The Jefferson Trust — a network of trustees that invest in U.Va. and together award millions of dollars to selected projects across Grounds — announced its spring Flash Grant recipients April 15. The Trust has donated over $110,000 to 17 student-led groups and projects since February.
According to Andrea Seese, associate director of promotions and events, Flash Grants are capped at $10,000 per recipient and awarded throughout the semester. Flash Grants differ from the Trust’s Major Cycle Grants awarded to University programs, faculty and students, which cannot exceed 25 percent of the Trust’s awards for the cycle. Flash Grants have a relatively quick turn around — applicants apply for up to $10,000 at any time throughout the semester by submitting a proposal, and decisions are made on a rolling, monthly basis. The Trust typically allocates $100,000 per semester for Flash Grants, and Seese estimated that the Trust receives around 50 proposals for these grants each semester.
Seese said that recipients are chosen based on the estimated impact of the initiatives and their innovation. All University students, faculty and University-associated organizations can apply.
“[Recipients are] chosen just based on our criteria of, ‘Are students involved? Does this enhance the student experience? Is this a new and innovative idea?’” Seese said. “Not every grant always hits all of our criteria, but those are the recurring themes.”
Seese encouraged students and faculty to apply early, noting that funds are allocated on a rolling basis and diminish as grants are awarded throughout the semester.
Here is a closer look at the seventeen initiatives that received Flash Grants this spring for projects ranging from student-led mentorship programs to initiatives to create prosthetic limbs.
Medical Device Make-a-Thon
The Medical Device Make-a-Thon — a 72-hour event that Frugal Innovations in Sustainable Healthcare will host in October — received a $10,000 grant. FISH, a Contracted Independent Organization on Grounds, aims to collaborate with University healthcare workers and students to identify community health issues and develop sustainable solutions.
Niharika Chandna, FISH operations chair and third-year Engineering student, described the Medical Device Make-a-Thon as a first-of-its-kind East Coast college event where interdisciplinary student teams work with expert mentors to design and present a prototype medical device.
Chandna added that FISH wanted to work with the Trust because of its mission to empower student-led groups and projects.
“We really loved the mission of the Jefferson Trust to support events and projects that are very novel and exciting,” Chandna said.
ChemE Cube Club at U.Va.
ChemE Cube Club at U.Va. received a $10,000 grant to support the development of a modular one-cubic-foot reactor for direct air capture of carbon dioxide. According to Jooyoung Kim, ChemE Cube Club treasurer and second-year Engineering student, the team is building and testing a design using ion exchange resin for competition at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers conference, which is a global meeting enabling innovators in engineering to pioneer new solutions. Flash funding will be directed toward materials, sorbents and prototype construction.
“The goal is to create a design that can be scaled up for industrial use to meaningfully lower atmospheric CO2 concentrations instead of simply lowering emissions,” Kim wrote in an email statement.
Roots on the Road
Roots on the Road is a student-led initiative that received a $10,000 grant to support its work in biking across the United States to explore the food system through conversations with farmers, chefs, truck drivers and everyday consumers. The team is organized by second-year Commerce student Augusta Halle, and the team will produce short videos, a mini-docuseries and a children’s book to raise awareness that agriculture is a shared responsibility. The ride will begin in May and last around a month.
FCAP Structural Intake Validation
A project at the Fried Center for Advancement Potential — a 501c3 non-profit that provides physical therapy and training to individuals with and without intellectual disabilities through student intern clinicians — received a $10,000 grant to support research aimed at validating clinical screening methods and developing a standardized tool for broader use in clinical settings.
Art in Wise
Art in Wise received a $10,000 grant to support the development of a series of visual arts workshops for K-12 students and adults in the Wise community. The initiative aims to expand access to arts education while increasing local engagement through hands-on programming.
Restorative Justice at U.Va.
Restorative Justice at U.Va. received a $9,840 grant to partner with Community Justice of Central Virginia to train U.Va. students in restorative justice practices, including facilitation and conflict resolution. According to Katrina Sadoudi, president of Restorative Justice at U.Va. and third-year College student, the University undergraduates will work with younger students to teach and practice restorative approaches to conflict as an alternative to punitive disciplinary measures.
Sadoudi said that the grant will allow students to receive free restorative justice training.
“[Restorative Justice at U.Va.] requested [the grant] because we really think that this is an amazing opportunity, both for the youth that would be benefiting from this, but also for U.Va. students to actually be trained in restorative justice,” Sadoudi said. “Usually getting trained in [restorative justice] is really, really expensive, so this is giving [students] an opportunity to get it done for free.”
From Research to Living Rooms: Family Literacy Resources
From Research to Living Rooms: Family Literacy Resources is a project through McGuffey Reading Services at the University’s School of Education and Human Development that received a $9,600 grant to develop research-aligned materials for families to help caregivers support children’s reading development at home. The project brings together graduate students, program leadership and a parent advisory group to create resources.
MedAscend
MedAscend, a student-led mentorship program, received an $8,400 grant to support its efforts to provide local high school students with STEM enrichment and college preparation resources. The program, led by Adam Polanco, MedAscend president and third-year Education and College student, connects University undergraduates with local high-school youth through regular STEM-focused events, mentorship and college readiness workshops.
Virginia Healthcare Consulting
Virginia Healthcare Consulting received a $7,055 grant to launch the University’s first dedicated healthcare consulting club started this year. The initiative will combine educational programming, real-world consulting projects, a speaker series and the University’s first healthcare-focused case competition to provide students with industry exposure and applied experience.
Theatre, Translation and Global Exchange: Learning Laboratory at U.Va.
As a part of the Portavoz Project — a literary translating project involving current and former students — Erica Cobb, faculty member in the Spanish, Italian and Portuguese department, requested funding for the Theatre Translation and Global Exchange: A Multi-day Learning Laboratory at U.Va. event April 6-11 on Grounds. The event received a $6,490 grant, and it brought Argentine playwright Rubén Mosquera and actresses Sol Leone and Milagros Mongia to Grounds for workshops, classroom visits and two public performances of the play “Entre Voces y Escenas,” featuring an English translation produced by students.
CalmSphere: VR Prototype for Wellness and Mental Health
CalmSphere — a student-built virtual reality mental wellness tool in development — received $6,309.88 to provide mental wellness programs to students such as guided breathing and calming visuals. Third-year College student Franklin Li spearheaded obtaining the funding for the initiative.
Machine Learning @ U.Va.
Machine Learning @ U.Va. — a CIO that aims to serve as a central hub for University undergraduates interested in machine learning — received a $4,620 grant for project-based AI education. The CIO offers lectures and reading groups to teach how technologies like neural networks and AI systems function.
Shubhrangshu Debsarkar, ML@U.Va. president and second-year Engineering student, explained that the club needed the funding in order to keep its costly projects available to students for free.
“AI is notoriously fairly expensive to run things. You need large language model credits to do a lot of your engineering,” Debsarkar said.
Debsarkar added that without the grant, the club would need to remain selective in determining who can participate. The grant will allow ML@U.Va. to be more accessible to students that want to engage with AI systems while remaining free for club members.
Cavalimbs
Cavalimbs — a CIO on Grounds that works to create prosthetic limbs to be used by U.Va. Health patients — received a $3,335 grant.
Maya Golubkova, founder of Cavalimbs and second-year Engineering student, said that she initially funded the club with her own money, and the organization needed the grant from the Trust to fund materials for the prosthetics.
“I was buying things for our club out of my own pocket, things like circuit kits, soldering equipment, wiring Arduinos, batteries,” Golubkova said. “And then we really needed to expand, because we had more people joining, and we were prototyping and iterating more. So, we needed a way to fund that.”
Sol/Luna
Sol/Luna is a project within the School of Architecture Student Council that received a $2,489 grant to design and build two student respite pods — compact spaces where students can rest outside of classes. The initiative focuses on creating spaces that encourage mindfulness, support a healthier studio environment and promote student mental well-being through active design and construction work.
AI Mixer: Conversations on AI, Society & Culture
The AI mixer is an event that received a $1,250 grant to host interdisciplinary programming March 11 that brings together University undergraduates, graduate students and faculty. The mixer took place in Monroe Hall and encouraged engagement with the social and cultural impacts of AI. Societal AI @ U.Va. hosted the event with support from the Trust and the U.Va. Alumni Student Engagement Fund.
Flash Tiny Desk Lawn Concerts
Tiny Desk Lawn Concerts is an initiative that received a $1,000 grant to host free student band concerts on the Lawn during the spring.
SEED Consulting
SEED Consulting — a student-led consulting CIO on Grounds — received $667 to host a presentation showcase and competition.
The Jefferson Trust will continue to offer Flash Grants in the fall on a rolling basis.
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