Titan Innovation Fund seeks campus proposals

Returning back to the University of Detroit Mercy for the Fall semester will bring new opportunities for the Titan community.

In May 2023, the University of Detroit Mercy’s 26th president, Donald B. Taylor, announced the Titan Innovation Fund. This opportunity will provide students, faculty and administrators the ability to submit proposals in hopes of securing a portion of the university’s $500,000 award.

Applicants are encouraged to submit proposals that support the university’s institutional priorities — sense of community, mission, marketing, fundraising, enrollment, endowments, community impact, center and institutes and academic programs.    .

Each applicant for the Titan Innovation Fund must have a Proposal Champion from the university — vice president, dean, faculty advisor, or supervisor. The Proposal Champion will work closely with the applicant to determine the feasibility of the initiative, and if funds are awarded, provide support with implementing the initiative.

Dr. Karen M. Lee, Associate Vice President for Academic Administration, shared more about the Titan Innovation Fund.

“Currently the President has set aside about $500,000 for this fund for the next two years,” Lee said. “He has not put a floor or ceiling cap on proposals, as he does not want applicants to be encumbered by a dollar amount. He also has the Advancement Office fundraising for TIF. We request that you have one champion per proposal who can help with implementing the initiative. Currently, there is no limit on the number of pre-proposals that an applicant can submit.”

The University of Detroit Mercy website provides more information about the opportunity, saying,  “As a way of helping build a culture of visionary thinking and decisive action at Detroit Mercy, the Titan Innovation Fund seeks to move new and creative ideas forward to benefit the University and education of our students. The fund will distribute awards that promote ‘out-of- the- box’ thinking and encourage faculty, staff, administrators and students to test ideas that will improve student experience, educational strategies, and institutional systems at Detroit Mercy. Proposals that promote President Taylor’s Institutional Priorities and show promise for a significant return on the initial investment are desired.”

It is too late to submit a pre-proposal, but the university is still accepting full proposals until Sept. 30. The voting panel will decide which proposal aligns best with the university’s aspirations and will notify the winner(s) of the decision on Oct. 15.

The University of Detroit Mercy is starting the academic year with innovation and creativity as the focus. Will you join in building a boundless future?