Virginia Commonwealth University
AC-10: Support for Sustainability Research

Undergraduate Fellowships for Inquiry, Inclusion and Innovation (iCubed) The Institute for Inquiry, Inclusion and Innovation (iCubed) will fund research fellowship awards for projects mentored by VCU faculty that fall within the seven iCubed Cores: 1. Sustainable Food Access 2. Intersections in the Lives of LGBTQIA+ Communities 3. Urban Education and Family 4. Disrupting Criminalization in Education. Each fellowship award includes $1,500 in funding for the student and $500 for the faculty mentor. Eligibility: Work-study eligible undergraduates pursuing research in any discipline(s) which aligns with the above iCubed Cores. URL: https://icubed.vcu.edu/

The VCU Presidential Research Quest Fund (PeRQ) is grounded in the president's commitment to develop and enhance faculty scholarship across the institution. PeRQ’s goal is to afford all faculty an internal funding opportunity to support new, emerging or continuing research. At VCU, research begins with boldness, creativity and ambition that is transforming innovation and improving the human condition. And, we are succeeding, changing who is shaping and creating knowledge and ensuring that research serves our collective good by aligning our collective strengths with a focus on the four initiatives outlined under the One VCU Research Strategic Priorities Plan. The Strategic Research Priorities Plan includes Initiative 4: Supporting sustainable energy and environments. Goal 4.1: Advance renewable energy sources, energy saving, clean air and water resources, resilient natural systems and biodiversity through the research, development and application of novel, evidence-based solutions. Goal 4.2: Educate our communities and inform positive changes in environmental policy and practice at local, state and national scales by effectively translating and communicating our data and published scholarship. Goal 4.3: Create environmentally and economically sustainable materials, products, processes and infrastructure. Positive Outcomes: The July 2022 establishment of the Institute for Sustainable Energy and Environment (ISEE) at VCU. ISEE provides a forum for VCU students and faculty to pursue innovative scientific, technological, policy and social justice solutions addressing the climate and energy crisis.

Appointment, promotion and tenure are based on the merit of the individual, consideration of comparable achievement in the faculty member's particular field, and the faculty member's value to the mission, needs and resources of the university. Central to the appointment, promotion and tenure process is VCU’s commitment to recognize and reward faculty members who help fulfill the mission and vision of the university.

Recognized and rewarded contributions include those made to the intellectual and academic success of a diverse student body through teaching; to research and discovery that advances knowledge, inspires creativity and improves human health through scholarship; and to the global engagement of students, faculty, and staff that transforms lives and communities through service in support of the university’s mission.

Faculty members may be recognized and rewarded for academic work conducted in an integrated way by using their research to inform their teaching; using their service and teaching as sources of ideas for their research; and using their teaching as opportunities to provide service to the community, as well as to foster student learning.

Promotion in rank reflects quality of performance in appropriate teaching, scholarship and service as noted above. Tenure shows the university's continuing commitment to the faculty member, whose position shall not be terminated without adequate reason. The promotion and tenure system at VCU is designed to foster:

•  Academic freedom of thought, teaching, learning, inquiry and expression

• Fair and equitable treatment for all individuals

•  Appropriate participation by the faculty, the student body, the administration, and the Board of Visitors

• A normal succession and infusion of new faculty members

The objectives of the tenure and promotion policy include

• Promotion of an engaged, learner-centered environment that fosters inquiry, discovery and innovation in a global setting

•  Faculty achievement to the highest attainable degree within the context and resources of the university

• Support of university goals and support of the diverse missions and characteristics of its individual academic units

• Commitment to administrative management which provides for fair and reasonable allocation of time and resources Assurance of the financial integrity of the institution

•  Sufficient flexibility to permit modifications of programs, curricula and academic organizational units to meet changing academic, institutional and societal needs.

VCU Libraries supports sustainability research and learning with collections, research consultations, and discipline-based instruction activities. Collections include access to databases like GreenFILE, GREENR, JSTOR Sustainability Collection, Sustainability Science Abstracts, and Web of Science, as well as over 100,000 titles with the subject heading sustainability. 

Some examples of research guides covering specialized resources include Sustainable Design (http://guides.library.vcu.edu/sustainable-design), Environmental Sciences (http://guides.library.vcu.edu/environmental-sciences), Public Health (https://guides.library.vcu.edu/public-health), and Patient Safety (https://guides.library.vcu.edu/patient-safety). 

The VCU Medical Center Health and Wellness Library (https://www.vcuhealth.org/for-your-health/health-and-wellness-library/) is a resource available to VCU and VCU Health employees, patients, and students and provides health information and programs to support and inform healthy living. Librarians also offer customized research consultations and instruction sessions to help students and researchers studying sustainability and related topics. VCU Libraries also provides support for research data management, publishing, multimedia and other creative technologies, and for data visualization, mapping, and other visual communication.

Portions of this text are attributed to Hillary Miller - Scholarly Communications Librarian, VCU Libraries at Virginia Commonwealth University