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Faculty Research Grants Program

CLAS Faculty Research Grants

Purpose

Purpose

Center for Latin American Studies (C­LAS) Fac­ulty Re­search Grants fund projects ­in Latin America, the Caribbean, and/or Latinx Studies, that ­will enhance disciplinary expertise, improve upon existing knowledge, and/or enrich the Latin American/Caribbean content of courses.

CLAS-FRG grants must be used in accordance with University of Pittsburgh COVID-19 standards and guidelines. Those are subject to change depending on conditions, campus operational posture, etc. It is likely that more than one set of COVID_19 standards and guidelines will apply to any given proposal and it is the responsibility of the applicant to familiarize themselves with ALL standards and guidelines relevant to their proposal. Researchers must secure necessary permissions to conduct said research based on campus posture. Once that has been secured, the COVID-19 Standards and Guidelines: Fieldwork and Research Travel establish the principle that local conditions will govern the Conduct of Research plans for investigators engaged in fieldwork, and that the health and safety guidelines implemented in the field must meet or exceed those of the University of Pittsburgh. These guidelines further define some of the responsibilities of investigators in the field with respect to the health and safety of their research team. For more information the University’s Standards and Guidelines please see https://www.policy.pitt.edu/university-policies-and-procedures/covid-19-standards-and-guidelines. 

Eligibility

Applicants must be “Core” or “Related” faculty members of the Center for Latin Am­eri­can Studies at the Uni­versity of Pitts­burgh. Previous awardees who have not submitted reports and/or expenditure documentation from past grants are not eligible.

Amount of Grant

Up to $3,500 will be made available for individual grants, though not all proposals may be funded at the maximum amount.

Funding Priorities

Grants are primarily intended to provide “seed money” or supplemen­tary money for large proj­ects; provide limited funds required for smaller proj­ects or projects of short dura­tion; research that will result in the development of Latin American/Caribbean/Latinx courses, whether to enhance an existing course, or to develop a new course (If applying for the latter, departmental support should be included with the proposal).

Utilization of Funds

(We also recommend for you to have a contingency plan; in case you must conduct research remotely due to COVID-19. Please make sure your proposal takes into account both options.)

Funds may be used for: (1) trav­el; (2) maintenance; (3) data collec­tion/ana­lysis—in­clu­ding laboratory anal­y­sis, com­puter time, participants' fees; and (4) release time/salary re­place­ment (only for re­search proj­ects by junior CLAS Core facul­ty in the ten­ure stream when the re­search will result in publi­ca­tions that will improve the likelihood of the facul­ty mem­ber's attain­ment of tenure).

Funds cannot be used for: (1) publication costs; (2) atten­dance at pro­fessional meet­ings; (3) the pur­chase of major ­equip­ment (e.g., cam­eras, com­put­ers, or any equipment costing more than $500); or (4) salary supplements/summer salary (except as indicated under #4 above).

If the grant is awarded, the funds will be transferred to the relevant department. Upon completion of their research, faculty must submit a Concur report to CLAS and a brief (two to four pages) written report* explaining how the funds were used. Arrangements for transferring the awarded funds must be made by May 1, 2021. Funds should be expended between April and August of the award year; for any exceptions, please contact us.

Order of funding priority is as follows:

  1. New faculty (first two years at Pitt)
  2. Junior faculty (pre-tenure, with special emphasis on faculty with junior research leaves)
  3. Faculty from the Humanities or disciplines in which external funding is less abundant
  4. Senior faculty starting new projects/changing research foci
  5. Senior faculty requiring start-up funds for research projects that have a high probability of being funded externally in the future

Consideration of these priorities in making awards is still contingent upon the overall quality of the proposal.

Distribution of Funds

Proposal Requirements

(Only electronic submissions will be accepted)

All proposals must include:

  • a completed CLAS Faculty Research Grants application form (see under application);
  • a full description of the project not to exceed five (5) double-spaced pages (Word or PDF format), which should include sections on—

(We also recommend that you have a contingency plan in case you must adjust your research due to COVID-19—Please make sure that the plan reflects both options.)

  1. the Topic/Problem [and how the research relates to the purposes of the grant program as specified above],
  2. Significance of/Need for the Research,
  3. Methodology,
  4. a detailed budget (MS Word or PDF format);
  5. a curriculum vitae of the principal investigator (MS Word or PDF format).

If the proposed research project is a continuation of one for which funding has previously been awarded by CLAS, please indicate in the project description that this is the case.

Note: The full description of the project may be supplemented by appendices (such as examples of questionnaires, list of field contacts, more detailed information on any of the sections) that should be referred to in the basic text. However, appendices should be kept to a minimum.

Application

Only electronic submissions will be accepted. One electronic copy (items 1 through 3 listed above) of the application should be sent by the deadline through the CLAS Faculty Research Grants Application form:

http://www.ucis.pitt.edu/clas/faculty_research_grant_form

Proposal Requirements

(Only electronic submissions will be accepted)

All proposals must include:

  • a completed CLAS Faculty Research Grants application form (see under application);
  • a full description of the project not to exceed five (5) double-spaced pages (Word or PDF format), which should include sections on—
    • the Topic/Problem [and how the research relates to the purposes of the grant program as specified above],
    • Significance of/Need for the Research,
    • Methodology, and
    • a detailed budget (MS Word or PDF format); and
    • a curriculum vitae of the principal investigator (MS Word or PDF format).

If the proposed research project is a continuation of one for which funding has previously been awarded by CLAS, please indicate that this is the case in the project description.

Note: The full description of the project may be supplemented by appendices (such as examples of questionnaires, list of field contacts, more detailed information on any of the sections) that should be referred to in the basic text. However, appendices should be kept to a minimum. 

Application

Only electronic submissions will be accepted. One electronic copy (see items in the proposal requierement section) of the application should be sent by the deadline through the CLAS Faculty Research Grants Application form: http://www.ucis.pitt.edu/clas/faculty_research_grant_form.

Applications for research that will take place during the Summer 2021 must be submitted by Friday, March 5, 2021.

Important Note:

·    All research involving interventions or interactions with individuals or the collection of identifiable private information concerning living individuals requires prospective Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval.

·      Even if the research may qualify in an exempt category, the researcher must obtain an exemption approval from the IRB.

·     Grantees are responsible for obtaining IRB approval when required and must provide documentation of IRB approval before the funds can be disbursed. For further information, check the IRB web site at www.irb.pitt.edu.

Additionally, we strongly recommend that faculty visit: https://www.hrpo.pitt.edu/covid-19-human-subject-research-faq

NOTE: Essential information for conduct of research involving human subjects: per the Senior Vice Chancellor for Research’s message on November 20, 2021, the University announced that research activities in Tier 3 must not enroll new participants in studies requiring face-to-face interaction or continue to conduct face-to-face visits. On-line visits or data collection that does not require direct participant interaction may continue. No additional restrictions have been placed on Tier 1 and 2 human subject studies (with high or moderate direct benefit to the participants or have a high public health priority).

It is NOT intended that all non-critical research/scholarly activities should stop; indeed, those that can be carried out remotely (planning, writing, literature review, remote data collection, data analysis, remote meetings, etc.) should continue during this time.  Studies with no face-to-face participant interactions such as chart review studies or on-line surveys can continue as approved as resources allow.

Please see the descriptions below to determine the disposition of your research.   All questions should be directed to askirb@pitt.edu

*Grant Recipient Requirements

Grant recipients must provide CLAS with a brief (two to four pages) written report within three weeks following the conclusion of the research.  The report should indicate: (1) how grant funds were expended; (2) if applicable, your travel schedule (where you went and how much time you spent in each locale); (3) what you accomplished; and (4) how you will utilize your research results.  Recipients must acknowledge the assistance of the Center for Latin American Studies, University Center for International Studies, University of Pittsburgh, in any publication, film, or other product resulting from research supported by this grant. We can provide you with the CLAS logo upon request.

If you have questions about the grant, please contact:

Luz Amanda Hank (Assistant Director for Partnerships and Programming) at lavst12@pitt.edu

Funding for the Faculty Research Grants Competition is provided by the Center for Latin American Studies and the University Center for International Studies at University of Pittsburgh.