Pepperdine Cross-School Collaborative Research Program

The Pepperdine Cross-School Collaborative Research Program supports inter-school research collaborations. Funded by the provost, the goal of this program is to encourage scholarly interaction between faculty from diverse disciplines and schools within Pepperdine University. This team-based approach allows for faculty collaboration and support across schools as well as manageability in terms of project organization and communication.

Of specific interest are collaborations involving 2-3 faculty members from at least two of Pepperdine's schools on a unified research project. The faculty who have developed an integrated research project will submit a single, focused proposal. One faculty member will bear primary responsibility for leadership of the project, and, at the discretion of the schools involved, faculty from the other participating school may be designated as co-PIs.

Each interested faculty group should submit a 2-4-page proposal addressing the following items:

1. Who will the faculty participants be and which schools do they represent?
2. The research question that the group will address.
3. Detailed budget.
• $50,000 total over 1-2 years.
• The Provost's Office is prepared to provide stipends for the faculty participants as well as funding for any supplies and/or salaries for student research assistants needed for the proposed project.
• Funding for this initiative cannot support teaching release or course reduction for its faculty participants.
4. Briefly indicate the plans for meeting as a group during the timeline of the project. Project timelines should outline intensive research work from August through July.
5. How does this project encourage inter-school collaboration that is either multi-disciplinary or encompassed by a single discipline represented in activities of more than one school?
6. Deans of the relevant schools must approve the proposal and also indicate, if funded, whether additional school-based resources could be made available to support the project.

In phase two of the application process, groups may be invited to prepare a five-minute presentation for the Steering Committee and/or University Planning Committee. The feedback from these presentations will be considered during award deliberations. Award decisions will be finalized by the provost and the president, who will evaluate projects based on the research plan, the possibilities for achieving success in the proposed area, the extent to which there is diverse faculty participation, the effectiveness of the plan, and whether it is likely to evolve into a more self-sustaining project.

Please submit proposals for this program, a current C.V. for each participating faculty member, and documentation of support from each school dean electronically through the Internal Research Programs - Application Form. The deadline for submission to February 5, 2025. The timeline for this program allows for application submission and award notification in the spring, giving awarded project participants time to prepare and plan during the summer months. Funding for awarded projects will be available August 1 of the next fiscal year. Funded projects will be expected to complete the Internal Research Report Form.