Guidelines for the Yamaguchi Opportunity Fund
Adopted with consent of the Provost January 2006
Support from Mr. Akira Yamaguchi allows UM to offer modest annual support for
Asian Studies through the Yamaguchi Opportunity fund. Applications may be
made to the fund under the following guidelines:
1

Available annual revenue from the fund should go primarily to support
faculty research and, to a lesser extent, for curriculum development related
to Asia.1 Fundable activities might include research-related travel; expenses
related to scholarly publication; the cost of books and materials essential to
applicants’ research, and costs related to relevant workshops or academic
conferences where a paper will be presented. Proposals for support for
conference/workshop participation must include a detailed summary of the
paper to be delivered.

Preference will be given to junior (full-time, but pre-tenure) faculty
members, although other faculty will be considered. More limited support
may also be made available for outstanding research proposals from UM
graduate students.

To maximize the number of people who receive assistance, awards will
typically be limited to an average of $500, and thus will necessarily
supplement other sources of funds. The maximum award will generally be
limited to $1000. Faculty may of course request less than $500 in support.

Proposals will be evaluated by a small committee of UM faculty/staff
approved by the provost who represent diverse disciplines and have expertise
in different regions of Asia. Their recommendations will go to the Provost,
who will make final decisions in consultation with the Director of the
Mansfield Center. Particularly in cases in which a significant number of
meritorious proposals are received, an effort will be made to balance support
among the diverse regions of Asia.

In 2006, there will be two opportunities to apply for funding, with one
deadline on March 1st and another on November 1st. In subsequent years,
there will be a single annual deadline – on or about November 1st – unless
funds remain for a special deadline in the Spring. Notification of awards will
typically be made no later than three weeks after the submission deadline.

Interested faculty/students should submit a simple (1-2 page) proposal
detailing the nature and amount of their request and the impact it will have
on their research or teaching. All faculty proposals must be accompanied by
This includes East, Central, South, Southeast and Southwest Asia
a letter of support from a colleague in the field who is familiar with their work
and able to assess the merits of their proposal. Student proposals should
include a letter of support from the student’s principal advisor.

Those granted support will be asked to provide a short (one paragraph)
written summary of the benefit(s) they derived from their grant, with that
report submitted to the Mansfield Center director.

The availability of this funding and the guidelines governing the fund, once
approved by the provost, will be widely publicized on campus and available
online on the homepage of the Mansfield Center and several other relevant
campus units.