Digital Library Fellows: Request for Proposals

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Overview

The University of Miami Libraries are initiating the second cycle of the Digital Library Fellows program to create innovative new electronic scholarly content by awarding grants to faculty interested in developing digital resources.

The Libraries will provide funding and technological support to UM faculty for the creation and online delivery of scholarly electronic resources. The Libraries are seeking projects that will have a significant impact on teaching, learning, and research, and encourage projects which include student participation.

Projects will result in open access on-line resources designed to have long-term relevance to UM faculty and students. To ensure long-term access to resources created, all digital content will be produced in strict adherence to state-of-the-art digital preservation standards and technical specifications.

Eligibility

The competitive Digital Library Fellowships are open to full-time, regular (tenured or tenure track) University of Miami faculty interested in developing innovative digital resources. The fellowship is limited to Coral Gables campus faculty.

Funding

Up to two Fellowships will be awarded with a maximum of $15,000 for one year. The earliest project start date is March 1, 2008. Later start dates are possible, but all projects must be completed by March 1, 2009.

Project Selection

Selected projects will result in the creation of scholarly, internet-based digital resources that meet the following criteria:

Represents a new and innovative type of resource or provides access to a traditional resource in new ways;
Generates a new user experience which would not be possible via access to a print resource;
Contributes to the teaching and learning at the academic level of content relevant to the University of Miami student body as well as the international scholarly community.

Proposal Format

The proposal must include the following parts:

one paragraph abstract of the project;
A two to three page narrative describing the proposal;
A current CV of the applicant;
A detailed project budget;
An outline of participants and their respective levels of engagement;
A realistic time line for the accomplishment of stated project goals;
Letters of support from the applicant's departmental Chair and Dean.

Proposal Tips

Writing the Narrative. The narrative section should describe both the relevance of the project to the University of Miami as well as its plan of implementation, and include a detailed description of how the digital content created by the project would be used in teaching and research. Projects that make use of digital images, audio, video, or text are particularly encouraged, and the narrative should specify whether the content to be presented already exists in a digital form or needs to be converted from an analog format.

Copyright Control. A proposal burdened by intellectual property issues will not be awarded funding. All applicants should carefully review the UM Libraries Digital Initiatives Copyright Guidelines, and make sure that they resolve or adequately plan for the resolution of any potential copyright problems in their proposals before applying.

Sound Budgeting. Strong preference will be given to projects with realistic budget proposals. Applicants should consider carefully the work to be done, the tools required to complete the work, and the wages paid to project workers, as these often make up the majority of a given project's budget. While budgeting for student workers, on the undergraduate and/or graduate level, is strongly encouraged, applicants are strongly discouraged from including budget allocations which will contribute funds to their own salaries.

Library Participation. Applicants are encouraged to craft proposals which would support the University of Miami Libraries mission to advance innovation in information technology and scholarly communication. For more information on these objectives, visit the Mission Statement page on the UM Libraries website.

Work Space. Work space for student workers and work stations for new projects will not typically be made available to Digital Fellows. Applicants are encouraged to collaborate with their departments to provide office space and work stations to project contributors when possible. For projects working directly with locally held archival materials, some space may be made available in the Libraries on a temporary basis.

Consultations. Faculty with questions about project plans or the proposal process are welcome to speak to Kyle Rimkus (<kyle@miami.edu>, 305-284-6221), Digital Projects Librarian, before applying.

Review Procedures

A committee of internal and external reviewers made up of administrators and experts in the field of digital projects will review each proposal and select those that best meet the stated goals of the Digital Library Fellows program.

Award Criteria

Recipients will be expected to share their experiences with other faculty through a forum sponsored by the Libraries, as well as authoring a final written report, and acknowledging the Libraries in any publications, printed materials, or websites that result from the grant.

Fellows are expected to work closely with the Libraries in developing a detailed timetable and plan of work in order to ensure successful completion of their projects, and to develop a presence on the Libraries Digital Initiatives website.

Intellectual Property Rights

Working with Legacy Materials. Digital Fellowship applicants must ensure that they hold valid rights to publish the materials in their proposals in an open access on-line format. In practice, this means that Fellows work with materials in the public domain, own copyright to the materials in question, or allocate funds to purchase permission from the respective copyright holder to publish the materials online. For more information on the University of Miami Digital Initiatives copyright policy, visit the Copyright Guidelines page on our website.

Creating new Intellectual Content. Intellectual property rights for content produced during Digital Fellowships, including digital files, software, hardware, or other innovations, are governed by the policies outlined in the "Patent and Copyright" section of the UM Faculty Manual.

Previous Recipients

Past Digital Fellows have included:

Robin Bachin, Associate Professor of History, who created a digital archive and contextual narrative that examined the variety of elements that have shaped Travel, Tourism, and Urban Growth in Greater Miami.

Kim Grinfeder, an Assistant Professor in the School of Communication, who developed a rotational object video prototype that captures movement of three-dimensional objects from a 360 degree angle.

Lillian Manzor, Associate Professor of Spanish, who developed and launched the Cuban/Latino Theater Archive, an interactive, multimedia, bilingual web resource for the study and research of Cuban theater and performing arts.

Important Dates

The deadline for the submission of proposals is December 14, 2007.

Contact

Submit all applications, and address all questions to:

Kyle R. Rimkus
Librarian Assistant Professor
Digital Projects Librarian
University of Miami Libraries
Otto G. Richter Library
1300 Memorial Drive
Coral Gables, FL 33146
email: kyle@miami.edu
tel: (305) 284 - 6221