Implementation and Evaluation of the ARIS Broader Impacts Toolkit

This project is designed to implement and evaluate a broader impacts toolkit aimed at advancing the understanding of mechanisms to develop effective broader impacts statements. The investigators will partner with ten universities to pilot test a suite of tools developed by the NSF-funded Advancing Research Impact Society (ARIS) Center (OIA-1810732).

Case study research will be conducted on different uses of the ARIS Toolkit. The ARIS Toolkit includes a) Broader Impacts Wizard, b) Broader Impacts Statement Checklist c) Guiding principles for Effective Broader Impacts statements, and d) Broader Impacts Evaluation Rubric. This research will explore local implementation, usefulness, and impact on Broader Impacts development within institutions of higher education, including institutions within Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) jurisdictions.

In addition to the intellectual merit of research on the impact of tools on researchers' ability to articulate meaningful broader impacts, broader impacts of the project should include: 1) greater capacity for Broader Impacts across institutions and individuals 2) a user-tested ARIS Toolkit for effective development and evaluation of Broader Impact statements and 3) a dedicated journal issue summarizing ARIS Toolkit research.

The project involves using an integrated suite of practices (e.g. professional development model, online accessible tools) to create a model program and resources that will help researchers and university administrators better understand and address the Broader Impacts criterion. University partners will participate in designing, implementing, and disseminating among their peers the ARIS Toolkit and share the ways in which these tools can be applied and adapted to address the Broader Impacts criterion.

Professional development and training materials will be designed that help Broader Impact professionals and researchers connect their university resources to their communities through the use of online tools and a model training program.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.