumni on Friday, October 28th for the 2016 Alumni Volunteer Service Awards to celebrate alumni who have worked with particular devotion to serve the VCU community. Learn more about the award recipients and the awards. |
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New Technologies for the Humanities
 The Cabell Library is hosting a New Technologies for the Humanities workshop on Friday, November 18th. This workshop offers a chance to consider new tech up close in light of humanities scholarship and teaching, and to talk with library staff about how to begin exploring your ideas. The workshop will be from 2:00PM - 3:30PM in The Workshop of the Cabell Library, lower level. Learn more. |
Share Your News and Events With Us
If you have news to share this is a great place to do it! Please submit news and events to Janelle Scutt at jscutt@vcu.edu. We will submit your news and events to the VCU Calendar, Telegram, this newsletter and our social media outlets. Keep your colleagues informed by keeping us informed! |
Terri Sullivan (Psychology) has received a $6 million research grant to promote healthy communities and reduce violence rates in Richmond with partner Dr. Saba Masho (VCU School of Medicine). They will work with community partners and residents of three neighborhoods in North, East and South Richmond to identify pre-existing programs in each community and build on the strengths of those programs. "At the end of the five years, we may have communities with differences in programs and prevention efforts based on each community’s current needs.” 
Since graduating from VCU in 2015, Marcus Squire (BA Political Science ’15/H&S) has been appointed the Vice-Chair of the Richmond Sister Cities Commission and the Chair of the Richmond-Upon The Thames Committee. His time at VCU led him to really understand Richmond. “Through the Political Science program I was introduced to an amazing internship in Richmond City Hall as well as the ability to study abroad in Paris, France. Through VCU, I am able to make it real.” Marcus is currently running for Richmond City Council. 
SaraRose Martin, a journalism major in the Robertson School, recently received a major award at the Excellence in Journalism Conference hosted by the 
