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PURPOSE OF & INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE ASSIGNMENT In various professions and fields, proposals are necessary for many reasons. Learning how to propose an idea, to research options, and to support your claim are valuable skills. The research proposal is a memo written to the respective audience in which you propose the solution to one of the outlined scenarios below. In each scenario, I have presented a problem, and your objective is to provide sufficient information about the problem AND provide a proposed solution to the problem. Information about proposals can be found in Chapter 18 of Howdy or Hello. Remember the main goals of a problem-solution-based proposal: to provide background information for the problem AND to persuade the audience that your solution to the problem is viable and approachable. Your finished proposal will be around three to five pages long. Submit a digital copy to Canvas before class on Tuesday, February 3, 2026. SCENARIOS Choose one of the following scenarios to complete your research proposal. Scenario 1 – Education. You have been chosen by your grade-level peers to serve on a new committee to revitalize and enhance the way in which your school provides grades on formative and summative assessments. As part of this committee, you have been tasked with developing a proposal in which you explain the flaws and/or problems with the current grading system (the standard A, B, C, D, & F system) AND propose an alternative solution to the flawed grading system. Your research proposal should be addressed to your principal, Mrs. Jane Hill. Scenario 2 – Business. You currently serve as the head of human resources at your company. Your company has seen a high turnover rate within the last 3 years due to various reasons. You have been tasked by the president of your company to develop a proposal in which you outline the problems associated with high turnover rates AND propose a solution to increase employee retention and decrease employee turnover. Your research proposal should be addressed to the company president, President John Cooper. Scenario 3 – Environment. You currently serve in your towns chamber of commerce. The chamber has noticed the lack of opportunities for healthy lifestyle choices within the community. You, along with the other chamber members, have been tasked with developing a proposal in which you outline the problems associated with living in a community that promotes an inactive, immobile lifestyle AND propose a solution to create a community that promotes a healthy, active lifestyle. Your research proposal should be addressed to the towns mayor, Mayor Sharon Lee. Scenario 4 – Nutrition. You currently work at a local restaurant as a server. One factor that you notice working in the restaurant industry is the complete waste of food that occurs due to various reasons. You would like to find some kind of alternative to simply throwing away perfectly unopened food. As a result, you decide to develop a proposal in which you examine the growing epidemic of food waste and food insecurity in society AND propose a solution to combat this problem, starting with your restaurant specifically. Your research proposal should be addressed to the local restaurant owner, Mr. Louis Buffet. Scenario 5 – Marketing. You are the Director of Marketing for a local retail store. While the store is doing okay on business and finances, the store owner wants to beef up the stores social media and marketing presence. As the Director of Marketing, you have been tasked with developing a proposal in which you examine the negative effects of little-to-no social media presence for a retail store AND propose a solution and promotional options to improve the stores social media presence. Your proposal should be addressed to your boss and the store owner, Ms. Lisa Sims. Scenario 6 – Community. You are currently the Community Education Specialist for your local Community Recreation and Involvement Complex (CRIC). The purpose of this complex is to provide a space for community members to interact through events and recreational activities. One age group that you notice does not frequent the events and activities is adolescents (ages 12-17). You would like to appeal to this age group. You have taken it upon yourself to develop a proposal to explain the negative impact that no community involvement has on people of this age group AND propose a solution to create more opportunities for this age group to become more involved in the Community and Involvement Complex. Your proposal should be addressed to the CRICs director, Ms. Amanda Evans. OVERVIEW OF TASKS Use the standard memo heading for this class (review Week 3 for refreshing) and write the proposal to your respective audience. The proposal will include the following parts (five with headings that have been provided) with the appropriate information in each part: Purpose Statement & Summary. State your purpose for writing the research proposal and provide a brief summary of what the proposal includes. (This paragraph will NOT have a heading.) Problem Overview (Heading). Discuss the exigence (or the problem) associated with the scenario. Explain the background that has caused the need for a possible solution. In addition, explain the current state of the problem and why it is something that your audience and others affected should care about finding a solution. You must integrate evidence from credible sources into this section of the proposal. This section of the memo will be contextually informative. Projected Solution (Heading). Once you have provided an overview of the problem, next you will present your solution to the problem to the audience. In this section of the proposal, you will explain the basics of your solution, convince the audience why your solution is viable and approachable, and explain the projected benefits of your solution. Your solution should be backed by evidence from credible sources in order to effectively convince your audience. Deliverables (Heading). After providing your solution, the audience will most likely want to know what the result will be once the project is finalized. In discussing deliverables, address the steps that you (and your team) will take in order to achieve the end goal. Essentially, in this section, you are describing the process executed in order to adhere to your proposed solution. Think to include factors such as the plan of implementation, timeline, budget, and smaller progress checkpoints and/or objectives. Conclusion (Heading). Provide a final summary and brief review of each section of your research proposal. The conclusion serves as the lasting impression and impact for your proposal. References (Heading). Write citations for your sources in APA style. You should cite at least three to five sources in your research proposal. Your sources must be considered credible by experts in the respective field. Ideally, your sources should come from the LA Tech Library Database because the sources are credible. CRITERIA FOR GRADING The proposal is worth 150 points. I will consider the following criteria when I grade your assignment. Professional presentation (document appearance) Clear sense of audience and purpose Strong content and development Convincing argument Clear organization (both of sections and of ideas) Effective use of research to support points Correct integration of sources Proper citations in both the in-text (parenthetical) citations and in the references section Correct grammar, usage, punctuation, mechanics, diction, and tone Adherence to the assignment guidelines