In 2004, as we begin the fifth cycle of the IDEA Grants, DELTA remains committed to improving the IDEA Grants process. Grants have been offered through DELTA since 2000 but were not known as IDEA Grants until the year 2002. The Online Instructional Program group (OIP) is dedicated to management of this process and providing the services required to support the grant recipients.

DELTA has defined the following seven goals to meet these objectives.

1. Increase efficiency of the submission, review, acceptance and reporting process.
   The IDEA Grants were originally in a paper-based format and were submitted to the dean's office of each college. Then, all the proposals were sent to DELTA for review. Now, you are able to submit your proposals electronically through the IDEA Grants website. Colleges and departments still get a chance to review the submissions. In 2003, faculty from the DELTA Advisory Committee were integrated into the DELTA review process.
2. Promote an inclusive, fair, and systematic approach to proposal review.
   An overview of the current review process is available through the Frequently Asked Questions about reviews.
3. Promote high quality proposals and projects that meet DELTA objectives.
   High quality proposals and projects can lead to other benefits such as increasing the motivation of faculty to participate in projects increasing course quality and enrollments, and providing rewarding and challenging work for DELTA staff.
4. Improve the quality of student learning and number of enrollments in online courses.
5. Roll out a proposal and project timeline that serves the ongoing needs of the faculty.
   In previous years, the project implementation timeframe was about 5 months in duration and this caused limitations on the number and categories of grants being accepted. Now, the process has an extended timeline of about 9 months for implementation which allows more time to fully develop innovative and rewarding projects.
6. Introduce rigorous assessments of process and outcomes; make changes for ongoing improvements.
7. Improve DELTA visibility and outreach to all campus colleges and departments.
   The idea of IDEA Grants came from DELTA's need to support the Distance Education course and program development on campus. The IDEA Grants benefit DELTA by increasing Distance Education enrollments and benefit the faculty and their departments by increasing support and quality of courses.

Below is a table outlining the status of grants from 2000 to 2004.

* The figures in this table do not include the 2nd and 3rd year of funding for multi-year grants.