CPP Faculty Research Grant

Please note:  We are not planning to award the faculty research grant for the 2021-22 academic year.

The ACPA Commission for Professional Preparation invites the submission of Faculty Research Grant proposals. The awards will be funded for up to $1500 and made for a one-year period, beginning March 15, 2022. The deadline for electronic proposal submissions is 5:00 pm, Eastern Standard Time November 1, 2021.

Please review ALL of the details of grant proposals and process below. Proposals that do not strictly adhere to these guidelines will not be reviewed.

Purpose of Grant. The purpose of the Faculty Research Grant Program is to fund innovative research projects that further the goals of the commission and contribute to the body of knowledge about student affairs and/or higher education administration.

Eligibility. Proposals may be submitted by individual faculty members or by a team of researchers. In the event that the application is a team submission, the Primary/Lead Researcher must be a faculty member, but the remaining team members may be faculty, graduate students, or student affairs educators/practitioners.  Both full-time faculty and those who serve in adjunct roles are eligible to apply. All applicants, whether individual or as part of a team, must be active members of ACPA at the time of submission.

Grant Award Period. Awards will be made for a one-year period (March 2022 – March 2023).

Selection Criteria. Proposals will be reviewed on the following criteria:

• Relevance To the Goals of the Commission. Priority will be given to the funding of research on topics related to (1) graduate preparation in student affairs, (2) topics related to professional preparation, and (3) other topics of interest to student affairs professionals.
• Feasibility and Design. Research designs should adhere to design conventions of the methodology used, although no methodological tradition is given priority; funding priority is given to those research designs that reviewers deem have the potential to generate important and meaningful results.
• Overall Clarity and Quality of Proposal. Proposals should adhere to the conventions of academic writing, use APA style, and be free from grammatical errors. Budgets much be fully developed and use of funds should be clearly delineated.

Review Process. A Review Committee (appointed by the Commission’s Grants Coordinator) will review masked proposals on the above criteria. Depending upon available resources, the Review Committee may recommend that a proposal be funded at a level other than the amount requested.

Post-Grant Reporting Requirements. Upon completion of the study, recipients must submit an executive summary (maximum 1-2 pages) of the study and a summary of expenditures to the Commission’s Grant’s Coordinator. This report should be submitted within one month of completion of the study or by the conclusion of the funding year (March 14). All grant recipients would also be invited to present at a future conference as part of a research symposium.

Proposal Content. A complete proposal consists of four sections: Project Narrative (4-pages), Project Budget (2-pages) and Proposed Timetable (1-page), and References and Appendices. It is important that all aspects of each section are sufficiently covered in the grant proposal, as indicated below.

• Project Narrative. In a maximum of 4-pages, cover:
  • The rationale for the study
  • The purpose of the study
  • The relevance of the study to the goals of the Commission.
  • The research questions/hypotheses posed in the study
  • The methodology (sample, technique(s), data analysis procedures)
  • Instruments/protocols should be appended to the narrative and are not counted in the 4-page limit.

• Project Budget. In a maximum of 2-pages:
  • Include all costs to conduct the study
  • Reflect other funding received to conduct the study
  • Include the amount sought from this grant
  • Include rationale for budget items.
  • Exclude indirect costs.
  • Exclude any costs to produce the report of the study (e.g., photocopying, binding, etc.)

• Proposed Timetable. In a maximum of 1-page, provide a detailed summary of the timeline for the study.

• References Cited and Appendices. Please limit attachments, as the evaluation of the grant proposal will be focused on those items listed above.
  • Include a page of References Cited, if necessary.
  • Include appendices of instruments and protocols.

Proposal Length Limitations. Proposals may NOT exceed 7 pages, not including title page, references, and appendices. Page specifications for each section of the proposal are indicated in the proposal contents, and include: Project Narrative (Max 4-pages), Project Budget (Max 2-pages), and Proposed Timeline (Max 1-page).

Submission Guidelines. Proposals must be submitted via online form

Directions for submission: After selecting “Professional Preparation” from the dropdown box on the main submission page, click the specific award for which you are applying. Fill in your own information under the “Person/Group being Nominated: Individual, Institution, or Group” (you do not need to complete the top half of the form under “Nominator” since all of our CPP awards are self-nominated). Under “Upload Nomination Letter and Other Materials,” upload materials for your specific award (you do not need a nomination letter for CPP awards).

Upload your file as a MSWord or PDF document. Submissions must name files with the first few words of the award name and title of the submission. For example: Crookson Student Campus Climate. Your name or institutional affiliation should not appear anywhere on the document.

Submit your entry via online form. If you have any questions or need assistance with the submission process, please contact Drs. Leslie Jo (LJ) Shelton ([email protected]) or Rachel Smith ([email protected])..

The deadline for sending entries is 5 pm EST on November 1, 2021.  Late submissions will not be accepted.

The reviewers reserve the right to make no award.

Sample Grant Proposals:

• Sample 1: The Continual National Measurement and Assessment of Student Affairs Competencies (R. Sriram)
• Sample 2: Experiences of Students of Color in Student Affairs and Higher Education Graduate Preparation Programs (C. Linder)
• Sample 3: Faculty Perspectives of Online Graduate Education in Student Affairs Preparation Programs (V. Svoboda & K. Boyle)

2020 Faculty Research Grant Recipients:

• Antonio Duran, Auburn University
• Crystal Garcia, Auburn University

2019 Faculty Research Grant Recipient:

• Snejana Slantcheva-Durst, University of Toledo

2018 Faculty Research Grant Recipients: 

• Sonja Ardoin, Boston University
• Rebecca (Becky) Crandall, The Ohio State University
• Jeremiah Shinn, Boise State University

Title of work: SSAO Perspectives on Professional Preparation

2017 Faculty Research Grant Recipients:

• Jessica C. Harris, University of California, Los Angeles

2016 Faculty Research Grant Recipients:

• Matthew Shupp, Shippensburg University
• Carmen McCallum, Eastern Michigan University
• Amy Wilson, Buffalo State, SUNY

For questions, please contact the Commission for Professional Preparation Faculty Research Grants Coordinators, Reginald Blockett ([email protected]), or Conor McLaughlin ([email protected]), or Rachel Smith ([email protected])