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UHD / Academic Affairs / Organized Research and Creative Activities (ORCA) Program

Organized Research and Creative Activities (ORCA) Program

ORCA Program Overview

The ORCA program provides small project grants to Tenured and Tenure-Track faculty to support research, scholarship, and creative activities. Each year, the Office of the Provost and the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP) oversee the distribution of internal funds to awardees based on a peer review process involving a university-level review committee. Proposals for ORCA are accepted through the first Monday of October for each academic year. Details regarding the process can be found in the ORCA policy.

Interested tenured/tenure-track faculty should review the current PS 06.A.08 Organized Research and Creative (ORCA) Program. In this policy, you will find information on: proposal evaluation criteria, applicant eligibility, the proposal review process, and a general timeline. Other resources can be found below:

ORCA RESEARCH SYMPOSIUM SPRING 2025

Happening this week! April 17, 2025 at Fondren Commons.

The 2025 Symposium program is now available.

View 2025 Symposium Program

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. ORCA can be used for reassigned time during the long semesters. Summer salaries can be supported through ORCA, as well. Faculty interested in requesting a course release should budget $3,200 to cover re-assigned time and $896 for fringe benefits ($4,096 total) and discuss with their department chair to ensure adequate course coverage.

Note: Faculty taking release time for funded research/scholarship/creative activities should not engage in teaching overloads during the release period.

Yes. You can apply if you serve on your department committee. However, faculty who serve on the University ORCA Committee are not eligible for funding in the academic year in which they serve on those committees.

Yes. However, you should submit your post-funding report and provide details of why you were unable to finish the project

Yes. You should let them know immediately so that they have ample time to find coverage for your courses.

You can. However, the proposed project must necessitate that amount of reassigned time. The review committee will look carefully at your project and the proposed activities and make a judgment on whether it merits multiple course releases.

Yes. However, if your travel is related to presenting your research at a conference, you are less likely to have that funded as you have other sources of funding available for that type of travel (e.g., departmental travel funds, Faculty Development Award). If your travel is part of your proposed project to support the research activity (e.g., traveling to an archive collection, data collection that takes place outside of the immediate area) you are more likely to be funded.

No, you do not have IRB (or any other approval) completed by the time you submit the proposal. However, you must have the approvals in place before you start the work of the project if funded.

August 23, 2024 ORCA Workshop Video:

ORCA Report

Per section 3.6 of the ORCA Policy, recipients are required to submit a final report summarizing the results of the funded project. This report must be submitted within 18 months of the end of the semester in which the ORCA grant is received.

Example: ORCA grant awarded in December 2022 = report due by June 2024. Failure to submit this report may render an applicant ineligible for future ORCA grants.

ORCA Final Report

ORCA Research Symposium

The ORCA Research Symposium is an annual event that takes place during the spring semester. ORCA awardees present their funded projects to the larger UHD faculty community. The symposium provides an opportunity for faculty to learn more about each other’s scholarship as well as to encourage faculty to submit proposals to the ORCA program. The call for proposals for the symposium typically goes out in March of each year. If you are a past ORCA awardee, please consider submitting a proposal to present your funded work.