FoVea Travel and Networking Award
Females of Vision et al. (FoVea) is excited to announce its 8th round of the FoVea Travel and Networking Award. At least eight awards will be funded by the National Science Foundation and the journal Visual Cognition. The FoVea Travel and Networking Award includes up to $1000 to cover costs for attending the 2024 Vision Science Society (VSS) meeting.
Submissions are due on March 5th, 2024 and should be submitted through the following links. Questions can be sent to fovea.award@gmail.com.
The FoVea Travel and Networking Award is open to members of the Vision Science Society (VSS) who identify as women, including transgender, intersex, and non-binary individuals. Applicants may hold pre-doctoral, post-doctoral, pre-tenure faculty, or research scientist positions. FoVea is working toward advancing the success of all women in vision science and strives to be inclusive to members of all races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and persons with disabilities.
FoVea created this award as part of its mission to advance the visibility, impact, and success of women in vision science. A report from Cooper and Radonjić (2016) indicated that in 2015, the ratio of women to men in VSS was near equal at the pre-doctoral level (1:1.13) but decreased as career stage increased. The decline is symptomatic of forces that impede the professional development of women in vision science. A key aspect of professional development is building a professional network to support scientific pursuits and to provide mentorship at critical junctions in one’s academic career. The FoVea Travel and Networking Award will help women in vision science to build their professional network by encouraging them to meet with two Networking Contacts at the VSS meeting to discuss their research and consider potential for collaboration. The Networking Contacts can be of any gender.
The goals of the FoVea Travel and Networking Award are to:
1. Increase the visibility of women by giving them the opportunity to meet and have one-on-one discussions with senior scientists at the meeting.
2. Increase the productivity of women by potentially stimulating collaborative research with the Networking Contacts.
3. Increase the networking skills of women, both those who apply for and win the awards, and those who peruse the written reports of awardees on the FoVea website (www.foveavision.org).
4. Increase the accessibility of VSS for excellent women in vision science.
5. Increase the number of awards women vision scientists can list on their CVs, thereby enhancing their professional profile.
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS:
Materials to be submitted by the applicant:
The following materials should be combined in a single PDF and uploaded through the Submit Application link.
- CV
- Networking Plan (500 word limit): a proposal describing the applicant’s plan to network with two senior scientists during the VSS 2024 meeting. The plan should include an explanation for why the applicant chose these particular Networking Contacts, a plan for what topics will be discussed during the meeting, and a statement of how the applicant hopes relationships with the Networking Contacts will help advance their research/career agenda.
- DEI statement (250 word limit): a description of the ways in which the applicant is increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in Vision Science. This statement may include ways in which the applicant increases DEI representation, has diversity of experiences, and/or research activities that are bringing new opportunities for representation in Vision Science or the broader community.
- Networking Contacts statements of agreement: a statement from each senior scientist named as a Networking Contact that says: “I agree to serve as a Networking Contact for [applicant] and will meet with them at VSS 2024.” This is not a letter of recommendation and should not elaborate on the merits of the applicant. Networking Contacts can provide this statement in an email to the applicant or written on letterhead. Statements of agreement should be included in the PDF submitted by the applicant.
Materials to be submitted by the applicant’s advisor, research supervisor, or department head:
- A letter of recommendation from the applicant’s advisor, research supervisor, or department head. Letters should be no more than 1 page. This letter should be submitted by the letter writer through the Submit Recommendation link.
Awardees will agree to write a report on their networking methods and outcomes after the conference by June 3, 2024. FoVea will post these reports on its website.
ELIGIBILITY: An applicant must be a member of the Vision Sciences Community who identifies as a woman, including transgender, intersex, and non-binary individuals. Graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, research scientists (non-tenure track), or pre-tenure faculty members are eligible.
REVIEW PROCESS: Applications will be reviewed by a committee consisting of four members of the VSS community with Karen Schloss as Chair. Awards will be announced by early April.
REIMBURSEMENT: After VSS, reimbursement will be processed as a $1000 stipend. Individuals that are not residents of the US for tax purposes may have a withholding tax deducted from the award per Federal and State laws.
QUESTIONS can be sent to fovea.award@gmail.com.
FoVea Committee: Diane Beck, Mary Peterson, Charisse Pickron, Karen Schloss, Melissa Schoenlein, and Allison Sekuler