APSA’s Special Projects Fund provides grants of up to $25,000 for collaborative projects aimed at advancing the political science discipline.
Applications for 2022 are now closed. They will reopen for 2023 in winter ’22-’23.
Learn more below:
Special Projects Fund 2022 Call for Applications
Projects must be evidence-based and provide wider benefits for the profession and the discipline. Projects must be collaborative (involving multiple political scientists, ideally from multiple institutions) and can be focused on any area of disciplinary work, inclusive of teaching, research, service, and public engagement. Proposals that are for a traditional scholarly project (e.g. production of a single author book or journal article) will not be accepted. We welcome and encourage proposals involving scholars from a diverse and varied set of backgrounds, approaches, and fields of study.
Past projects have advanced disciplinary knowledge, networks, and impact around a broad range of issues including climate justice, sexual discrimination and harassment, the cross-national study of race in the Americas, civically engaged research, Chinese politics, and support for junior women of color in the discipline.
Sample projects may include, but not be limited to the following:
- Regional or local teaching & learning conference or mini-conference;
- Graduate student and early career professional development workshops, including for career development connected to political science-related careers outside academia;
- Cross-institutional collaborative projects, especially those that draw faculty from across universities, colleges, and community colleges;
- Research projects that incorporate interdisciplinary, intersectional, mixed-method approaches, or big data;
- Research or projects that bring faculty and students from the Global South together with faculty based in the US and/or globally around topics of mutual interest;
- Research projects, conferences, workshops or colloquia that advance diversity and inclusion, recruitment and retention in the discipline, gender equity, accessibility, and the professional advancement of First Generation, Indigenous, and LGBTQ scholars, and scholars from underrepresented backgrounds;
- Projects that involve faculty and student collaboration and co-authorship opportunities, and mentoring components;
- Projects that connect researchers with users and/or public communities to co-produce reports, trainings, or other civic benefits.
To apply, please prepare the following materials:
- Project Abstract (1 page)
- APSA Member number for PI or co-PI’s.
- Detailed Budget (1 page). If the funds requested from APSA cover only part of the project costs, please specify the additional project costs and how they will be covered.
- Project description (3-5 pages). The project description should explicitly address how the proposed project will have wider benefits for the profession.
- Discipline impact plan (1 page). Detail specific steps you will take to maximize the project’s impact on the discipline. For example, your project may involve a conference aimed at addressing a challenge facing the discipline, but which will only actively involve a small portion of political scientists. How will you ensure that those activities are accessible to and benefit the broader discipline? How can you ensure that participants are drawn from a wide pool of applicants? Can you live-stream the event or a portion of it? How will you disseminate results? In what formats? Will you produce resources or materials that others could make use of? Will you hold a follow-up panel or event at a future annual meeting? Note these are examples,–we expect that plans will vary based on the proposed project and topic.
- CVs for the PI, followed by any for co-PIs.
Optional:
- Letter(s) of support from collaborative institutions (e.g., agreement of a university, college, or association to make space available for the workshop/meeting/etc.)
- Letter(s) identifying any additional in-kind contributions from any collaborative institutions.
Further guidance: All grants made will be subject to the same terms and conditions of APSA grants through the Small Research Grants Fund and Centennial Grants. Full guidance can be found [here]. In summary:
- Applications from members who have not previously received a Special Projects Fund grant will be prioritized.
- APSA membership for all PI’s must be active for the duration of the grant period, normally 12 months.
- Grant funds may be used for direct costs in support of the described projects, such as travel, hotel, meals (with restrictions), funding RA or organizational staff support, or office supplies.
- Grant funds for faculty time buyouts will be made on a case-by-case basis, with buyouts for faculty at BA or AA granting departments receiving the highest priority.
- Grant funds may not be used for indirect or overhead costs.
- PI salary support is not a permissible expense.
- At the time that grants are made, a timeline for fund use will be agreed upon. Normally, grants are for a period of 12 months with the option of a 6-month extension, as needed and if requested prior to the expiry of the grant.
- Applications received by the deadline will be reviewed, and we anticipate applicants will be notified of final decisions in spring 2022.
Questions?
Please contact centennial@apsanet.org to get in touch with any questions or for more information! Apply here by February 15, 2022: https://apsa.secure-platform.com/a/solicitations/88/home