Information on Funding Opportunities in Educational Research
Currently Available and Expected Release
AACOM (American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine) Research Grants
Purpose: To provide topic-specific medical education research and institutional research grants.
Some examples of Medical Education themes include:
 Identification of best practices in the teaching/learning and assessment of the core
competencies
 Identification of best practices in the teaching/learning and assessment of student
interprofessional competencies
 Identification of the distinctive features of OME (e.g., training in the use of touch as part of
osteopathic practice, etc.)
 Identification of faculty/preceptor development approaches that lead to positive change in
student learning outcomes
 Studies comparing the outcomes of student learning in inpatient and outpatient
teaching/learning environments
 Identification of the impact of technology integration into the teaching/learning process
 Identification of strategies to encourage students to begin developing clinical reasoning/problem
solving skills during their first two years of medical school
 Impact of technology on student learning
 Impact of interprofessional education on practice habits/patient outcomes
Institutional Research encompasses work done at colleges to inform decision-making and planning.
Topics such as implications of expansion of Osteopathic Medical Colleges, branch campuses,
additional teaching sites and class size are all of increasing interest. Institutional Research themes can
include:
 Analysis of factors that influence both specialty choice and choice of geographic setting for
practice - beyond teaching/learning approach (to include SES and demographics of students)
 Analysis of factors influencing selection of OGME vs ACGME
 Analysis of institutional support factors influencing student success in med school
 Analysis of institutional support factors influencing student success in post graduate training
 Analysis of factors influencing student selection of medical school for attendance
 Analysis of factors beyond the MCAT and undergrad GPA in predicting medical school success
(for example - nature and quality of pre-requisites)
 Identification of factors that might influence the success of volunteer preceptors
 Analysis of the relationship between chronological order of clinical rotations and specialty choice
Funding is available for up to $10,000 over an 18-month period. Up to $10,000 is available for
collaborative projects, and up to $5,000 is available for smaller pilot projects or single-campus studies.
Priority will be given to those projects that involve inter-institutional collaboration as well as those
projects that can maintain sustainability after the grant period ends.
Next submission deadline is February 2015. Website for information is http://www.aacom.org/reportsprograms-initiatives/programs/aacom-grants.
AOA (American Osteopathic Association) Research Grants
Purpose: (1) To generate and support research that develops and promotes an understanding of the
philosophy, concepts and efficacy of Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine (OMM); and (2) to develop and
maintain the research capacity of the profession through support and training for researchers.
AOA offers research funding for projects that investigate the unique aspects of osteopathic medicine.
Examples of research of interest to AOA include:
 Mechanisms of Action of OMM/OMT
 Clinical Efficacy of OMM/OMT
 Inter- and intra-rater reliability of palpatory assessment
 Cost effectiveness of osteopathic health care
 Osteopathic physician and patient interactions
 Methods of teaching palpation and OMM/OMT
Projects will run up to two years and can be funded for up to $50,000 a year.
The AOA Division of Research Development is currently undergoing a realignment based upon the new
strategic vision for research AOA published this summer (http://www.osteopathic.org/insideaoa/Pages/6-19-14-new-strategic-vision-for-research.aspx).
Osteopathic research will remain the central focus for their research funding mechanism; however an
additional emphasis will be placed on outcomes such as:
• Publication of results from awards funded by AOA
• “Next step” projects that seek other extramural funding to continue and expand the program
(example: an application submission to NIH’s National Center for Complementary and
Alternative Medicine).
AOA plans to hold a research symposium in January 2015 to release details about the reorganization
and the new priorities for research funding. Information will be shared with the COMs soon on this
symposium, and the Research Department will announce outcomes from the symposium.
AOA anticipates the next research grant due dates to be mid 2015. Information on this will be given at
their January symposium. In addition, the AOA Research Handbook is being revised; VCOM Office of
Research Administration will post when the revised handbook is available.
National Board of Medical Examiners – Stemmler Medical Education Research Fund
The goal of the Stemmler Fund is to provide support for research or development of innovative
assessment approaches that will enhance the evaluation of those preparing to, or continuing to,
practice medicine.
Expected outcomes include advances in the theory, knowledge, or practice of assessment at any point
along the continuum of medical education.
Pilot and more comprehensive projects are both of interest. Collaborative investigations within or
among institutions are eligible, particularly as they strengthen the likelihood of the project's contribution
and success.
Methods could include:
 Studies to determine if admission methods can predict medical student performance
 Development of an observational tool for assessment
 Using simulation technology to improve educational experience
Studies can investigate undergraduate education, graduate education and training, as well as practicing
physician training.
Developmental studies: These describe new assessment methods and include comprehensive validity
evidence
Effectiveness studies: These ask if expectations are fulfilled and does a program work. Examples
include progress assessment, admission OSCEs, high fidelity video vignettes and assessment of team
performances
Clarification studies: Ask why and how questions, such as: why do things function the way they do?
Next due date will be summer 2015. A letter of intent is required and a full application will be submitted
upon invitation. Funding is typically up to $150,000 for one to two years.
More information on the program can be found here: http://www.nbme.org/research/stemmler.html
To review grants awarded, please visit: http://www.nbme.org/research/grantsawarded.html
American Educational Research Association (AERA)
AERA is a non-profit organization that receives support from NSF for funding grants. Their goal is to
stimulate research on education issues using data from large-scale, national data sets supported by
federal agencies such as NSF, National Center for Education Statistics, etc.
Research projects must include analysis of existing data from national data sets as listed above.
Projects must be quantitative in nature and have U.S. education policy relevance.
Applicants are encouraged to submit applications that:
 Develop or benefit from new quantitative measures or methodological approaches for
addressing education issues
 Include interdisciplinary teams with subject matter expertise, especially when studying science,
technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) learning
 Include the integration and analysis of more than one data set
Topics of interest include:
 Policies and practice related to student achievement in STEM
 Contextual factors in education (characteristics in the learning environment that influence the
effectiveness of instruction)
 Education participation and persistence
 Postsecondary education
Awards for Research Grants are up to $20,000 for one-year projects, or up to $35,000 for two-year
projects. The next deadline is January 15, 2015, and funding decisions will be announced in March.
Announcement can be found here:
http://www.aera.net/ProfessionalOpportunitiesFunding/FundingOpportunities/AERAGrantsProgram/Res
earchGrants/tabid/12813/Default.aspx
A listing of prior funding can be found here (abstracts available):
http://www.aera.net/ProfessionalOpportunitiesFunding/AERAFundingOpportunities/GrantsProgram/Res
earchGrants/FundedResearchGrants/tabid/13403/Default.aspx
Arthur Vining Davis Foundation
Foundation focuses on fostering “caring attitudes” among health professionals whose work affects
patient care and medical outcomes.
Grant requests should advance programs and priorities to meet the emotional, spiritual and
psychological needs of patients and families. Innovative projects with potential for national expansion
that enhance the skills, compassion and empathy of healthcare professionals are encouraged.
Programs that improve patient medical care through an integrated approach to patient support at all
levels of care are also of interest.
Competitive proposals will reflect at least one or more of the following:
 Enhanced collaboration within the healthcare team;
 High quality training in patient-centered care; or
 Extensive improvements in patient care throughout the delivery system.
Funding is also available for curricular projects on communication skills, caring attitudes and
compassionate care.
Next due date is April 1, 2015. Proposals are accepted in two grant cycles annually, April or November
1 of each year. Funding ranges from $25,000 to $200,000.
For more information on the Foundation’s health care grants, please visit:
http://www.avdf.org/FoundationsPrograms/HealthCare.aspx
To review prior awards, please visit: http://www.avdf.org/RecentGrants/HealthCare.aspx.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
RWJ is the US’s largest foundation focused solely on health and healthcare. Their mission is to improve
the health of all Americans.
They typically fund projects that have measureable impact and create meaningful changes such as:
 Service demonstrations
 Policy analysis
 Gathering and monitoring of health Health services research
related statistics
 Technical assistance
 Public education
 Communications activities
 Training and fellowship programs
 Evaluations
Examples of service demonstrations include testing innovative strategies and alternative models for
service delivery to see if they are successful and sustainable. Health services research and
evaluations projects can include those that assess the effectiveness of technology in healthcare
(especially in rural areas). This can include teletechnology, electronic health record system for rural
site, etc.
Broad areas of funding are listed here: http://www.rwjf.org/en/our-work.html.
RWJ routinely funds through targeted calls for proposals. All open solicitations are available here:
http://www.rwjf.org/en/grants/funding-opportunities.html. In addition, they do fund unsolicited proposals
for projects that suggest new and creative approaches to solving healthcare problems. Information on
these can be found: http://www.rwjf.org/en/grants/what-we-fund/submit-a-proposal.html.
To see what has been funded in the past, go to: http://www.rwjf.org/en/grants/search.html.
Arnold P. Gold Foundation
The Gold Foundation’s signature programs and grant making activities promote the development of
humanistic healthcare professionals. In addition to these, the foundation also funds research and
educational programs that promote their mission of fostering humanism in health care.
Program grants support simple curricular interventions that include strong evaluation components.
Interventions should be designed so that they can easily be disseminated to other institutions as well as
be self-sustaining. Such examples would be changing from lecture-based to case-based learning or
changing teaching strategies and/or learning activities.
Research grants that involve curricular and other educational interventions must have a rigorous study
design and seek findings beyond participant satisfaction or other basic evaluation data. They are
specifically interested in:
 Evaluation of methods for effective interprofessional education
 Linking humanistic practices to patient, provider and systems outcomes
 Inclusion of the patient perspective and include patients as partners on healthcare teams
Although there is no specific funding limit, grants do not typically exceed $30,000
annually. Consideration is given to applications for multiple year funding (up to 3 consecutive years),
generally not exceeding $30,000 in any given year.
Two types of funding mechanisms in each area: Presidential grants are open to submission at any time,
and offer up to $5,000. Board grants have two annual due dates, February 1 and August 1. Funding
can run from $5,001 to $30,000. Board grant applications are in the form of a letter of intent; if
accepted, applicants will be invited to submit full-length proposals.
More information on Program Grants: http://humanism-in-medicine.org/the-arnold-p-gold-foundationresearch-institute/research-grants/
Information on Research Grants: http://humanism-in-medicine.org/the-arnold-p-gold-foundationresearch-institute/research-grants/
Past awards in the Research Grant category can be found here: http://humanism-in-medicine.org/thearnold-p-gold-foundation-research-institute/gold-foundation-supported-research/.
Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation
Funding priorities include the following:
 Demonstration of interprofessional education and teamwork among healthcare professionals
 Development of new curriculum content for health professional education (patient safety, quality
improvement, systems performance and professionalism)
 Development of new models for clinical education (including graduate medical education
reform)
 Improve education for the care of underserved populations, with an emphasis on primary care
 Increase faculty skills in health professions education (emphasis on career development of
underrepresented minorities)
Successful applications must be innovative, easily disseminated and sustainable.
The foundation offers two types of grant mechanisms: Board and President’s grants.
Board grants are one to three years in duration and selected three times a year. Letters of inquiry can
be submitted at any time, and invitations will be made for full proposal submissions. Information on the
program and a list of prior awards can be found here: http://macyfoundation.org/apply/board-grants.
President’s grants can be submitted at any time. They are one year or less in duration with award
amounts of no more than $35,000. Information and listing of previously funded projects:
http://macyfoundation.org/apply/presidents-grants.
WK Kellogg Foundation
The Kellogg Foundation focuses on development of children with key areas being health and wellbeing
in children and youth education.
Information on the Healthy Kids initiative is here: http://www.wkkf.org/what-we-do/healthy-kids
Projects could develop model curricula that prepare medical students to provide primary health care to
youth in underserved populations. Or promote mobile health care, training of healthcare teams,
education of public, etc. that revolves around health care for children in rural or healthcare shortage
areas.
Information on the Educated Kids program is here: http://www.wkkf.org/what-we-do/educated-kids.
Potential projects could propose research that explores higher education’s role in serving the public
good. In addition, projects could focus on improving learning outcomes by engaging youth in sciencebased education programs and development of pipeline programs designed to recruit and retain
students from underrepresented minority backgrounds and underserved areas.
The Kellogg Foundation does not have any submission deadlines and reviews grant proposals
throughout the year.
To review what has been previously funded, a database is available for searching by priority area:
http://www.wkkf.org/grants.
Department of Education
Funding for Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) program
DOE’s FIPSE programs fund projects that aim to increase access to quality postsecondary education.
Areas of interest include:
 Training programs, teaching, curriculum development
 Program development, operating or general support-innovate reforms in curriculum and
instruction, especially through student-centered or technology-mediated strategies
 More cost-effective ways of improving postsecondary instruction and operations
 New ways of ensuring equal access to postsecondary education
 Retention and program completion, especially for underrepresented students
 Veteran student support, off-campus community service
Details on the various FIPSE programs: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/fipse/index.html.
The First in the World Program aims to spur the development of innovations that improve educational
outcomes and develop evidence base of effective practices. Priority areas include:
 Reforms through student-centered or technology-mediated strategies
 Cost-effective ways to improve instruction and operation – promote more student learning
relative to institutional resources expended
 Equal access to education and improvement of retention and program completion, reducing
time to completion
Information on the First in the World Program: http://www2.ed.gov/programs/fitw/index.html.
Program announcement should be out in spring 2015, with due date June 30, 2015. The Program
Director expects the website to be updated with 2015 due dates in the next few months. Some priority
areas may change; however, aim will remain the same – to improve educational outcomes and
increase quality of instruction.
National Science Foundation
Advancing Informal STEM Learning
This program supports research into how learning happens outside the classroom, exploring the most
effective practices and building the evidence base in this area. The aims are:
 To learn more about, evaluate and maximize the impact of informal learning experiences
 To improve understanding of how informal environments may help to widen access to STEM for
youth from all backgrounds.
NSF Informal Education program seeks to advance new approaches to:
 Develop evidence-based understanding of design and development of STEM learning in
informal environments
 Provide multiple pathways for broadening access of STEM learning experiences
 Advance innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments
 Develop understandings of deeper learning by participants
Informal education can take place in a myriad of venues: classrooms, science center, simulations
centers, etc. Proposals should generate knowledge about developing, testing and implementing
innovative research, models, resources and tools in informal learning environments. Outcomes should
include evidence of impact, utility, feasibility and potential for wider use.
Types of projects to consider:
 Pathway projects: Exploratory feasibility studies with potential to lead to innovative proposals
 Service to Practice: research that advances knowledge and the evidence base for practices,
assumptions, broadening participation, and emerging educational arrangements in STEM
learning in informal environments. Successful research proposals identify a need for knowledge
building in order to better understand or improve practice.
 Innovations in Development: Result in innovative models, programs, technologies, resources
and systems for any area of STEM learning in informal environments
 Broad Implementation: Expansion of models, programs, technologies, etc. that have a
documented record of success. Expand to underrepresented or underserved groups as a target
audience.
 Conference and Symposia: generate products usable by practitioners and researchers. Lead to
development of communities of practice, formulation of field-advancing practice
Depending upon the program, funding runs from up to $300,000 (pathways projects) to $3 million
(broad implementation) and up to five years. Funding available annually, next due date most likely
summer 2015.
Website on program as well as listing of previous awards:
http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=504793&org=DRL&from=home.
National Institutes of Health
Innovative Programs to Enhance Research Training (IPERT) (R25)
This program is designed to support stages of research career development from the undergraduate to
the faculty level. The goal of this program is to support educational activities that complement and/or
enhance the training of a workforce to meet the nation’s biomedical, behavioral and clinical research
needs. Activities with a primary focus on courses for skills development, structured mentoring activities,
and outreach programs are encouraged. The proposed activities must address the goals of creating a
highly skilled and diverse biomedical and/or clinical workforce.
Areas of interest include:
 Courses for skills development: Support for short courses designed to develop scientific
research skills. Support for academic development and enrichment activities designed to
improve critical thinking and problem solving skills, communication skills and skills to lead
effective research programs. Support for short courses in the application of emerging
technologies or areas of science relevant to biomedical research. Applications will not be
accepted for courses that are or would become part of the standard/required curriculum of an
academic institution. The courses must be open to the biomedical community and not restricted
to trainees from one institution.
 Mentoring Activities: Activities designed to provide not only technical expertise, but also
professional development, career planning advice and insight to students, postdoctorates or
early-career faculty. Activities to prepare trainees with a working knowledge of the challenges
and opportunities for a career in various biomedical research-related sectors or settings and to
improve their skills to meet these challenges and opportunities.
 Outreach Activities: Activities such as contemporary, research-based science/health education
or dissemination of biomedical research findings to individuals, especially from
underrepresented groups, in preparation for careers in research. Outreach could include short
courses or computer-based educational tools for developing scientists at any academic level,
including faculty.
Next due dates: January 25, 2015 and January 25, 2016. No budget limit and project period is up to five
years. A link to the funding mechanism is here: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-14170.html.
Information on NIH’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences programs can be found here:
http://www.nigms.nih.gov/Training/Pages/default.aspx.
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
Demonstration and Dissemination Grants (R18)
The AHRQ mission is to produce evidence to make health care safer, higher quality, more accessible,
equitable and affordable, as well as to ensure that the evidence is understood and used. Within the
missions, AHRQ’s specific priority areas of focus are:

Improving health care quality by accelerating implementation of Patient Centered Outcomes
Research (PCOR)
 Making health care safer
 Increasing accessibility by evaluating expansions of insurance coverage
 Improve health care affordability, efficiency and cost transparency
These areas can be viewed in more detail on AHRQ’s priorities page:
http://www.ahrq.gov/funding/policies/foaguidance/index.html#priorities
Applicants should consider projects that:
 Ensure patients, families and healthcare team has information needed to make informed
decisions
 Discover, test, and spread techniques for health care practice improvement to improve health
care quality
 Accelerate the sustainable implementation of evidence-based practice.
 Consider the patient role and contribution to patient safety
 Development of training and education programs for healthcare teams
To view the program announcement, go here: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-14-290.html
The total costs may not exceed $250,000 annually for up to a five year project period. Next due dates
are January 25, 2015 and May 25, 2015.
Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
HRSA is the primary federal agency for improving access to health care services for people who are
uninsured, isolated or medically vulnerable. HRSA programs aim to improve service delivery and
quality of care, with an emphasis on those areas that are underserved (health professional shortage
areas, rural communities).
Rural Outreach grant programs fund health service delivery activities (such as health screenings, health
fairs, training, etc.) as long as they do not involve inpatient care. Projects are based on evidence-based
or promising practice models and demonstrate health status improvement in rural communities. The
community being served must be involved in the development and ongoing operations of the program,
to appropriately address the needs of the population.
This is a three-year grant program with maximum individual grant awards of $200,000 a year.
A list of what is currently funded can be found here (with abstracts):
http://ersrs.hrsa.gov/ReportServer/Pages/ReportViewer.aspx?/HGDW_Reports/FindGrants/GRANT_FI
ND&ACTIVITY=D04&rs:Format=HTML4.0.
HRSA Health Professions grants build programs that enroll diverse students, including those from
disadvantaged backgrounds, and produce graduates who make careers in primary care. These focus
on:
 Distribution: Encourage clinicians to practice in underserved areas and care for underserved
people
 Diversity: Increase the number of racial and ethnic minority clinicians to mirror the US
population
 Development: Prepare clinicians to meet the growing need for primary health care generally,
and specifically primary health care for underserved populations, including the young, the old,
people with disabilities and other high-risk groups.
No funding open at this time for this program, but new funding should be announced in 2015.
HRSA has several other program areas such as Maternal and Child Health, Clinician Recruitment and
Primary Health Care that also have grant opportunities.
To view current grant opportunities at HRSA, visit: http://www.hrsa.gov/grants/index.html.
Assistance
If you would like assistance with finding funding, reviewing funding opportunities or matching your idea
up with a sponsor, please contact the Office of Research Administration’s proposal development team:
Dawn Bennett, Proposal Development Administrator (Virginia Campus)
dbennett@vcom.vt.edu, 540.231.8240
C.K. Vanover, Grants and Contracts Administrator (Carolinas Campus)
cvanover@carolinas.vcom.edu, 864-327-9990