Integrated Research Seed Grant

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture
Application Deadline: March 30, 2026

Integrated Research Seed Grants   

The Integrated Seed Grant program supports collaborative, cross-mission projects that integrate research, teaching, and/or extension while intentionally engaging new faculty and Extension Educators. The program is designed to catalyze innovative ideas, accelerate team formation, and position projects for external funding, scalable impact, and stakeholder relevance aligned with collaboration outcomes from Sept 2025, Agronomy and Horticulture Retreat and IANR priorities and Operational Strategic Initiatives (OSI) such the Digital Ag. OSI.  

Timeline 

Integrated Seed Grant Aims 

• Catalyze new or emerging ideas with strong relevance to Nebraska stakeholders, aligned with IANR priorities, departmental goals, and NU Operational Strategic Initiatives (OSIs)  
• Support meaningful engagement and leadership by new faculty and Extension Educators  
• Foster team-based work that positions projects for external funding and sustained impact  

Eligibility  

• Lead PI: Tenure-track, tenured, specialty track faculty member with research appointment.  
• Preference will be given to teams that include at least one junior faculty member (within first three years of appointment), and/or at least one Extension Educator (AGHT affiliate or closely aligned discipline).  
• Encouraged: Interdisciplinary collaborators (within IANR or across UNL), graduate students, postdocs, industry or community partners.  

Funding, Duration, and Budget (available funding ~$350K) 

• Award Size:  Up to $50K 
• Project Period: 12 – 18 months  
• Allowable Costs: Supplies, travel, data collection, workshops, and proposal development activities.  Funds may not be used for faculty summer salary or recruiting new graduate students, technicians or post-docs. However, funds may be used to extend grad student salary and benefits for up to three months after their defense to work on the proposed project. Similarly, existing technicians’ or post-docs' salary and benefits may be paid for up to two months to work exclusively on the proposed project. There are no constraints on the support of undergraduate students.
• Budget: A combined budget and budget justification (up to two pages) must be submitted  

Application Materials 

Proposals must be no more than three pages total, excluding the vendor quote and budget. The narrative should include: a Team and Roles section identifying the PI/Co-PIs and clearly describing the roles of new faculty, Extension Educators, and other contributors; a Problem Statement and Rationale defining the challenge, its relevance to Nebraska stakeholders, and alignment with departmental and institutional priorities; Integrated Objectives articulating that reflect research innovation, extension relevance, and teaching or workforce development; an Approach and Activities section describing coordinated research, extension, and teaching activities and how these components inform one another; Expected Outcomes and Deliverables; and an External Funding and Sustainability Plan outlining target programs, roles, and timelines. Documents must be 11-12 pt font with one-inch margins.

Questions may be directed to David Holding or Amit Jhala.

All requests must be submitted through department online submission portal  

Review Criteria  

• Integration across Research–Extension/Teaching  
• Meaningful engagement of new faculty and Extension Educators  
• Stakeholder relevance and impact potential  
• Innovation and feasibility  
• Pathway to external funding and sustainability  
• Clarity, collaboration, and alignment with priorities and OSIs