FER Enhancement Fund

The FER Enhancement Fund primarily supports activities that enrich the student experience or contribute to the development of the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources. For example, the fund has helped individual students defray costs associated with professional development opportunities such as certifications and conference attendance. It has also furnished refreshments for the Leadership Board’s monthly social activities, funded the purchase of new equipment for the Forestry Club, and helped bring guest speakers to student group meetings. 

Both undergraduate and graduate students in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources may apply for grants through the fund. These types of requests are reviewed by the department head, who considers the student’s level of academic and professional development as well as their need for a grant and whether they’ve received prior support. The department head may also consider the existence of alternative funding sources for the activity described in the application. 

Faculty, staff and student organization representatives from within the department may also apply for grants. These types of requests are evaluated by a committee, which considers whether the activities described in the application have the intention of building a sense of community within the department and advancing its strategic objectives. The committee may also consider the total amount of funding requested and whether prior support has been provided as well as the perceived impactfulness of the activity and the existence of alternative funding sources. Higher priority is typically given to activities designed to accommodate large and/or diverse groups. 

Questions? 

Please contact Josh Gray, chair of the funding committee and associate professor of forestry and environmental resources, at jmgray2@ncsu.edu for more information.