BOONE, N.C. — The year 2021 marked the five-year anniversary of Appalachian State University’s Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program, which has awarded more than $275,000 to projects creating positive and lasting impact.

Established by Chancellor Sheri Everts in 2016, the program has awarded a total of 30 teams of App State faculty and staff up to $10,000 each from the Office of the Chancellor and the Division of Academic Affairs.

The program supports interdisciplinary teams of faculty and staff thought leaders who are working creatively and entrepreneurially to support university strategic initiatives, including:

• Sustainability in the areas of the environment, energy and economics.
• Diversity and inclusion.
• Student research.
• Global learning.
• Wellness and safety.
• Community and civic engagement.

“For nearly 125 years App State has been a university of teaching excellence — a primary facet of which is research,” said App State Chancellor Sheri Everts. “Our Innovation Scholars pursue diverse and groundbreaking projects and provide opportunities for our students to gain meaningful research mentorship.”

Applications are now open to fund projects for the 2022–23 academic year. App State faculty and staff from all disciplines and program areas are eligible to apply, and all projects must engage App State students. The due date for submissions is Feb. 21, and award winners will be chosen by a panel of faculty and staff.

Past awardees of the Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program:

2021 Innovation Scholars

In 2021, App State’s Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program awarded five teams of faculty and staff up to $10,000 each. Their projects included the development of a support course to improve student success in introductory chemistry courses, a four-year leadership and academic success program for Black male students at App State, research examining the use of unmanned aerial vehicle technology to monitor soil erosion, the development of a Spanish minor for health professions and a climate education program.

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2020 Innovation Scholars

In 2020, App State’s Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program awarded five teams of faculty and staff up to $10,000 each. Their projects included an immigration awareness and advocacy project, interprofessional leadership and education for the health industry, replenishment of tools for App State’s IDEXlab, mobile health technology for rural communities and designing a curriculum to develop sustainable practices among community and business organizations.

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2019 Innovation Scholars

In 2019, App State’s Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program awarded six teams of faculty and staff up to $10,000 each. Their projects included a climate storytelling initiative, a collaboration to enhance cybersecurity on campus, the development of experiential-based labs for students in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields, the design of apiary management software to help meet United Nations sustainable development goals, a program for financial literacy on campus and a climate justice initiative.

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2018 Innovation Scholars

In 2018, App State’s Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program awarded five faculty teams up to $10,000 each. Their projects included a program to help businesses improve sustainable practices, the development of a regional outdoor recreation database, the establishment of a minitheater at Moses H. Cone Memorial Park, a local food waste management program and biodiesel research.

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2017 Innovation Scholars

In the inaugural award year of App State’s Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program, five teams received $10,000 each, and four additional teams were awarded $5,000 each. The top five projects included year-round local food production in App State’s Sustainable Development Civic Garden, nutritional education for rural populations, robotics for traumatic brain injury rehabilitation, micro business opportunities for students in App State’s Scholars with Diverse Abilities Program and research around a biomass heating system for greenhouses.

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About the Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program

The Chancellor’s Innovation Scholars Program supports innovative research and practice by Appalachian State University faculty and staff throughout all disciplines and program areas on campus. These internal grants are awarded to Appalachian thought leaders who work creatively and entrepreneurially to address challenges; create lasting institutional change; provide community and societal benefits; establish opportunities that increase student engagement with research, creativity, innovation, design thinking and entrepreneurship; and promote broad-based sustainability in the areas of economics, equity and the environment. The program is intended to complement other innovation initiatives at the university. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu/innovation-scholars.

About Appalachian State University

As the premier public undergraduate institution in the Southeast, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.