The University Design Institute (UDI) at Arizona State University is excited to announce the release of Request for Expressions of Interest (EOI) for the Transformation Accelerator Program in the Philippines open to all Philippine higher education institutions (HEIs). This is part of the UDI’s four key activities in higher education capacity strengthening under the U.S.-Philippines Partnership for Skills, Innovation, and Lifelong Learning (UPSKILL) Program, a five-year initiative funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Philippines.
The Transformation Accelerator is an immersive multi-month program of UDI for Philippine HEIs to design, ideate, and prototype transformation projects that enhance the broader community, their regions, and the country to resolve critical challenges in higher education. It offers a unique and comprehensive capacity-strengthening opportunity for HEIs in the Philippines to engage in current design thinking practices and receive support from ASU.
The Request for EOI opens from July 15, 2024, until August 9, 2024, 3:00 PM Philippine Standard Time. Interested HEI Applicants will submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) response for consideration for acceptance into the program. This year, UDI will accept 10-12 university teams to be part of the program’s first cohort.
Successful teams will participate in a three-phase Transformation Accelerator program where they will attend a series of intensive virtual design workshops and coaching sessions with ASU UDI experts and mentors to help them develop and refine a university transformation project. HEI teams that participate in Phases 1 and 2 are eligible to apply for USAID grant funding in Phase 3 which will enable them to receive additional support in developing and implementing their proposed Accelerator Projects.
Virtual information sessions will be held on July 23 and July 26, 2024 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM PST. Those who want to attend need to pre-register through this link: https://bit.ly/3RHnnPD.
For more information on the EOI guidelines, please access this LINK.
The UPSKILL Program is a five-year (2023-2028) initiative funded by USAID and led by RTI International to advance human capital development in the Philippines by strengthening the country's higher education system for sustainable, broad-based, and inclusive growth. It brings together U.S. universities, Philippine government agencies, and private-sector entities to enable Philippine colleges and universities to become more globally competitive while improving graduates’ qualifications and career prospects to meet continuously evolving workforce needs. Led by Research Triangle Institute (RTI) International, UPSKILL will support the improved performance of higher education institutions (HEls) in research and innovation, entrepreneurship, and community extension.