FRIS Education Innovation Grant: education for a just and inclusive society
The FRIS Education Innovation Grant is designed for educators who want their teaching to contribute to a just, inclusive and resilient society. The emphasis is on redesigning courses or conducting small-scale research that focuses on themes of social justice, personal development and systemic change.

This grant invites faculty to work with students and colleagues to create innovative learning environments. For example, by developing new pedagogical approaches, introducing inclusive learning strategies, or strengthening the role of the university as a place for socially oriented learning.

FRIS projects go beyond content innovation: they encourage teachers to critically examine their own roles and make transformative contributions to education. The program emphasizes collaboration and co-creation, in which students can play an active role.

Impact Learning Education Grant: education that connects to practice
The Impact Learning Education Grant is specifically aimed at integrating impact learning into education. This type of education actively involves students in social issues and challenges them to devise and implement concrete solutions. Examples include collaborations with external organizations or projects in which students focus on social impact.

This grant offers faculty the opportunity to revamp existing courses or develop new initiatives that bring impact learning to the forefront. The goal is not only to teach students academic knowledge, but also to prepare them for an active social role outside the university. This makes the program ideally suited for faculty who want to design education that bridges the gap between theory and practice.

Budget, guidance and networking
Both grants make available a maximum of €6,500 per project. This amount is intended to temporarily relieve teaching duties so that teachers can free up time for their innovation projects. The funding can be shared with colleagues or student assistants, further encouraging collaboration and co-creation.

In addition, teachers will have access to a network of experts and thematic guidance. At FRIS, projects are supported by FRIS organizer Nithya Subramanian and FRIS president, Mieke Lopes Cardozo. The Impact Learning Grant is supervised by Katusha Sol and Rosanne van Wieringen, both educational developers at IIS.

Both programs offer an opportunity to be part of a Special Interest Group (SIG), where grant recipients share knowledge and experiences and inspire each other.

The application period runs from Dec. 10, 2024, to Jan. 31, 2025. A committee of experts will review the applications and notify the selected projects within four weeks of the deadline.

Why this opportunity?
With these grants, UvA emphasizes the importance of education that directly addresses the societal challenges of our time. Whether promoting social justice or actively engaging students in the world beyond the academy, both programs offer faculty the opportunity to make a lasting impact on both their teaching and society.

Do you have questions or want to learn more? For the FRIS Grant, please contact Nithya Subramanian (n.subramanian@uva.nl) or Mieke Lopes Cardozo (t.a.lopescardozo@uva.nl). For the Impact Learning Grant, please contact Katusha Sol (k.sol@uva.nl) and Rosanne van Wieringen (r.vanwieringen@uva.nl).