Advancement & StrategyResearch InitiativesINSPIRE! A Community Engaged Research ProgramINSPIRE! Community Engaged Research Seed GrantsCERSG Tier Two Overview

INSPIRE! Community Engaged Research Seed Grants: Tier Two

Tier Two INSPIRE! Community Engaged Research Seed Grants support WSU faculty members new to community engaged research or faculty whose community engaged research is in its beginning stages. A fundamental building block of community-engaged research is establishing trust and forming relationships that will lead to establishing research projects. Tier Two INSPIRE! grants are meant to provide seed funding to establish relationships with community partners, this may include travel, a series of listening sessions, focus groups, etc. Tier Two funding provides support up to $10,000 for one year.

Eligibility

Tier Two INSPIRE! Program funding is available to all WSU faculty members in any track and any discipline.

Timeline

DateEvent
November 1Notice of Intent due
December 1Proposals due by midnight
December 2 – 20Proposal review period
February 112-month award period begins

Notice of Intent

A Notice of Intent (NOI) is required. Full proposals will not be accepted if an NOI is not submitted. You can submit your NOI by clicking or tapping the button below. Be brief and use non-technical language. Late NOIs will not be accepted.

NOI Guidelines

Your NOI should introduce your proposed project with reference to the project’s potential to establish a community engaged research program and will contain the following sections.

  • Prospective applicant information
  • Proposal Title
  • Proof of completion of CITI Program Community-Engaged Research Training
    • Attached as an image or PDF.
    • Details and instructions for access are available below.
  • Broad Field
  • Description of Intended Proposal
    • Word Limit: 500
Submit NOI

Proposal Submission Requirements

The following elements are required for proposals to receive consideration, all of which are submitted via the online submission form linked below. Late proposals will not be accepted.

  • Non-technical Abstract
    • Use plain language understandable to a reader outside your field.
    • Word Limit: 300
  • Proposal Narrative
    • The narrative should include the following sections:
      • Project Background
        • Include a section on what in your previous scholarship or research leads you to want to do community engaged research. Is there some aspect of your current work that would benefit from doing CER?
        • Discuss any preparation you have done to familiarize yourself with the theories, methods, and practices of CER.
      • Project Objectives
        • Provide specific details about timelines, goals, and activities you will undertake during the grant period.
    • Word Limit: 1,200
  • References Cited
    • Word Limit: 500
  • Budget and Budget Justification
    • See Budget Preparation below.
    • A meaningful portion of the budget should be assigned to meet the needs of the community.
      • Examples include: Honorarium, food for meetings, stipends, travel, etc.
  • Focused CV
    • No more than three (3) pages.
    • Attached as a separate Word document or PDF.
  • Letter of Support from your Chair or Director
    • Attached as a separate Word document or PDF.

Contact your unit’s financial/budget manager to facilitate budget preparation. The budget form will need to be initialed by the certified grant budget administrator in your area/unit. A full list of grant administrators is available at the WSU MyResearch website, select “eREX Department Contacts”. There is no F&A required for this competition.

This program will support expenditures that directly contribute to the successful completion of a project. A meaningful portion of the budget should be assigned to meet the needs of the community. Examples include: honorarium, food for meetings, stipends, travel, etc.

All budget items must be reasonable, allowable and necessary for project completion.

Please prepare your budget using this form, which will be submitted as part of your application.

Budget Categories

Salaries and Benefits

Partial faculty buyout with approved release time, or partial summer salary, partial graduate student support and postdoctoral appointments are allowable but may not be the majority of the budget. Clearly state all base salaries, time committed to the project and amount of salary applied to the project.

Wages

Wages are permitted. Clearly state wages broken down by positions, include hourly payment rate.

Goods and Services

Include all supplies and services required to complete the project, itemize by major items and be specific. Contact the responsible personnel for cost estimates of services, if included.

Travel

Domestic and/or international field work, data collection, training, educational purposes, presentations or conferences directly related to the proposed work. Be sure to follow WSU travel policies when calculating travel costs. Check with a university approved travel agent or website for the most cost-effective travel to the destination.

Equipment

The PI’s chair or director must certify that the equipment to be purchased is not already available for use on this project. Major equipment items ($5,000 or more) are not typically supported but can be included with a very strongly presented justification and the required certification. Personal computers may be purchased for field data collection or other special applications other than general office use.

Community Support

This may include honoraria for elders or other local experts, travel funds to support community travel to a field site etc, rental costs for meeting spaces and small food allowances. Other costs may be approved based on specific community related needs.

Other

Provide a detailed description of other budget categories that will be requested. It is highly recommended that you contact the program coordinator(s) to confirm cost allowability.

This program does not support the following:

  • Civil service staff salaries
  • Journal subscriptions
  • Supplemental awards to existing projects
  • Student led projects or senior thesis projects
  • Commercial licenses
  • Membership dues
  • Facility renovations
  • Purchase of vehicles or other modes of transportation

Budget Justification

Appropriateness of the budget is a significant factor in the selection process. All requested budget items must be accompanied with a justification of how they will contribute to successful completion of the project. Please be aware that the review panel will consider your budget justification very carefully in an effort to maximize the number of beneficiaries to this program. Summer salary and full-time graduate student requests in particular must be strongly justified. Any items that appear non-critical will be at risk for reduced funding during the review process. An additional page may be attached for the budget justification for a total of two pages. If a proposal is awarded at less than the amount original requested, a revised budget and scope of work is required to be submitted to the program coordinator(s). Funds will not be released until these documents have been received.

Submit Proposal

Review Process

The Office of Research is responsible for overseeing the review process. A panel of peer faculty experts will be convened for each grant cycle. Successful Tier Two proposals will have demonstrated the beginnings of a sound, significant, and long-term project based in or informed by community engagement.

Award Terms and Conditions

  • If an award granted at less than the requested amount, a revised budget and scope of work are required before funds are released.
  • Prospective applicants are required to submit proof of completion of the CITI Program’s Community-Engaged Research course with their Notice of Intent. See below for access instructions.
  • If applicable, protocols for human subjects (IRB), animals (IACUC) and/or biosafety activities (IBC) do not need to be approved before the submission date, but must be reviewed, approved and sent to the Office of Research via email at or.orap.servicedesk@wsu.edu before the grant funds are released. Funds are not released until all appropriate protocols have been approved.
  • Prior to the grant start date, PIs are required to attend a briefing on grants administration, roles and responsibilities of a principal investigator, and post-award program information.
  • The awards are for a 12-month period. If needed, a one-time only, no-cost time extension request will be considered with a strong justification.
  • If the PI leaves the university prior to the completion of the grant, the remaining funds are to be returned to the Office of Research.
  • Any remaining funds after the grant’s termination date are to be returned to the Office of Research.
  • Acknowledgement of Community Engaged Research Seed Grant support must be included in any published work or presentations directly resulting from this award, including Showcase posters.

Final Report

By accepting this award, the PI agrees to submit a final report to the Office of Research. This report will allow the university to evaluate the effectiveness of the program. The final report deadline is six (6) months after the award period ends. The report will document any publications, presentations, exhibitions, media coverage, sales or marketing, projects, papers, proposals/awards or other accomplishments that resulted from the CER Seed Grant Program’s original support.

CITI Community-Engaged Research Training

Tier Two applicants are required to complete the CITI Program’s Community-Engaged Research Training. The course is suitable to all experience levels and will reinforce best practices for CER. It is available at no cost and will take most about 30 minutes to one hour to complete.

Follow these steps to access the course:

  1. On the CITI website homepage, choose “Log in through my institution” and find Washington State University in the list.
  2. Log in with your WSU credentials
  3. If you have an existing account:
    1. Navigate to “Learner Tools for Washington State University” at the bottom of the homepage and select “Add a course”.
    2. Check the box next to “Community-Engaged Research” and click “Next”.
  4. If you do not have an existing account:
    1. Proceed through the registration process until you reach the “Select Curriculum”.
    2. Check the box next to “Community-Engaged Research” and click “Next”.
  5. Navigate to Community-Engaged Research under “Courses Ready to Begin” and click “Start Now”.

Contact

Please submit any questions to the Office of Research (or.orap.servicedesk@wsu.edu).