Overview
The Associate Provost for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (AP-DEI), collaborating with the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) and the University Library, invites applications for the Universal Design for Learning (UDL): Inclusive and Accessible Course Design Grant Program. This funding opportunity aims to harness the talents, passion, and expertise of our faculty to enhance DePaul University's commitment to fostering a welcoming and inclusive campus environment. The UDL program will aid faculty in improving students' learning experiences by 1) adopting Universal Design for Learning principles to shift focus from accommodations to accessibility, thereby removing barriers to learning for all students, and 2) integrating more inclusive course materials.
Grants are limited, and selection will be based on a clear plan to revise or develop a course that incorporates UDL practices, promotes inclusive perspectives, and features course materials from diverse scholars, supported by a recommendation from the department chair or program director. The selection committee will include the AP-DEI, and representatives from CTL and the University Library.
Grant recipients will receive resources and training from CTL on implementing UDL principles in course design, as well as support from a University Library librarian to access and incorporate materials that enhance the inclusiveness of course content.
Purpose
The primary goal of the UDL Inclusive and Accessible Course Design Grant Program is to motivate faculty to develop and implement initiatives that align with DePaul University's mission statement, which in part reads:
Guided by an ethic of Vincentian personalism and professionalism, DePaul compassionately upholds the dignity of all members of its diverse, multi-faith, and inclusive community. Through education and research, the university addresses the great questions of our day, promoting peaceful, just, and equitable solutions to social and environmental challenges.
Learning Outcomes
By the completion of this program, faculty will be able to:
- Enhance inclusivity and lower costs for required course materials by adopting 1) scholarship that contains inclusive perspectives from scholars with inclusive identities related to protected classes, i.e., age, ancestry, citizenship, color, disability (mental or physical), genetic information, national origin, race or ethnicity, religion or creed, sex (including gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), and veteran status; and 2) open- source resources.
- Evaluate the accessibility and usability of instructional strategies and identify potential barriers and solutions that are inclusive of all learners.
- Apply UDL strategies and practices to their courses.
Eligibility
All full- and part-time faculty are eligible to apply.
Applicants are encouraged to adopt principles and practices related to the three core components of UDL:
- Engagement
- Centering, affirming, and sustaining learners’ interests and identities
Emphasizing the role of belonging in teaching and learning
Promoting the role of joy and play for learners and educators alike
Cultivating empathy and repairing harm with restorative practices
- Representation
- Authentically representing a diversity of identities, perspectives, and narratives as they relate to learners.
- Considering perceptions of people, cultures, and languages
- Valuing multiple ways of knowing and making meaning
- Action and Expression
- Honoring and valuing a wide variety of forms of communication
- Centering and valuing forms of expression that have been overlooked or ignored by addressing biases
- Challenging exclusionary practices to build more accessible, inclusive spaces and systems.
How much time will it take to complete the course?
- Participants should expect to invest 15-20 hours total over a period of three weeks.
- The training includes one two-hour required synchronous meeting (on campus or on Zoom, depending on the cohort).
- Each week, participants should expect to dedicate at least four hours to completing online readings and activities.
What are the participation and assignment requirements?
To receive credit and compensation for the course, participants must:
- Attend the synchronous meeting.
- Complete D2L quizzes, submissions, and discussions.
- Complete all assignments, including developing or revising a syllabus that incorporates inclusive design principles.
What will participants receive?
The UDL Inclusive and Accessible Course Design Grant Program will provide a $300 honorarium upon completion of the course.
Application
Apply for the Winter 2026 cohort
The application will close on Monday, November 21, 2025.
Program Schedule and Modality
Winter 2026
The course will begin on January 26th. Participants will be guided through online assignments in D2L through February 13th. This option will include one in-person meeting on the Lincoln Park campus.
Monday, January 26th, 2026
| 9 a.m. CST | Course opens in D2L |
Friday, January 30th, 2026
| 10 a.m. CST | An in-person meeting, Lincoln Park Campus
|
Friday, February 13th, 2026
| 11:59 p.m. CST | Course ends
|