Desiree Zerquera
Desiree Zerquera is an Assistant Professor for Higher Education and Student Affairs. Her current research focuses on universities in urban settings.
Faculty & Research
At the University of San Francisco, we cultivate a culture of collaborative inquiry and innovative study. Every teacher and researcher works in a diverse and dynamic environment, pursuing their interests with the full support of USF and its resources. Regardless of their backgrounds, experiences, and fields of expertise, they push the boundaries of intellectual curiosity to instigate change in society.
The Center for Research, Artistic, and Scholarly Excellence (CRASE)
CRASE supports and celebrates USF faculty’s research and creative contributions through interdisciplinary and community connections, innovative approaches, social impact, and active dissemination. Throughout the year, CRASE provides programs for faculty to learn new methods for research and scholarship, to make progress toward their research and writing goals, and to connect faculty across campus, and CRASE also organizes writing groups and workshops to facilitate public discourse on current issues.
Each semester, CRASE sponsors the Interdisciplinary Action Group Grant Award, which supports teams of faculty involved in a project with a specific, high impact outcome that provides new ideas and strategies addressing a social problem.
The Gleeson Library | Geschke Center
The Gleeson Library | Geschke Center holds 1.1 million books (including 407,670 eBooks), 215,162 periodicals (including 64,380 eJournals), and 240 reference databases. Faculty researchers may find and organize materials from the collection using fundamental tools like the online reference manager RefWorks, the peer-reviewed abstract and citation database Scopus, the borrowing network Link+, and the InterLibrary Loan System. Researchers also enjoy the following programs provided especially for USF faculty:
- Institutional Repository: Allows faculty to deposit their research into the repository as well as set up an individual page to manage all their publications. The repository tracks download counts for each deposited article, and provides regular reports to the author.
- Library Liaison: Pairs librarians with specific academic programs to better support faculty teaching and research, and to enhance the library’s instruction and collection development programs.
- Jesuit Library Passport: Grants USF faculty access and borrowing privileges at all 28 Jesuit institutions in the United States.
Researchers may also use the services of the Dorraine Zief Law Library at USF.
Grants and Funding
The Office of Contracts and Grants (OCG) helps faculty and staff identify prospective external funding opportunities, interpret federal and state agency guidelines, develop realistic budgets, complete application requirements, and prepare and submit competitive proposals. OCG also provides post-award support to faculty and staff to help them manage their grants and contracts.
In addition, USF offers the following sources of funding through internal grants:
- Faculty Development Fund (FDF): The FDF provides financial support for various research expenses, including conference travel and research assistant wages. Grants are primarily intended for faculty looking to fund preliminary projects that will lead to applying for funding from outside sources.
- Faculty Team Innovation Awards: USF awards $5,000 to teams of faculty members, representing at least two distinct academic departments, who successfully propose a new project that combines expertise from their respective disciplines.
- Jesuit Foundation Grants: These awards support projects that successfully incorporate Ignatian spirituality and help USF engage and foster its Catholic identity.
Educational Technology Services
Educational Technology Services (ETS) provides tools for the successful integration of technology into the classroom. Faculty learn additional skills for pursuing and presenting research through a variety of ETS training programs, including tech talks on new education and technology ideas, and an annual technology fair. Additionally, using their USF accounts, faculty can view over 1,000 instructional videos on lynda.com.
ETS also grants Innovation in Teaching with Technology Awards ($750 each), one to a full-time faculty member and one to an adjunct faculty member, for their outstanding use of technology in the classroom.
The Tracy Seeley Center for Teaching Excellence
The Tracy Seeley Center for Teaching Excellence takes its inspiration from a core principle of Ignatian pedagogy: cura personalis, or care of the whole person. Our programming, events, and community conversations are created and modified each semester to meet the changing needs of faculty, with the understanding that teaching is a form of caring. Our mission to celebrate, support, and help develop excellent teaching at all stages of a faculty member’s career emphasizes the centrality of community-minded learning in higher education.
