Past Research Events
CHSS Research
Funding Your Research Workshops presented by Dr. Barbara Endemano Walker, February and March 2022
In February and March of 2022, CHSS Research hosted a series of three workshops for CHSS faculty and postdocs focused on research and grant writing strategies for the humanities and social sciences. Click event title for more information.
CHSS Research Virtual Coffee featuring the Office of Technology Transfer, February 2022
David Grossman, Senior Director of Technology Transfer and Industry Collaboration, discussed how technology transfer works to bring about a positive societal impact using university innovations, creations and discoveries. Specifically, he discussed the basics of how faculty and staff can work with the office of technology transfer to successfully make the benefits of their research available to the public. Click event title for more information including event recording link.
Sponsor Talks Series: National Science Foundation CAREER awards versus standard grants, February 2022
CHSS Research hosted Drs. Jeff Mantz, Paul Huth, and Jan Leighley from NSF's Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SBE). The panel discussed strategies for deciding between applying for the Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) versus a standard grant proposal, particularly for SBE. They shared general best practices for applying for NSF funding. Click event title for more information including event recording link.
Introduction to Mason's Research Institutes, December 2021
On December 1st, 2021, The executive directors for the Institute for Digital Innovation (IDIA), Institute for Biohealth Innovation (IBI), and Institute for Sustainable Earth (ISE) presented participants about their institutes and opportunities for those in the humanities and social sciences to get involved. After the presentations, participants were given the opportunity to join breakout rooms and asked the executive director questions, and network with others interested in that institute.
Panelists:
Kamalijeet Sanghera, Executive Director, Institute for Digital Innovation (IDIA)
Amy Adams, Executive Director, Institute for Biohealth Innovation (IBI)
Leah Nichols, Executive Director, Institute for Sustainable Earth (ISE)
Research Support Overview and Refresher, October 2021
On October 22nd, 2021, the event provided CHSS faculty at any stage of their career with an overview of information about the support the college and university offer to assist faculty with submitting applications for external funding and how awards are managed once they are received.
Presenters:
Michele Schwietz, Associate Dean for Research
Brooke Gowl, Associate Director of Research Development
Rebekah Hersch, Interim Associate Vice President for Research and Innovation
Maggie Ewell, Associate Director, Proposal & Award Management
Regis Saxton, Research Administration Manager
Janice Cohen, Director of Finance & Research Operations
Olga Shchepina, Associate Director of Post Award Services
Mike Washburn, Grants Analyst
Tara Chaplin, Associate Professor, Psychology
Sylvia Schreiner, Assistant Professor, English
Sponsor Talks Series: Introduction to International and Foreign Language Education programs in the Department of Education, October 2021
On October 7th, 2021, the presentation aimed to familiarize attendees with the faculty-centered grant opportunities offered by the office of International and Foreign Language Education (IFLE) in the Department of Education. After providing an overview of all programs of potential interest to individual faculty members, additional information was given on two particularly relevant Fulbright-Hays programs: Fulbright-Hays Seminars Abroad and Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad. Drawing on their expertise and experience as administrators of Fulbright-Hays programs, presenters provided attendees with information and resources on these programs, and answered questions from the audience.
Panelists:
Cory Neal (Group Projects Abroad Program, FBOP)
Matthew Robinson (IFLE)
NEH Summer Stipends Workshop, June 2021
On June 21, 2021, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Research team hosted a Zoom event for faculty to learn more about the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Summer Stipends nomination process and to hear about the experiences of four CHSS faculty who have been funded through the program.
Panelists:
Garry Sparks, Religion
Marguerite Rippy, CHSS Dean's Office
Sun-Young Park, History and Art History
Rashmi Sadana, Sociology and Anthropology
Sponsor Talks Series: Fellowships and Career Development Opportunities for the Social and Behavioral Sciences, March 2021
On March, 25th 2021, NIH, NSF, and LoC discussed fellowships and career development opportunities offered by their organizations as well as best practices for competing these opportunities; and a CHSS faculty member discussed her experiences competing for these types of awards.
Panelists:
Belinda Sims, Health Scientist Administrator, NIMH, National Institutes of Health
Jeff Mantz, Program Director, National Science Foundation
Janna Deitz, Outreach and Partnerships, The John W. Kluge Center at the Library of Congress
Cynthia Lum, Professor, CHSS Criminology, Law, and Society
7 participants and 17 RSVPs.
Sponsor Talks Series: Fellowships and Career Development Opportunities for the Humanities, March 2021
On March 23rd, 2021, NEH, NEA, and LoC discussed fellowships and career development opportunities offered by their organizations as well as best practices for competing these opportunities; and a CHSS faculty member discussed her experiences competing for these types of awards.
The panel of presenters included:
Russ Wyland, Deputy Director, National Endowment for the Humanities
David Travis, Assistant Grants Management Specialist, National Endowment for the Arts
Janna Deitz, Outreach and Partnerships - The John W. Kluge Center at the Library of Congress
Rashmi Sadana, Associate Professor, CHSS Sociology and Anthropology
7 participants and 24 RSVPs.
Publishing for the Humanities and Social Sciences, February 2021
As part of our ongoing outreach and engagement series, on February 19, 2021 CHSS Research hosted an event with a panel of publishing experts representing Duke University Press, Mason Publishing Group, and CHSS English, who discussed various topics regarding publishing in the humanities and social sciences. Topics included descriptions of types of publishing, how to engage with publishers, how to secure a contract for publishing, review processes, and more. Each panelist provided a 10-15 minute presentation followed by a Q&A.
The panel of experts included:
Dean Smith, Director, Duke University Press
Arthur Rouner, Director, Mason Publishing Group
Andrew Kierig, Digital Publishing Lead, Mason Publishing Group
Debra Lattanzi Shutika, Chair and Associate Professor, CHSS English
Gregg Wilhelm, Assistant Professor, CHSS English served as Moderator
Twenty seven faculty, postdocs, and staff were in attendance from various CHSS departments.
Sponsor Talks Series: NIH Opportunities for the Behavioral and Social Sciences, October 2020
On October 9, 2020, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences hosted a webinar presentation by National Institutes of Health Program Officials Dr. Elizabeth Ginexi and Dr. Aria Davis Crump titled “NIH Funding Opportunities for Behavioral & Social Sciences Research”.
Dr. Elizabeth Ginexi is a Health Scientist Administrator at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) where she serves as a leader in expanding the computational science capacity and methods. She currently directs a trans-NIH program: “Predoctoral Training in Advanced Data Analytics for Behavioral and Social Sciences Research.”
Dr. Aria Davis Crump is the Deputy Branch Chief of the Prevention Research Branch at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). She is a behavioral scientist who specializes in the prevention of drug misuse and substance use disorders among adolescents and youth transitioning to adulthood. During her tenure at NIDA, she has been active in efforts related to career development for scientists committed to advancing knowledge on drug use and its consequences as well as applying that knowledge to improve public health.
42 faculty and staff from 6 different institutions, including George Mason University, Old Dominion University, George Washington University, Howard University, Shenandoah University, and Southern Connecticut State University, registered. 26 of those registered were in attendance for the live event.
Link to presentation slides: NIH Opportunities for the Behavioral and Social Sciences - Slides
Sponsor Talks Series: NSF Opportunities for the Behavioral and Social Sciences, September 2020
On September 23, 2020, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences hosted a webinar presentation by National Science Foundation Program Director Dr. Jeffrey Mantz titled “Opportunities for NSF Funding in the Social Sciences”.
Dr. Jeff Mantz has been at NSF since 2012. He is the Program Director for Cultural Anthropology, Program Director for the Dynamics of Integrated Socio-Environmental Systems (DISES) program, and is NSF’s Human Subjects Research Officer. He holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Chicago and has previously taught at George Mason University, Cornell University, California State University at Stanislaus, and Vassar College. His own research takes him to the Caribbean and Central Africa, where he explores issues related to inequality, resource extraction, and commodity supply chains.
61 faculty and staff from 4 different institutions, including George Mason University, University of Virginia, Old Dominion University, and University of Chicago, registered. 38 of those registered were in attendance for the live event.
Link to presentation slides: NSF Presentation - Sept 2020 - Slides
NEH Summer Stipends Workshop, June 2020
On June 23, 2020, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Research Development team hosted a Zoom event for faculty to learn more about the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Summer Stipends nomination process and to hear about the experiences of four CHSS faculty who have been funded through the program. (Please note that Mason can nominate only two tenure/tenure-track faculty to submit applications. The restriction on application number does not apply to non-tenure track faculty or postdocs.)
28 faculty from 4 different institutions, including George Mason University, James Madison University, Old Dominion University, and Howard University registered. 18 of those registered were in attendance for the live event.
Event agenda: NEH Summer Stipends Workshop Agenda
Sponsor Talks Series: NEH Networking Event, April 2020
On April 14, 2020, the George Mason University College of Humanities and Social Sciences hosted a webinar presentation by National Endowment for the Humanities Senior Program Officer Jennifer Serventi titled “NEH Awards and More: Strategies for Becoming Involved in NEH-Funded Projects”.
Jennifer Serventi is a Senior Program Officer in the Office of Digital Humanities. She coordinates the Institutes for Advanced Topics in the Digital Humanities program and also works extensively with the Digital Humanities Advancement Grants and the Digging into Data Challenge programs. Prior to joining ODH in 2007, she served in NEH's Divisions of Research and Education Programs. Before coming to the Endowment in 1994, she was a staff member at the Institute of Museum and Library Services. She received her BA in history and government from Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, California.
Forty-six RSVPs were received from 7 different institutions (George Mason University, George Washington University, Howard University, James Madison University, Old Dominion University, University of Virginia, and Shenandoah University) with 36 people available to participate on the day of event.
This event was originally planned to be an on-campus event that included networking activities following the presentation. However, due to COVID-19, the event was moved to an online format, which in some ways for fortuitous since it allowed for the participation of those who may not have been able to travel to the Mason campus.
Link to NEH Networking Event Presentation Slides
Link to NEH Networking Event Q&A List
Mason Research
NSF SciENcv Implementation and OSP Current & Pending Update, May 2020
On May 8, 2020, Mason's Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) held a WebEx meeting to discuss NSF's changes to preparing Biosketches and Current and Pending information.
The PPT and the Roadmap are available for download from our website: https://osp.gmu.edu/proposal-process/
Additional OSP resources may be found on the CHSS website under Research Funding.
Other Organizations
Fall 2021 NSF Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Directorate Advisory Committee Meeting, December 2021
On December 2 and 3, 2021, noon to 5:00 PM each day, the Advisory Committee for NSF's Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Directorate met twice yearly to provide advice, recommendations, and oversight to the directorate concerning support for research, education, and human resources.
Fall 2021 NIH Virtual Seminar on Program Funding and Grants Administration, November 2021
This event was designed to demystify the NIH grant application, review, award, and post-award processes and policies. It was held from Monday, November 1 to Thursday, November 4, 2021.
Fall 2021 NSF Virtual Grants Conference, October 2021
The virtual conference was broadcast live on Zoom during the week of October 4-8, 2021.
NSF Proposal and Award Policy Update Webinar, September 2021
On September 21st, 2021, the Webinar provided an overview of significant changes and clarifications to the PAPPG that took effect on October 4, 2021. The PAPPG Webinar details NSF's proposal preparation and submission guidelines and provided guidance on managing and monitoring the award and administration of grants and cooperative agreements made by the Foundation.
2020 NIH Virtual Seminar on Grants Administration and Program Funding
October 27-30, 2020, NIH held the 2020 NIH Virtual Seminar on Grants Administration and Program Funding that included presentations about working with the NIH grants process, programs, policies, and staff. Although the event is over, you can still view presentation recordings for 30 days following the conclusion of the virtual seminar on the seminar website. Beyond the 30 days, videos will be available on the NIH Grants YouTube Channel.
AAAS - Lessons Learned from 10,000 Proposal Reviews: Top Reviewer Criticisms and How to Avoid Them
On May 28, 2020, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) held a interesting webinar highlighting ten common criticisms reviewers make when evaluating proposals. The tips given apply to any type of funding application, not just science and engineering.
Link to access this AAAS webinar: Lessons Learned from 10,000 Proposal Reviews
NEH Summer Stipends Program Introduction Webinar, May 2020
On May 20, 2020, NEH staff hosted a webinar describing the program, including eligibility, the application and nomination processes, and suggestions for writing an effective application. The presentation included questions and answers from participants.
Link to the presentation: NEH Summer Stipends Webinar.
Link to a PDF version of the presentation slides.
NSF Policy and Process Changes, Spring 2020
NSF recently recorded a webinar about the requirement to use an NSF-approved format for both the biographical sketch and current & pending support documents as part of proposals submitted to NSF. The policy, outlined in the NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) (NSF 20-1), goes into effect for proposals submitted or due, on or after June 1, 2020. The two NSF-approved formats are SciENcv: Science Experts Network Curriculum Vitae, and an NSF Fillable PDF.
Webinar topics included:
- the policy guidance for preparation of the biographical sketch and current and pending support sections of the proposal;
- a walk-through of the user experience in accessing these formats in NSF systems;
- detailed guidance from NIH on using SciENcv for preparing both documents; and
- answers to a number of frequently asked questions.
For additional information, see the NSF pages for the biographical sketch and current and pending support.
