CU-CUASA Special Fund for EDI Research and Pedagogical Innovation (CLOSED)

General Information

Value: $5,000 to $15,000 each.

Duration: two years
No extension will be granted, except in cases of extenuating circumstances or delays that affect research and pedagogical productivity such as parental, medical, or bereavement leaves.

Launch: October 1, 2025

Deadline: October 31, 2025 at 11:59 PM

Results: Winter 2026 (To be published on Carleton’s website.)

Grant Start Date: May 1, 2026

Competition Information:

• Guidelines: Read below or download the GUIDELINES: CU-CUASA Special Fund for EDI Research and Pedagogical Innovation Awards PDF
• Application form: Access the web APPLICATION FORM: CU-CUASA Special Fund for EDI Research and Pedagogical Innovation Awards. Note: Incognito window may need to be used
• View the Terms and Conditions
• Resource contacts:
  • Research Stream Applications: Christine Rivas, Carleton Office for Research Initiatives and Services (CORIS)
  • Teaching Stream Applications: Dragana Polovina-Vukovic, Teaching and Learning Services (TLS)

Eligibility

• Applicants must hold a tenured, confirmed or tenure-track/confirmation-track appointment at the rank of Faculty, including Faculty, Teaching Stream or Librarian at Carleton University at the time of application. Teaching Stream Faculty should contact Teaching and Learning Services for more information, although there is only one application web form for all eligible applicants.
• Faculty and Librarians must either self-identify as a member of an equity-seeking group or have EDI considerations as the dominant focus of the project being proposed.
• Community-based research and non-traditional methodologies or frameworks are encouraged.
• Joint applications are eligible, but applicants must be active employees in the CUASA bargaining unit.
• Recipients can receive this award once every five years.

Scope and Priority

• Applications in any subject matter/discipline submitted by applicants who identify as members of equity-seeking groups — including, but not limited to, women, persons with disabilities, 2SLGBTQ+, Indigenous peoples, and Black and Racialized Persons — will be given priority.
• Applications focused on pedagogy, pedagogical innovation or the scholarship of teaching and learning with an EDI lens will be considered.
• 80% of the awards will go to Faculty at the rank of Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Full Professor and Librarian, while 20% will go to Teaching Stream Faculty, except in the event that not enough Teaching Stream Faculty apply.
• Half of these awards will go to early-career researchers, either pre-tenure/pre-confirmation or within five years of having obtained tenure/confirmation, except in the event that not enough early-career researchers apply.

Application Elements

• Self-Identification Questionnaire: Applicants must complete a self-identification questionnaire developed in consultation with Department of Equity and Inclusive Communities (EIC) and administered by the Office of Institutional Research and Planning (OIRP).
• Proposal:
  • abstract (max 250 words);
  • Description of the research questions and objectives, the methodology, anticipated results, and a work plan for the tenure of the award (max 1,000 words).  Applicants in the Teaching Stream Faculty category should speak about how the proposed project will inform teaching methods and/or excellence in teaching, particularly if the project is not explicitly oriented around the scholarship of teaching & learning.
  • Budget for the use of funds (max 500 words).
• CV restricted to the last 5 years, in PDF
• Letters of Community Support (OPTIONAL): If appropriate, written evidence of community support would be uploaded in PDF at the end of the application.

Evaluation

Merit of the proposal will be evaluated based on the following:

• Clarity and coherence of research questions and objectives;
• The relationship to teaching students about EDI-focused topics and/or enhancing the success of students from equity-seeking groups, particularly for projects focused on the scholarship of teaching and learning;
• Significance of the potential contributions, whether within academia or more broadly in the community;
• Appropriateness of the workplan, timeline and budget;
• Soundness of theory and methodology;
• Quality of student and/or highly qualified personnel training and mentorship; and
• Integration of considerations of equity, diversity and inclusion in the project design, as well as opportunities to develop experiential learning.

Adjudication

Grants will be adjudicated based on the following process:

• Each line Faculty and the Library will be responsible for creating an Adjudication Committee reflecting diverse identities and disciplines. Faculty Committees will rank up to ten applications and submit this list with the application packages to the University Adjudication Committee.
• Faculties will strive to ensure representation from early-career researchers and Teaching Stream Faculty.
• The University Adjudication Committee will be co-chaired by the Vice-President (Research and International) and the Provost (or their delegate).
• University Adjudication Committee members will include:
  • One member from each of the line Faculties and the Library
  • Two members from equity-seeking groups (within CUASA), one nominated by the Associate Vice-President of EIC and the other by the Associate Vice-President of Indigenous Teaching, Learning and Research
  • One member who works in the area of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, nominated by the Vice-Provost and Associate Vice-President (Academic); this should be a Teaching Stream Faculty if none are already on the committee
  • One member appointed by CUASA
  • Nominating Deans and Administrators shall strive for diverse representation

Contact Us

Christine Rivas

• Assistant Director, Research Services