Course Support Grants

Honoraria for Guest Speakers

The Course Support Grant program offers a guest speaker honorarium of $150 per speaker per class.

Instructors may apply for up to four guest speaker honoraria per class per semester.

Grant-supported honoraria may be combined with funds from other sources if an instructor wishes to provide a guest speaker with an honorarium greater than $150.

Faculty from other academic institutions are eligible for an honorarium only if their expertise speaks directly to the community-engaged component(s) of the course.

Honoraria are not available for full-time University of Richmond employees.  

Parking Passes for Guest Speakers

University Parking & Transportation Services requires visitors to display a visitor parking pass while parked on campus.

Speakers should consult the Parking & Transportation website for more information.

Study Trip Transportation

Charter transportation can be coordinated for classes that are traveling together for a study trip. The CBL Grant program has the administrative capacity to coordinate transportation for up to three study trips per class per semester. All transportation costs must fit alongside any other support expenses in the $2,000 grant budget.

Materials

Some study trips might require students to have specialized equipment or materials. CBL Grant funds are available for materials that are directly related to the class, necessary to the learning, and fit within the grant budget.

Study Trip Meals

If the duration of a study trip will keep students off campus for the entirety of D-Hall service hours for a given meal, grant funds may be used to dine off-campus. Meal costs must fit within the grant limit.

Service Learning Transportation

The University service shuttle is the primary mode of transportation for students doing off-campus service learning. Students who require transportation to complete service learning commitments will be assigned a seat on the service shuttle whenever possible.

The GRTC #77 bus has multiple stop on campus and is fare free through June 2026. The #77 route originates at the VCU main campus and traverses the city via Grove Avenue. Many local organizations, institutions, and businesses are within walking distance of a #77 bus stop, and we urge students to take advantage of this fast and free transportation option whenever possible.

Uber vouchers are available for students whose schedules and/or service sites do not align with service shuttle routes or the GRTC #77 route/schedule. Voucher availability depends on site location, service schedules, cost of travel, and available grant funds. In cases in which Uber is the only available transportation mode for a class’s service site, we ask that students coordinate service schedules to share rides when possible.

In some cases, charter transportation (university van and driver) can be provided to transport part or all of a class to its service site across the semester. This option is available for classes in which six or more students are working at the same site at the same time, and is contingent on charter availability.

Background Checks

Some organizations (including all local school systems and other organizations in which service requires direct engagement with minors) require volunteers to complete a background check before they begin their on-site service. Instructors should confer with the service site coordinator to determine whether background checks will be required.

If your students’ service learning requires them to work in Richmond Public Schools (RPS), the CCE will coordinate the background check process in collaboration with the university’s Office of Risk Management.

Collaborative Project Transportation

Transportation is available for students in a class whose collaborative project requires visiting the partner site. If the entire class will be visiting the site together, group transportation will be chartered as for a study trip. If students will visit with partners in smaller groups or individually, transportation options will depend on the size of the group and where they are travelling. All transportation costs for collaborative projects must fit within the $2,000 grant budget along side other support expenses.

Honoraria

The Course Support Grant program can provide an honorarium for community partner(s) with whom the class is collaborating on a project. Collaborative partner honoraria typically range from $150 to $300 depending on the partner’s time commitment and depth of engagement with the class.

Materials

Course Support Grant funds are available for materials that are directly related to the class’s collaborative work and fit within the grant budget.

Internship/Clinical Transportation

The Course Support Grant program can provide transportation support for students who are completing credit-bearing internships or clinical hours. The service shuttle and/or GRTC #77 bus (if route stop is within walking distance to the student’s work site) are the primary modes of transportation available to students participating in internships and clinical work.

If a student’s schedule and/or site location cannot accommodate university or public transportation options, Uber vouchers are available in some—but not all—cases. Uber voucher availability depends on the site location and number of trips per week for which the student requires vouchers.

Student Teaching Transportation

Because student teaching commitments require daily round-trip transportation between campus and the teaching site for most or all of the semester, transportation support is limited. Instructors who are coordinating student teacher placements should reach out to the CCE to determine what options are available.