FAQ

Can the focus of the study fall outside of the age range of 5 to 25?

We seek studies on strategies to improve the use of research evidence in ways that benefit young people ages 5 to 25 in the United States. Therefore, our interests in this area focus on decision-makers connected to institutions that serve youth ages 5 to 25. Studies may include some youth that will be outside of this age range, but the primary research questions must focus on ways to improve research use in programs, policies, or practices that affect young people within the 5 to 25 age range.

Do you allow/prefer applications that incorporate both research focus areas, e.g., both the use of research evidence and reducing inequality?

Applicants are welcome to study both research focus areas. However, we have found that few applicants are able to do this well. The most successful applications address a few research questions within a single area.

Do research grants fund activities other than research studies, such as research institutes or programs?

Rarely. The large majority of our funding supports investigator-initiated research that is consistent with our focus areas.

Do you fund books or other writing activities outside your focus areas?

No.

Do you fund international studies?

Rarely. Our mission focuses on supporting research to improve the lives of young people in the United States.

Do you fund pilot studies?

Within our use of research evidence focus area, we are open to funding some pilot studies when investigators need research and development work to further develop and refine an intervention to be tested subsequently in a larger-scale impact study. Applications should include a strong justification for why the pilot work is a necessary step and how the results of the pilot study will contribute to longer-term intervention development and testing.

Do you award planning or feasibility studies?

Rarely. When we do fund them, they are generally initiated by the Foundation. We focus our support on empirical studies for which applicants have already performed a literature review, have identified specific research questions and/or hypotheses, and possess sufficiently detailed research methods and data analysis plans so that reviewers can evaluate their rigor.

Do you support scholarships, building funds, annual campaigns, fundraising drives, or endowments?

No.

Do you fund working meetings?

Rarely. When we support working meetings, they are usually commissioned to build capacity in our focus areas.

Does data “count” as research evidence?

The Foundation defines research evidence as empirical findings derived from systematic data collection and analyses. Thus data in themselves do not constitute research evidence. When data are used in a planned investigation, this more closely aligns with the Foundation’s definition. Applicants should provide their definition of research evidence and a strong rationale to support the definition proposed.

Do you have a preference for particular conceptual frameworks on use of research evidence?

No. We welcome theories and conceptual frameworks from multiple disciplines, but applicants must articulate a compelling rationale for the framework or lens they are adopting and how it will guide interpretation of the findings.

What is the relationship between your interest in understanding the use of research evidence and translational research, dissemination research, or implementation science?

All of these efforts—including the Foundation’s—aim to understand how to enhance the uptake of research evidence. Dissemination research, translational research, and implementation science often focus on moving research from the producer to the user (e.g., better packaging interventions, improving communication, and developing better strategies for program adoption). The Foundation is also interested in the conditions under which demand for research increases from the users. To this end, the Foundation is also interested in relationships between the user and other conveyors of research as well as the organizational conditions that support the productive use of research evidence.

Are you interested in studies of evidence-based programs?

It depends. We are interested in understanding the uptake and application of evidence-based programs if it tells us something about the role of research evidence in adoption, implementation, and adaptation decisions. Applicants should not simply equate the use of an evidence-based program with use of research evidence.

Are you interested in studies of research-practice partnerships?

We support studies that examine attempts to improve the use of research evidence, including research-practice partnerships. We are interested in understanding the conditions that support partnerships that positively impact the use of research evidence and thus youth outcomes.

Will the Foundation fund a strategy I developed to increase policymakers’ and practitioners’ use of research evidence?

The Foundation will not support the improvement effort itself. The Foundation does support research focused on learning from such attempts. This may involve descriptive studies that follow promising cases or studies that examine intentional attempts to improve research evidence use.

What percent of applications are awarded funding?

About 5 percent of major grants letters of inquiry result in funding. We typically invite about 15 percent of applicants to submit a full proposal, and about 20 percent of these proposals are granted an award.

About 8-10 percent of letters of inquiry for Officers’ research grants are awarded funding

Are staff members available to discuss projects prior to a letter of inquiry?

We are a small staff and generally do not have capacity for conversations about individual project ideas prior to the submission of the letter of inquiry. We highly encourage you to review the Resources for Applicants webpage (particularly the resources highlighted under the “Applicant Guidance” section), annotated excerpts from successful proposals, and examples of our recent grants before submitting your letter of inquiry for consideration. Please note that, due to the high volume of proposals, we are also unable to provide customized feedback to applicants whose proposals do not advance in the review process.

Who should submit the letter of inquiry?

The principal investigator should submit the letter of inquiry. Our application system is configured in such a way that the principal investigator must be the applicant for purposes of submitting the letter of inquiry. An office of sponsored programs or development representative who wishes to submit a letter of inquiry on behalf of the principal investigator should be sure to use the principal investigator’s SmartSimple account to submit the application.

May an organization submit multiple applications?

We do not limit the number of research grant applications by organization. We will certainly accept letters of inquiry from multiple principal investigators at the same organization.

May an applicant submit more than one proposal, or apply for a major research grant and an Officers’ research grant or William T. Grant Scholar’s Award at the same time?

Applicants may submit more than one letter of inquiry or applications to multiple funding opportunities, provided the applicant meets the eligibility requirements for each individual funding opportunity. However, we encourage applicants to focus their resources on developing a few ideas well and avoid compromising the quality of their work with concurrent or competing demands.

May I re-apply for a research grant?

Yes, you may resubmit a letter of inquiry.

What is the timeframe between letter of inquiry submission and funding notification?

The entire process takes between 10 and 15 months. The review process for letters of inquiry is about eight weeks and is conducted by staff. The time between an invitation for a full proposal and its submission is 2-5 months. The review process for full proposals is about six months.

Should teams involving community-based-organizations and researchers have all partners on board before submitting the letter of inquiry?

The letter of inquiry process is highly competitive. Thus we encourage applicants to involve their research partner to develop the strongest letter of inquiry possible. Conversely, if you are a researcher proposing to work with a CBO, the letter of inquiry should reflect your partner’s motivation for the project and demonstrate a nuanced understanding of their context.

Are letters of support encouraged at the letter of inquiry stage?

In general, applicants are welcome, though not required, to submit letters of support with the letter of inquiry. For applicants interested in major research grants, we encourage applicants to wait until they are invited to submit a full proposal to submit their letters of support. For applicants interested in Officers’ research grants, we recommend that you submit letters of support when you submit your letter of inquiry. Please bundle any letters of support that you wish to submit in the same file as your project narrative and reference list.

Is it possible to submit figures and appendices with the letter of inquiry?

You are welcome to submit appendices to the five-page letter of inquiry narrative, bundled into the same upload as the narrative document, although we cannot guarantee that reviewers will consider materials submitted in excess of the five-page narrative limit.

Does the Foundation have formatting requirements for the one-page curricula vitae, biographical sketches, or resumes?

No. Applicants are encouraged to include details about their education and training, relevant peer-reviewed publications, and grants in their one-page curricula vitae, biographical sketches, and resumes, but may otherwise format these documents at their own discretion.

What expectations do you have for the career status of PIs?

Candidates at all career stages can apply, but are evaluated in terms of their abilities to successfully carry out the proposed work. Check with your home institution about their eligibility requirements.

What are your criteria for measuring a researchers’ track record?

We evaluate an applicant’s track record based on prior success managing a research project and peer-reviewed empirical publications. For certain proposals, we also value evidence of connections with audiences outside of the research community.

What constitutes tax-exempt status?

The IRS guidelines stipulate that an organization can receive tax-exempt donations only if it has an “exempt purpose” as defined in Section 501(c)3. The organization does not need a 501(c)(3) classification.

Is a for-profit organization eligible to serve as a subcontractor on a grant?

The Foundation does not have any eligibility requirements for subcontractors on research grants. Check with your home institution about their eligibility requirements.

Do you prefer particular research designs and methods?

We do not privilege one type of research design over another. We start our reviews by looking at the research questions and the goals of the study. Next we evaluate whether the theoretical approach usefully informs the questions and whether the proposed methods and designs are well-aligned with the interests. Given the diversity of important research questions, we support studies using a wide range of designs and methods, such as field experiments, non-experimental longitudinal studies, ethnographies, and comparative case studies.

Do you fund evaluation studies?

Yes. Proposed evaluation studies should specify a theoretical basis for the program, policy, or practice and enhance understanding of its effects. This may include considering the mechanisms through which effects occur or variation in intervention effects. Thus, studies should shed light not solely on “what works,” but on what works for whom, under what conditions, and why.

Do you fund syntheses or reviews of research?

Yes. The Foundation supports high-quality research syntheses.