Martha Bradley Evans Teaching Fellows

About the Martha Bradley Evans Teaching Fellows

As a research-intensive institution of higher education, the University of Utah employs scholars who are leaders in their fields to conduct research and teach in degree programs across multiple disciplines. To keep instructional quality at the U on the cutting edge, the Martha Bradley Evans Teaching Fellowship encourages and supports faculty engagement in projects related to factors affecting instruction within their disciplines at the national level. Each year, projects address critical issues in twenty-first century, post-pandemic higher education. For the 2026-27 academic year, fellowships will focus on “A Curricular Approach to Advancing Accessibility and Innovating Pedagogy.”

Federal rulings from the Department of Justice and Health and Human Services mandate that public universities the size of the University of Utah meet digital accessibility requirements by April 27, 2027. Although many faculty have been engaged in addressing these requirements at the course level, even more progress can be made with a program- or curriculum-level approach. This year, we are seeking faculty fellows to lead projects that will address federal accessibility requirements AND innovate pedagogy at a curricular level (e.g., developing new video tutorials to be used across multiple online courses, creating digital archives that improve access to critical materials for program curriculum). Each proposed project should impact multiple courses within the same program, demonstrate how the project will address critical digital accessibility issues, and lead to improvements/innovations in pedagogical practice at the program/curriculum level.

Fellowship Information

Four faculty fellows will be awarded, drawing from the 18 colleges at the University of Utah. The proposed project should be completed within one year, with the goal of implementation within the faculty member’s department/college at the end of the fellowship. Fellows will be asked to submit an annual report detailing project outcomes at the end of the year.

Eligibility: Career-line (.75 FTE or higher), tenure-track, or tenured faculty are eligible to apply.

Multiple fellowships of up to $10,000 will be awarded. Budget may include the following:

• Teaching replacement costs to be funded to the fellow’s home department (no more than $5,000)
• Undergraduate research assistant stipend (no more than $2,500)
• Project development and implementation costs (software or other needs)
• Professional development costs

Submission Requirements

To apply for the Martha Bradley Evans Teaching Fellowship, please submit:

• A proposal of no more than three double-spaced pages that outlines the relevance of the project within the faculty member’s discipline, the project proposal, and the proposed plan for implementation
• 1-page description of how the undergraduate student researcher will be integrated into the project, including a plan for recruitment and mentorship (if relevant)
• Letters of support from department chair and dean, with stated intent to implement the project described in the proposal
• A detailed budget
• Faculty member’s updated CV

Proposals are due by July 1 via the MBE Teaching Fellows Application form, and awardees will be announced by July 15. Fellowship decisions will be made by a committee formed by the CTE.