Welcome to the  Office of Research and Creative Activities (ORCA) ! 

In the College of Arts and Science, strong research and creative activities are a core component of our ability to offer a stellar liberal arts education. Through these projects, our faculty make breakthroughs that improve the lives of all of us. They tackle issues and questions spanning nearly every topic; finding new cancer cures, learning how art affects our lives, treating addiction, and discovering how to encourage nationwide inclusion are just some of the many questions our faculty work to answer. The depth and breadth of projects provide a strong scaffold with which to build a robust college. It also ensures their breakthroughs reach every community in Missouri and beyond. 

ORCA supports work done by innovative individuals and collaborative teams. We highly encourage and help facilitate interdisciplinary research and projects across our college and our university. We also help create teams of researchers with other universities and private entities. Research and creative activities that pull together different disciplines and expertise have the power to discover innovative solutions that directly impact society today and in the future. 

Our office supports the full life cycle of sponsored projects from pre-award to grant close-out. Our team specializes in research development, budget preparation, and management of the online submission process, including sponsor portals and internal data tracking. ORCA is available for every department in the College of Arts and Science and can provide one-on-one guidance to faculty and students in need of finding funding opportunities or any other research development requests.