Program Overview

The ADVICE program is a one plus one format. The first semester will cover topics around creating a vision, articulating the vision across scales, creating a multi-pronged approach to communicating a message, cultivating relationships that support the vision, utilizing institutional supports to further the vision, working with entities outside of the institution to further the vision and assessing and overcoming obstacles to the realization of the vision.

The second semester will consist of putting these ideas into action. To participate in the second semester, first term participants will write brief proposals around what they seek to accomplish in the second term. These proposals can range from early activities such as developing relationships with agency Program Mangers (PMs) and starting to build out a core team, to later activities such as constructing a white paper for a specific program/agency. In support of their participation and work in the second term, it is recommended that the colleges associated with participants provide funding for the faculty members to visit their PMs to discuss their focused efforts with the associated agency.

This is a peer mentoring program, and participants will be expected to read, assess, and provide feedback to their colleagues' ideas as part of the process as well as adjust to feedback from their peers.  While participants may not necessarily be from the same discipline, receiving feedback from people outside of one’s area greatly increases accessibility to the content a faculty is seeking to communicate. Discussing specific idiosyncratic issues in one’s field in the group will help contextualize feedback and is something that will be addressed in the context of our peer conversations.

Application Information

ADVICE is accepting applications for up to 10 post tenure MSU faculty to participate in the program starting the week of September 9, 2024.  During the first term, participants will meet weekly for 10 weeks. Meeting times will be from 12:00PM-1:30PM, with meeting days to be determined. Lunch will be provided to participants. 

To apply, applicants must provide a draft of a one-page vision statement around a large-scale problem they are interested in pursuing, a current CV, their primary college, the contact information for their associate Dean for Research in their primary college, and a one page statement as to what they hope to get out of the program.  We anticipate that ADVICE will run every year, and applicants are encouraged to apply in subsequent years if they are not selected the first year. We do not expect applicants to have an explicit solicitation they are responding to as the purpose of the work carried out in the Academy is to prepare for future opportunities.  Hence, the vision statement is about possibilities that the faculty member envisions. 

Applications are due August 30, 2024.

Faculty who complete both semesters of the ADVICE program will be eligible to apply for one course release from teaching to develop aspects of their work that will facilitate making their vision a reality. This course release should be requested at a pivotal time for developing a center-level grant proposal, the timing of which will vary by investigator. This will be supported by the Office for Research and Innovation in partnership with participating units and colleges.

ADVICE is administered through the MSU Office for Research and Innovation and is generously sponsored by the MSU Research Foundation. If you have questions about the application processes, please reach out to Andrew Christlieb (christli@msu.edu) and or Kay Connelly (conne166@msu.edu).