The Siegel Family Endowment PiTech Faculty Impact Fellowship intends to provide a platform for established faculty who wish to explore innovative ideas and pursue novel channels for addressing public needs.

Proposed fellowship projects may, among other things, directly apply technology in the service of public interest, or pursue efforts aimed at furthering public interest technology goals. We are looking to support concepts that put social impact at the forefront of their mission and may not lend themselves to traditional funding sources.

Eligibility and Timeline

The Siegel PiTech Faculty Impact Fellowship welcomes faculty from a variety of technical fields, including computer science, information systems, and engineering. Those applying must hold a faculty position at a US university and have a significant academic portfolio. The fellowship is currently available to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. 

We accept applications August 1st through February 28th, 5 PM EST each year. One Faculty Fellow is selected annually.

The fellowship term is between 6-12 months with a flexible start date. 

Fellowship Support

The Faculty Fellow will receive compensation at an annual, half-time rate of $90,000. The stipend is not meant to reflect the applicant’s current salary.

In addition to the stipend, the Faculty Fellow will have access to a project budget of $5,000 to cover expenses such as travel (including airfare and hotel). 

The Faculty Fellow will additionally have access to the Cornell Tech campus and our extensive network of researchers pursuing initiatives at the cutting-edge of their technical disciplines and practitioners working across many New York City government agencies, nonprofits, and industry.

Application and Selection

Applicants are required to submit a one- to two-page opportunity statement that details their proposed project(s) and outlines how they intend to spend their sabbatical/leave putting their ideas into action. The opportunity statement should be accompanied by a CV and three (3) professional references. 

The opportunity statement should address the following questions:

• What’s the problem you would like to address with your project/initiative?
• What are the potential outputs of your project/initiative? For example, will your goal be to create a software or data product, found a company or non-profit, or start an initiative to address your stated problem? How do you foresee sustaining the initiative?
• Who are the intended audiences of your initiative? 
• Why is this problem important and what are the possible challenges that may arise?
• Can a pilot, working prototype, or roadmap be developed within the fellowship time frame?
• Which Cornell Tech resources would you hope to leverage in pursuit of your initiative?

The submitted applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis by the PiTech team. Finalists will be invited to interview. Unfortunately, we will not be able to provide specific feedback on all applications.

Fellowship Expectations

For the duration of the fellowship, Faculty Fellows will work on their proposed projects and will be strongly encouraged to take advantage of the considerable academic and logistical resources at Cornell Tech, including participating in PiTech programming and engaging with other faculty and students.

Faculty Fellows will be expected to spend time regularly on the Cornell Tech campus (preferably at least a week a month) to maximize access to Cornell Tech resources. When not on campus, they must be working from the United States.  

Contact Information

For more information, please contact: pitech-info@tech.cornell.edu.