The Trust has awarded $75,480 across 16 flash grants since September.
“This was our first time running a Flash Funding cycle in the Fall semester. The high request volume is an indicator of students’ drive to advance UVA, and the wide variety of projects showcase the vibrancy of our student body. We look forward to the Spring round!”
Student research and learning experiences are key themes this fall. Projects like Tangible Microbes, Living Tectonics, Project Loch Ness, and others are offering students hands-on learning in the classroom.
Different than the Trust’s Major Cycle grants, Flash Funding grants are capped at $10,000 per project and are awarded monthly in the fall and spring.
The 2025 Fall Flash Grants:
Interpreting the Night Sky: $9,425
A team from the Astronomy Department is developing the first astronomy course for American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters, aiming to make astronomy education more accessible to the Deaf community.
Tangible Microbes: 3D Printing for Hands-On Microbiology Learning: $4,049
Students will create physical, interactive 3D models of microbes, transforming microbial concepts into tangible learning experiences.
Student AI Guides: Partners in Teaching and Learning: $10,000
Through workshops, learning communities, consultations, and resource development, students will help shape the use of generative AI in classrooms and ensure that student perspectives are included in university-wide conversations.
Living Tectonics: Bio-Based Futures Studio: $3,400
From the School of Architecture, Living Tectonics is a hybrid studio that engages undergraduate and graduate students in developing engineered living materials (ELMs) through casting and robotic additive manufacturing, upcycling agricultural and post-consumer waste into mycelium-based composites.
Project Loch Ness: $3,000
Students from the Engineering School plan to design, build, and test an underwater stealth technology demonstrator to showcase the viability of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) propulsion as a silent alternative to propeller-based systems for underwater vehicles.
CanSat Project: $1,000
The UVA CubeSat Design Team aims to design UVA’s first CanSat for the American Astronautical Society annual competition, providing hands-on engineering experience for UVA students. This year’s challenge is to create a rocket payload that separates and deploys a paraglider to glide to a specific location to drop another payload.
Project Pegasus: $2,000
A team of students in the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering department will study combustion and detonation physics by creating a system for examining detonation wave properties through curved geometrics. The project allows them to gain research experience and contribute to propulsion innovation.
Gullah Meditations: Performance and Guest Artist Residency: $10,000
“Gullah Meditations” is a choreographed concert of new, jazz arrangements of unpublished Gullah spirituals performed this fall. The project aims to preserve and reimagine African American musical heritage while providing educational opportunities for UVA students.
Beyond the Surface: Innovating and Elevating Artistic Swimming: $6,820
This project plans to establish the first artistic swim team at UVA and introduce artistic swimming to the local community.
Mobilizing the Occultation Group Fleet of Telescopes: $6,343
Funding helps the Occultation Group purchase hardware to modify their telescope systems for overseas research, enabling the observation of stellar occultations when asteroids pass in front of distant stars.
Revitalizing University Records: $2,863
University Records is expanding and upgrading the musical equipment available to students for music creation, practice, recording, and performance, as well as creating affordable practice spaces.
Girls Who Innovate: $9,922
Girls Who Innovate (GWIn) provides free entrepreneurship education and networking to help high school and college girls launch their ideas, including a Summer Entrepreneurship Bootcamp.
Dissemination of Novel Type II Diabetes Management Method for Awareness and Empowerment: $3,332
Funding helps to publicize materials for Type II Diabetes management developed by the Center for Behavioral Medicine, helping patients manage their diabetes more effectively than traditional methods.
KINEcted- Undergraduate Kinesiology Networking Event: $1,775
This event brings students, alumni, and industry experts together for career exploration and networking opportunities.
Wormi: $350
A student-led composting initiative, Wormi aims to divert organic waste from landfills by creating a composting network that transforms kitchen scraps into living soil amendments.
Japanese Cuisine in America: $1,200
Funding enables a group of students to explore cross-cultural dynamics through Japanese cuisine and local businesses by touring North American Sake Brewery and visiting Bad Luck Ramen.
