The Small Research Grants Program is “field-initiated” in that proposal submissions are not in response to a specific request for a particular research topic, discipline, design, method, or location.The goal for this program is to support rigorous, intellectually ambitious and technically sound research that is relevant to the most pressing questions and compelling opportunities in education. The Foundation seeks to support scholarship that develops new foundational knowledge that may have a lasting impact on educational discourse.
The Foundation values work that fosters creative and open-minded scholarship, engages in deep inquiry, and examines robust questions related to education. To this end, the program supports proposals from multiple disciplinary and methodological perspectives, both domestically and internationally, from scholars at various stages in their career. Funded projects will span a wide range of topics and disciplines that innovatively investigate questions central to education, including for example education, anthropology, philosophy, psychology, sociology, law, economics, history, or neuroscience, amongst others.
Projects may utilize a wide array of research methods including quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, ethnographies, design-based research, participatory methods, and historical research, to name a few. Projects may incorporate data from multiple and varied sources, span a sufficient length of time as to achieve a depth of understanding, or work closely with practitioners or community members over the life of the project.
Eligible investigators may request additional supplemental funds for a course release.
