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Program Expansion Grants

The Program Expansion Grant supports the intellectual and pedagogical work of growing high-quality global learning experiences.

Rather than for "exploratory scouting," this grant is reserved for mature programs that have already completed significant groundwork, such as comprehensive curriculum mapping, and designed a long-term partnership framework. This grant funds faculty travels to Virginia Tech exchange partners or ISEP exchange partners to strengthen student mobility. Proposals must be strategically framed within a department’s broader internationalization plan. Site visits must be targeted toward finalizing the following:

  • Academic Alignment: Securing pre-approved transfer credit pathways and understanding alignment with major requirements.
  • Logistics: Establishing in-country operations, identifying key on-site stakeholders, and finalizing formal program arrangements.
  • Strategic Agreements: Engaging partners to secure cohort-model agreements and exploring expansion of partnerships beyond established activities.

Note: Conference attendance can be tied to a site visit to deepen partner institution relations.

Timeline
Call for Proposals
  • Primary Cycle: March 1
    (for the following fiscal year)
  • Secondary Cycle: August 1
Application Deadline
  • Primary Cycle: April 15
  • Secondary Cycle: September 1
Award Notification
  • Primary Cycle: May 1
  • Secondary Cycle: September 15

Preparing to Apply

Award Amount:
Up to $3,000 per grant for program expenses (e.g., travel for site development, instructional materials, or partnership cultivation).

Matching Requirement:
A minimum $500 departmental/college match (cash transfer or documented expenditure) is required.

All full-time Virginia Tech teaching faculty (tenure track, collegiate, professors of practice, and long-term lecturers) interested in developing or expanding global education programs are eligible. Shared authorship is encouraged, but awards are capped at $3,000 per proposal.

Proposals will be evaluated based on four core pillars:

  • Innovation: Distinction of the program or partnership model.
  • Impact: The potential to result in high-quality student experiences with clearly defined academic goals and a high volume of recurring student mobility
  • Access: Supporting student success by reducing financial barriers and creating pathways for all students, regardless of financial and academic circumstances.
  • Sustainability: Articulation of a clear plan for the program or partnership to continue and grow in future years

Preference will be given to proposals that demonstrate the following:

  • Thematic Demand: Programs filling in a geographic/thematic gap in the current Virginia Tech portfolio
  • Geographic and Disciplinary Diversity: Programs that expand the university's footprint into less traditional regions and strengthen global engagement in new academic fields
  • Strategic Alignment: Programs aligned with Virginia Tech’s strategic aspirations and/or the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and those demonstrating interdisciplinary collaboration 





Submit Your Application

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Application Sections

Applicant Details:

  • Name
  • College
  • Department
  • Contact information

Financial Transfer:
Departmental E&G fund number for the award transfer.

  • Project Summary: Provide a brief history of the existing program and explain how this site visit will evolve the current model. Objectives should focus on deepening established immersive and reciprocal engagements rather than initial discovery.
  • Innovation Statement: Detail how this proven partnership is being elevated to meet new institutional priorities (e.g., experiential learning, SDGs). Explain how scaling this specific existing program fills a thematic, disciplinary, or geographic gap that current departmental offerings do not serve.
  • Implementation: Provide a timeline for the visit. Include the previously completed curriculum mapping and a draft of the cohort model design, demonstrating that the program has moved past the conceptual phase.
  • Impact & Reach: Using past enrollment and performance data as a baseline, define the student learning outcomes and metrics for success. Describe how this visit will specifically contribute to ensuring or improving affordability and the broad-based appeal of the program for the general student population.

Letter of Support:
From the Department Head/Dean confirming matching funds and academic alignment.

Maximum Length:
Three (3) pages (excluding Letter of Support).

Submitting:
Submit as a single PDF to Marielle Wijnands with "Program Development Grant" in the subject line.




After-Action Report

Recipients are expected to submit a 2–4-page after-action report to GEO within 60 days of project completion with the following information:

Budget:
Recipients are required to submit a report on fund expenditure

Status of Agreements:
Provide the status or a copy of the finalized Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), or Cohort-Model Agreement secured during the visit.

Operational Blueprint:
Give a summary of the established in-country logistics, including a list of key on-site stakeholders.

Scalability:
Based on the new cohort model or agreement, provide a description of how the program is now more sustainable.

Affordability:
Report on specific changes made to the program’s design or cost structure during the visit to enhance affordability and ensure the program is broadly accessible to the general student population.

Global Impact:
If applicable, provide 1-2 concrete examples of how the program’s activities directly engage the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Briefly describe how this growth visit ensured the partnership is reciprocal—specifically what the international partner institution or host community gains from the expanded VT presence.