EIU Office of Research and Sponsored Programs

Council on Faculty Research

Summer Research and Creative Activity Award

Applications are due by noon, Wednesday, February 4, 2026

The Summer Research/Creative Activity Awards are for research and creative activity projects performed by faculty during the summer months.  The awards are made available in accordance with the 2022-2026 EIU-UPI Unit A agreement. The University will fund the best quality research and creative activity at EIU regardless of discipline.

Amount: Up to $5,000 per grant

• To qualify as research, the proposed activity must have the potential to generate knowledge. The proposed activity may be either (a) theoretical or empirical research or (b) applied research which relates to specific discipline(s).
• To qualify as creative activity, the proposed activity need not fit the traditional mold (art, music, dance, theater, education, or creative writing) but must involve a new medium or concept and must result in an observable outcome.

Proposals should be submitted as an e-mail attachment to eiugrants@eiu.edu or hand-delivered to the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, 1102 Blair Hall by noon on the due date. Late proposals will not be reviewed.

Click here to download the Summer CFR Creative Activity Application Packet

Click here to download the Summer CFR Research Application Packet

Click here to download the Summer CFR Final Report Form

Guidelines for Summer Research/Creative Activity Awards

Click here for Tips for a Successful Proposal

All tenured/tenure track University faculty in Bargaining Unit A are eligible. Members of the Council on Faculty Research are not eligible for the awards.

Faculty who are being paid for conducting sponsored research from outside sources for two or more summer months are ineligible to apply for a Summer Research/Creative Activity Award.

• Joint Proposals: A proposal may be submitted jointly by two or more eligible faculty members. However, the amount of the total award will not exceed the maximum allowed for any single proposal. The funding will be divided equally amongst the joint applicants (e.g., if the maximum award is $5,000, then two joint applicants would receive $2,500 each)

A faculty member who has failed to fulfill all obligations of a completed CFR grant or any other internal funding program administered by the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs is not eligible to apply for a CFR grant. Faculty who have received CFR grants in the past (not including the current year) should make sure a progress/final report for that award is on file in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs prior to their current application being reviewed.

Proposal Format

• Summer CFR Application Packet
• Vita
• Bibliography
• Supportive Materials (optional)

• This limitation does not include the other components of the application packet (project details, summer activity section, submission checklist).

Vita: may not exceed five single-sided pages.

Proposals will be reviewed by CFR members from diverse backgrounds. Therefore, proposals should be free of jargon.

The Summer Research/Creative Activity Awards provide personal services dollars for research and creative activity projects performed during the summer months. The money is scheduled to be paid by the end of June. Budgets submissions are not required for this competition.

Proposal Submission

E-mail the proposal as an attachment to eiugrants@eiu.edu. Files must be in Word or PDF format. You may submit the application packet and attachments as separate documents within the e-mail. Proposals can also be hand-delivered to the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, 1102 Blair Hall by 12:00 Noon on posted due date.

LATE PROPOSALS WILL NOT BE REVIEWED

Review Process

• Sample Research Review Form
• Sample Creative Activity Review Form

• submitted late,
• submitted by an ineligible person,
• larger than the size limitations,
• the second proposal listing the same principal investigator,
• incomplete.

All applicants will be notified of their proposal status when review is complete.

Requirements and Conditions

• Failure to complete this requirement may prohibit the researcher from future funding.  

Faculty receiving a Summer Research/Creative Activity Award from the Council on Faculty Research must be employed by Eastern Illinois University for at least one academic year following the summer in which the grant is awarded. Faculty whose resignations are effective before the end of the academic year following the receipt of a Summer Research/Creative Activity Award will be required to repay the full amount of the grant.

Questions regarding Summer CFR Awards should be directed to the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs at eiugrants@eiu.edu or 217-581-2125.