Dear Colleagues,

Since 2019, the Pitt Momentum Funds have offered internal funding to faculty representing fields and disciplines across the University for high-quality research and creative endeavors. The funds support researchers and scholars in fields from creative arts and humanities to engineering and physical and health sciences. Through these funds we are increasing interdisciplinary collaboration and spurring new connections among scholars and scientists across schools and disciplines, enabling them to broaden and deepen their impact on society.

The three-tiered structure of the awards makes it possible to fund work at all stages of the research cycle:

• Priming Awards help start projects
• Teaming Awards help establish collaborative teams
• Scaling Awards help projects do the detailed work necessary to pursue large external funding

We are pleased and proud to announce that the 2022-2023 Pitt Momentum Funds will fund 29 projects. Teams of faculty, coordinated by members of the University Research Council and Pitt administrators, reviewed 68 proposals to select these winners. We appreciate the efforts of all who submitted, and all who reviewed proposals.

The Momentum Funds are a collaboration between the Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor for Research and the Office of the Provost. Each year’s competition welcomes proposals aligned with the University-wide annual themes developed by the Provost. For 2022-2023, the Momentum Funds are funding five projects reflecting this year’s theme – the Year of Emotional Well-Being.

The Funds help push the boundaries of how we define and value research at Pitt, and the range is profound. We are proud to support community-based work with autistic adults, as well as studying how mountains form. We’re also proud to support researchers studying racial disparities in psychiatric committals, as well as those seeking to understand how waves affect the swimming speed of microorganisms in lakes and oceans.

Such significant accomplishments deserve to be celebrated. We want the University to continue to shine as a leader in research and discovery. But, most importantly, we want the work we do to impact the world around us. Projects like these look to solve today’s challenges with bold solutions and enhance the scholarly record for future thought leaders, creating unprecedented pathways.

Through flexibility and commitment, the Momentum Funds shine a light on the astonishing range of creative work and creative people who form the Pitt community. We invite you to learn about Momentum Fund projects and the people making them reality.

View the 2022-23 Momentum Funds Winners >>

Be sure to attend our Fueling Our Future showcase in September 2023, where you can meet and learn more about the Pitt researchers making use of Momentum Funds awards to further innovative, eye-opening scholarship.

 

Best Regards,

Rob A. Rutenbar
Senior Vice Chancellor for Research

Ann E. Cudd
Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor