Making Vision In Action Investment through the Strategic Fund 2007-2008

The Strategic Fund Initiative was approved by the TCU Board of Trustees to act as an
incremental source of funding to create programs and projects that will transform TCU. During the first two years of grant competition over $2,000,000 has been awarded to underwrite 90+ initiatives.

The application process was changed for funding year 2007-08 (the third year of the program) in hopes of producing more multi discipline, multi departmental Transformational applications. Through the use of an initial "White Paper" university members were encouraged to offer a broad brush narrative of their idea and how implementation of the concept would directly support the University's Strategic Plan. Provost Nowell Donovan instructed the Evaluation Committee to review the "White Paper" and respond to applicants with suggestions as to how the application could be strengthened to include possible collaborative venues within the institution in an effort to generate more institutionwide programs of distinction. Of course there were great ideas that were specific to a department. The point was not to discourage individual ideas; rather it was to encourage more institutional transformational requests.

The change in process was deemed successful. The "White Papers" which were due in early November produced 34 Transformational and 11 Pathway ideas. The Evaluation Committee offered suggestions and encouragement to 18 proposed projects. Of the 18, 11 chose to continue in the competition.

The Strategic Fund Evaluation Committee met in early March 2007 and recommended that six projects be funded for the 2007-08 funding period. Five are Transformational projects and one is a Pathways project. The composite funding for 2007-08 is $750,000.