Leonhard Center Project Funding
The Leonhard Center actively invests in projects that support enhancements to undergraduate and graduate education in the College of Engineering. Each year, we send a Call for Proposals to all CoE faculty to submit proposals for new projects. For examples of current projects, visit the Funded Projects page.
If you are a faculty member within the Penn State College of Engineering with a great idea for new education project, please feel free to contact the Leonhard Center directly any time.
When reviewing proposals for new projects, we look for the following:
- Project Goals and/or Learning Objectives: What are the goals for this project? How do these align with current research/practice in engineering education? What will your students gain from this enhancement to their education?
- Project Description: What will be done as part of this project (new course, new activity within course, new way of teaching course, new something outside of the classroom, etc.)? How is this project innovative/different from current practices?
- Expected Impact: How will this project impact engineering education at Penn State? How many students will be impacted? How will the impact be continued beyond the funding from the Leonhard Center?
- Departmental Support: Evidence of support from the department head and, if applicable, other faculty within your department.
- Budget Justification: The Leonhard Center is not a government agency and does not operate in the same way. Where NSF and other funding agencies offer funding boundaries that are expected to be closely accomplished, the Leonhard Center looks at what resources are necessary to accomplish the goals of the project. The budget justification should clearly outline how the requested funds link to the activities and goals of the project.
Please be aware that the Leonhard Center does not fund the following:
- K-12 initiatives
- Facilities construction or improvements
- Equipment purchases
- Software/IT-based services
