VIPEr Lab Fellows is an extension of a prior Fellows program, now focusing on improving laboratory experiences. The goals are for VIPEr Lab Fellows to revitalize laboratory experiment(s) using best practices for laboratory learning and incorporate more inquiry. At the same time, IONiC researches how faculty members approach change and its impacts on their students. The program is open to faculty from both 2- and 4-year institutions who teach general and/or inorganic chemistry laboratory courses.

The VIPEr Lab Fellows project is a two-year cohort experience with approximately 30 faculty members per cohort. The first cohort will:

• Participate in virtual interviews and write short reflections (Spring 2027; Spring 2028)
• Attend a workshop focused on inquiry and laboratory learning (June 20-24, 2027)
• Implement a revised lab experiment, collect survey and video data from students, and participate in virtual conversations about how things are going (academic year 2027-2028)
• Attend a second workshop focused on data analysis, reflection, and revision (Summer 2028)

Fellows will be compensated for their time, including $50 gift cards for participating in interviews and yearly $1,000 stipends after attending each workshop ($2,000 total + gift cards).

The application to be part of Cohort 1 of the VIPEr LaB Fellows project involves providing the project team with information about:

1. Yourself (e.g., prior teaching experiences) and your Department and/or Institution (e.g., highest degree offered, type of institution)
2. The laboratory course you want to improve (e.g., average enrollment, semester or quarter it will be taught next)
3. The specific laboratory experiment you want to improve as part of the VIPEr LaB Fellows project (e.g., the synthetic, purification, and characterization methods involved)
4. Your prior experience(s) with inquiry-based (and other evidence-based) instructional strategies
5. Support from your Department and/or Institution via a Letter of Support (more details below)

Applications will be accepted through October 2026, with decisions made in November 2026 and Fellows announced in December 2026. Any questions about the project or application can be directed to Justin Pratt at justin.pratt@uri.edu.  

Details for Letter of Support:

Instructional innovation is challenging and often requires multiple iterations to calibrate and improve activities to ensure they meet the intended outcomes. This is not only a time commitment, but the first iteration may not be “smooth,” and student course evaluations may reflect that experience.

Support from the home institution is crucial for the success of VIPEr LaB Fellows. As such, we ask you to provide evidence of this via a Letter of Support. The letter should come from leadership at either the department, program, or division level and be on official letterhead. The letter should include information regarding the following:

1. Acknowledgment of the time commitment and two-year Fellow experience, with both in-person and virtual meetings.
2. Understanding that the developed laboratory experiment(s) will be implemented at the home institution in the year following the first workshop.
3. Recognition that innovative curriculum can take time to implement and calibrate; the first iteration may not be "smooth" and student course evaluations may reflect this experience. Faculty/instructors/staff implementing these innovative pedagogies may need reasonable allowances in evaluation metrics to allow time to implement these high-impact practices effectively.

An optional template is provided below:

I am writing in support of (faculty name)'s application to be a VIPEr LaB Fellow. I recognize that there is 2-year time commitment and that a revised lab experiment will be implemented at (school name) during the 2027-2028 academic year. I recognize that the process of revising experiments may impact teaching evaluations, and I express support for implementing innovative pedagogies, including when the first iteration may not be "smooth.”