SoTL Fellowships (FIDC)
The Senate Faculty Instructional Development Committee (FIDC) offers FIDC Summer Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Research Fellowships.
SoTL stands for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, and it is a way for instructors to explore their teaching with curiosity and reflection, like how they may approach scholarly activities or research in their own fields. Instructors engaging in SoTL typically begin with a question about teaching or student learning. They gather evidence from their courses in a scholarly manner and share their findings so others can learn from their experiences. By reflecting meaningfully on their own teaching, instructors deepen their own practice while also contributing to broader conversations about how students learn (Chick, n.d.; Chick, 2018). For more information please see What is SoTL?
The goals of this program are to:
- Support UND faculty in engaging with evidence-based pedagogies and scholarly research in order to enhance student learning, improve teaching practice and contribute to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) research.
- Promote a culture of teaching improvement by providing opportunities for faculty to engage in research that directly impacts the quality of learning in UND classes and programs.
- Facilitate the dissemination of findings, encouraging faculty to present and publish SoTL research.
2025-26 Fellowship Proposals are due March 6, 2026 and you will find application details below. Please reach out to your college’s representative on the FIDC if you have any questions.
Guidelines
Fellowships provide $3000 for 80 hours of work over the summer in support of a SoTL research project to be completed in the 2025-2026 academic year.
Expectations: Recipients agree to the following deliverables:
- To submit an IRB application for their research project by August 15.
- To submit a one-page progress report by December 15.
- To participate in a 2026-27 FIDC SoTL Showcase in which faculty fellows present their research question/s, their data and progress to date; and the impact of their work.
- To submit a final report summarizing their research, methodology, and outcomes by May 15.
Faculty will be ineligible for all future funding from the FIDC if they fail to fulfill these expectations.
Eligibility
Open to all UND faculty who meet all the following requirements:
- Propose a research project related to better understanding and improving teaching and learning in UND classrooms.
- Not a past recipient of a FIDC SoTL Fellowship (ie. 2024 Fellows are not eligible for another award).
- Those seeking funding for collaborative research must apply individually, making clear their distinct role in the project. Proposals will be evaluated on their individual merits.
If you are unsure of the status of a potential proposal that is collaborative, please reach out to a member of the FIDC for clarification.
Proposals must not exceed 6 pages in total and will address the following:
- Describe a feasible, focused and specific question you have about student learning in your course/s and/or academic program that can be addressed through a SOTL research project conducted at UND.
- Explain the background and context for this research question. What student learning question or issue led you to this research (which must be in the context of UND courses or programs)?
- Explain the relevance and intended impact of this research. How will addressing this question improve learning (in specific classes/programs, the discipline and/or higher education broadly)?
- Describe the nature of the data to be collected, the process for collecting the data, and your rationale for the study design and methodology.
Proposals are due March 6, 2026, by 4:30 pm and will be evaluated by the FIDC using this rubric. The FIDC will inform applicants of funding decisions by May 1, 2026. Submit your proposal via the Qualtrics link below:
Sarah Sletten (SMHS) -
Active Learning and Concept Application: An Adult Learning Approach to Undergraduate Immunology Instruction
John Shabb (SMHS) -
Undergraduate biochemistry course outcomes as predictors of Medical College Admissions Test performance.
Brenna Swanson (CNPD) -
8 Minutes to Empathy: A Hands-On Simulation to Enhance Dementia Training in Dietetics
Nicole Martin (CNPD) -
Does implementing interactive instructional activities during the second semester clinical orientation increase student confidence and preparedness?
Cynthia Prescott (A&S) -
The Impact of Class Size, Active Learning, and Gamification on Student Learning in History Survey Courses
Enrique Alvarez (CEM) -
The Curiosity-Credit Equation: Unveiling the Impact of Academic Load
Hyonsuk Cho (EHD) -
- Linguistics for Teachers
Duane Helleloid ((NCoBPA) -
- "How an assignment that students complete using AI compares one they create without using AI.
Amanda Haage (SMHS) -
- “Can we create universally useful 3D printed materials for teaching vision impaired students information fundamental to human biology?”
Caitlin Milera (JDOSAS) -
- How does participation in a semester-long undergraduate research project and poster presentation impact students’ STEM Identity?
Kaitlyn Kelly (CNPD) -
- Does a simulated conversation with a client built with generative artificial intelligence increase nursing student competency in conducting a health history in NURS300 laboratory? If it does, is that competency retained throughout the semester?
Karrianna Iseminger (SMHS) -
- What is the effectiveness of a serious game for enhancing occupational therapy students’ application of psychosocial evaluation and intervention in the hand therapy practice context?
Christine McGrail (EHD) -
- Leveraging Local Resources to Engage Pre-Service Elementary Teachers in Place-Base Science Teaching and Learning
Elizabeth Suazo-Flores (EHD) -
- What are preservice teachers’ views of teaching mathematics at the beginning of the course? And, in what ways did preservice teachers’ views of teaching mathematics broaden after taking the mathematics methods course? What were the course instructional activities that influenced preservice teachers’ views of teaching mathematics the most?
2026 SoTL Fellowship Panel
Teaching as Scholarly Work (or Teach Better & Publish More)
This panel explores the transition from scholarly teaching to the formal Scholarship
of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). We will discuss how systematic inquiry into student
learning constitutes high-impact scholarly activity and offer practical strategies
for integrating SoTL into a professional research profile. A key focus will be framing
this work within promotion and tenure dossiers to ensure it is recognized as rigorous
research, particularly in departments where the distinction between SoTL and teaching
responsibilities is not yet well-established. This panel will be of particular interest
to those applying for a Summer SoTL Fellowship through FIDC.
Panel Members:
Sarah Sletten - Associate Professor, Biomedical Sciences, Scholarship of Teaching & Learning, Director of Learner Research, Research Affairs
Ryan Zerr - Department Chair, Chair / Professor, Mathematics, Real Analysis, Operator Theory, Dynamical Systems, Associate Vice President, President's Office
Jeff Carmichael - Associate Chair, Professor, Biology, Introductory Biology Coordinator
SoTL Fellowship Showcase - Part 1
- Duane Helleloid (Entrepreneurship and Management), Comparing Student Work Completed Without and With AI
- Kaitlyn Kelly (Nursing), Use of Artificial Intelligence to Simulate Health History Interviews for Nursing Students
- Caitlin Milera (Space Studies), The Impact of an Undergraduate Research Project on STEM Identity
SoTL Fellowship Showcase - Part 2
- Hyonsuk Cho (Teaching, Leadership, and Professional Practice), Linguistics for Teachers
- Christine McGrail (TLPP), Examining the Impact of Place-Base Science Teaching and Learning
- Elizabeth Suazo-Flores (TLPP), Broadening Views of Teaching Mathematics
SoTL Fellowship Showcase - Part 3
- Amanda Haage (Biomedical Sciences) Making Microscopy Universal
- Karrianna Iseminger (Occupational Therapy) Offset: A Serious Game for Making the Intangible Tangible