2026 LSO: Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards

Summary

As a member institution of the ORAU, William & Mary is eligible to put two applicants forward for the “Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards Program."

Full Description

About the Powe Award

These competitive research awards provide seed money for junior faculty members that often result in additional funding from other sources. The award amount provided by ORAU is $5,000. This is a one-year grant (July 1 to June 30). The applicant’s institution is required to match the award with at least an additional $5,000, which will be provided by the VPR office.

Please note that there is a limit to two (2) applicants from each member institution. Only members selected via this competition will be eligible to apply. 

Eligibility Criteria

The eligibility criteria for applicants are as follows:

1. Full-time assistant professors within two years of their initial tenure track appointment (Jan 1, 2024-Jan 7, 2026). NTE professors are not eligible.
2. Research proposals/interests must fall within one of the following disciplines:
   1. Engineering and Applied Science
   2. Life Sciences
   3. Mathematics/Computer Sciences
   4. Physical Sciences
   5. Policy, Management, or Education
3. Two internal submissions per department with endorsement from the Chair

Per the ORAU, proposals are evaluated using the criteria below:

• Scientific/technical merit: Likelihood that research will add to scientific knowledge base
• Proposed method/approach: Appropriateness of proposed methods to achieve results
• Applicant's previous research performance: Appropriateness of applicant's research experience to successfully complete the proposed research
• Adequacy of facilities and resources: Reasonableness of available facilities, equipment/instrumentation, research staff, and any support staff requirements
• Likelihood research will lead to fundable research and/or publishable work
• Overall quality of application

Recommended: Proposals demonstrating a direct connection to research at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) or an active collaboration with ORNL scientists is recommended but not required.

Internal Competition

Interested applicants should prepare the following materials (in a single PDF file) for the internal competition by Thursday, December 4th.

1. Nomination letter from department chair
2. Two-page research proposal (covering the following items)
   1. Research goals and objectives and relevant background
   2. Expected research outcomes and relevance
   3. Research design and methodology
   4. Competence of the applicant to perform the proposed research
   5. Available research facilities and resources
   6. Budget justification
   7. Additional single page of references relating to the proposal (optional)
3. CV/Resume of Applicant

 Submit Materials Here by December 4th

Internal Competition Results 

Applications will be reviewed by the Faculty Research Committee (FRC) and selected applicants will be notified by Friday, December 12^th.  The chosen applicants will receive notice from the W&M’s ORAU Councilor (Alyson Wilson, VPR) with a special link to PeerNet along with instructions.

The deadline for the Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards Program applications for FY 2026 awards is January 7, 2026, at 12:00 PM (noon) EST

Additional Information for Applicants:

For step-by-step instructions for ORAU’s PeerNet application intake system and specific information on required documents, visit Instructions for ORAU Member Councilors and Application Instructions for Faculty Members on ORAU’s Research and University Partnerships website.

 For more information, visit Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards and be sure to click the “In This Section” dropdown to select other helpful pages including FAQs.

Please direct any questions to: frcgrantapp@wm.edu