CREATING WHOLE COMMUNITIES
RESEARCH FACULTY FELLOWSHIP
Research & Implementation Grant
For a word doc version of the application, email tfhktb@umsystem.edu.
The Creating Whole Communities Faculty Fellowship research grants require that projects are focused on building strong place-based communities. Before submitting a proposal for the CWC research grants, please check for project applicability. For the Relationship Building Grant, CWC will support proposals in which the university-community relationship has potential to foster a stronger place-based community. For the Research and Implementation Grant, CWC will support partnerships between UMSL faculty and Missouri communities for the benefit of community building practice and/or public policy in the context of a particular neighborhood/municipality or in multiple neighborhood/municipalities. Use the checklist below to ensure that your project has a place-based focus required by the program. Scroll to see grant description and requirements.
PROJECT APPLICABILITY CHECKLIST
- Is your project place-based/focused on community building?
- Is it focused on a geographic place or jurisdiction, such as a neighborhood (for example, Dutchtown), municipality (for example, Jennings), block (for example, 5700 block of Cabanne), a small town (for example, Salem, Missouri)?
- Is it focused on helping that place to function better, to be stronger, gain a deeper understanding, to thrive in some way?
- Does it address the wellbeing of people within that place, not just the organization you’re partnering with?
- Is it focused on research that could lead to geographic places functioning better through policy or leadership development?
Qualifying examples:
✓ Research on leadership qualities in mayors
✓ Research on youth participation in neighborhood councils
✓ Research on housing quality and impacts on college matriculation rates in Normandy–partner is the Community Association of Normandy
Disqualifying examples:
x Research on leadership qualities of non-profit CEOS
x Research on youth participation in food bank volunteerism
x Research on housing quality and impacts on college matriculation rates – partner is the Scholarship Foundation
- Are you partnering with a place-based organization?
The CWC grants require a partnership with a community partner that is a place-based entity which is one whose efforts focus on serving a particular neighborhood, region, block, municipality, etc. The organization addresses the needs and strengths of their own communities. Some examples of place-based organizations are provided below:
✓ Neighborhood Associations
✓ Beyond Housing
✓ Block Units
✓ University City School District
✓ Community Development Corporations
✓ Missouri Municipal League
If you are seeking a place-based entity, we recommend starting with the STL Neighborhood Organizations Map for St. Louis-metro based projects. CWC has connections with many of these entities and can assist with facilitating a connection. - Does your project focus on a topical area in community building? Examples include but are not limited to:
✓ Local Government
✓ Environmental Sustainability
✓ Civic vitality
✓ Community ownership or pride
✓ Civic leadership or capacity
✓ Community resources
✓ Civic participation
✓ Community engagement
✓ Economic development or vitality
✓ Housing or real estate development
✓ Revitalization
✓ Concentrated law enforcement consequences
✓ Belonging
If your project addresses these three points in the affirmative, then your project will likely apply to the CWC Faculty Fellowship program. To view proposals funded by CWC in the past, visit: Past CWC Research Proposals.
For questions, please reach out to Tasnim Haq at tfhktb@umsl.edu.
PROGRAM OVERVIEW:
Research and Implementation Grant
APPLICATION DEADLINES
Phase I (abstract): TBA
Phase II (full proposal): TBA
Please submit applications and questions to Tasnim Haq: tfhktb@umsl.edu
BACKGROUND, VALUES, AND PURPOSE
Creating Whole Communities (CWC) brings together the University of Missouri–St. Louis, University of Missouri Extension, and resident leaders around the state to focus on strengthening our communities. CWC grant opportunities intentionally connect University researchers and community partners in applied, community-based participatory research that contributes to evidence-based policy and practice in the field of community development.
Research conducted through the Creating Whole Communities Faculty Fellows Program will comprise of two grant opportunities: “Relationship Building” and “Research and Implementation.” Both opportunities will require participation from faculty and community partners and will carry the aim to jointly pursue tangible community impact post-research.
RESEARCH & IMPLEMENTATION GRANT
Faculty will research a critical question designed around the goals of the community. Community partners will also have opportunities to work alongside faculty in appropriate stages of the research and implementation process. Both parties will collaborate to work towards implementation efforts that will lead to long-term community impact. The following elements will be incorporated in this phase:
- A 50/50 partnership approach maximizing opportunities for collaboration, shared funding, and co decision-making will be sought from the early stages of research development, identification of research questions, data collection, data interpretation, dissemination, and application of findings.
- Findings/lessons learned will be disseminated to the public through publications, presentations or other methods including but not limited to public art projects, community conversations, or neighborhood forums.
- Faculty will work with community partners to apply the research towards producing tangible impact and benefit for the community. Tangible impact are outcomes beyond publishing a paper and result in some level of progression towards community goals.
Examples include:
- Translating knowledge and findings into actionable steps, such as writing a joint letter to an alder person or to support a grant
- Sharing data to lead to an output for the community
- Providing access to a literature review on best practices to support community planning
- Faculty and students from multiple disciplines are engaged in research efforts to provide a more well-rounded approach to research inquiries.
CWC seeks to support strong partnerships between UMSL faculty and Missouri communities for the benefit of community building practice and policy. Applied research projects may focus on:
- Community building and public policy issues in a particular neighborhood/municipality, and/or
- Community building and public policy issues that could be applied more broadly to multiple neighborhoods.
REQUIREMENTS FOR AWARDEES
- University awardees will be required to produce a scholarly article, white paper or research brief based on their research findings and lessons learned. Research dissemination may also include conference presentations, forums, and news articles. Travel funds may be requested as part of the fellow application for presentation of completed research results at conferences.
- University awardees will also work with partners towards applying findings to create tangible impact for the community and are required to report outcomes back to the community in collaboration with the community partner.
ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES AND RESTRICTIONS
- Eligible university applicants are a) full-time tenure-track, tenured faculty, non-tenured track or b) UMSL Doctoral students who have completed all coursework except for dissertation research.
- University applicants must have an identified community partner applicant who agrees to collaborate on the goals and requirements of the grant.
FUNDING GUIDELINES:
- The CWC Research Committee and Leadership Team will fund proposals up to $8,000. Faculty and community partners will each receive 50% of the grant funds. The Committee will consider the appropriateness of the budget and may recommend an award less than the requested amount.
- Funds must be expended within one year of award date. Funds will be allocated in November 2025.
- Deadlines for research briefs and other scholarly papers will be outlined in the acceptance letter.
- If applicable, research must comply with federal guidelines for Human Subjects. For more information, contact the Office of Research and Economic & Community Development and read the guidelines on their website: View Research Compliance Policies.
FACULTY FELLOWS PROGRAM BUDGET CONSIDERATIONS
- Sufficient detail of budget items must be provided to allow the committee to evaluate the appropriateness of the allocation. For example, please specify why specific software is needed and justify this if similar software is available through the university.
- Equipment and supply purchases must conform to university guidelines (e.g. technology purchases must be approved by UMSL IT department, gift cards must be purchased through ShowME, etc.). CWC staff will work with fellows to ensure purchases comply with these guidelines.
- Travel expenses must conform to the same regulations as all other university travel. For information: View University Travel Policies.
- Lodging selections and details must be approved by CWC ahead of booking.
- Funds may be requested for research assistants, equipment, supplies, and summer salary support for faculty.
- Funds will not be awarded for research leaves, sabbatical leaves, or for teaching buy-outs.
- Faculty Fellow applicants may include support for postdoctoral associates.
- The community portion of the funds may be used for a variety of purposes including compensation for time on the project.
CRITERIA FOR NARRATIVE EVALUATION
The proposal will be evaluated on the following:
- Adherence to application format.
- Proposal quality, especially research questions and design.
- Potential impact to community/community partner
- Research significance to community development
- Project feasibility.
- Clarity and persuasiveness. The proposal should be understandable to non-disciplinary colleagues.
REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
Information requested in final grant reports will be grant proposals submitted and/or funded publications and presentations that have resulted from this award, community impact resulting from the award, outcomes of the relationship building process (if applicable), and information on student involvement that were supported by this award. Reports should be no longer than two pages. Send all final documents to Tasnim Haq: tfhktb@umsl.edu.
In addition to the fellowship award, research opportunities may arise throughout the academic year that fit the mission of CWC and may be considered for grant funding. Please contact Tasnim Haq at tfhktb@umsl.edu if you have an idea/opportunity that fits the CWC research criteria but falls outside of the fellowship timeline.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
Phase I (abstract): TBA
Phase II (full proposal): TBA
The Faculty Fellowship program requires two phases of submission for each grant.
PHASE I
The Phase I submission functions as an initial review to evaluate the applicability of the proposed project for the Faculty Fellows program. Applicants will be informed if their project aligns with the program criteria and can move forward with applying for the full proposal (Phase II). If there lacks alignment, applicants will receive feedback within 1-2 weeks to refine their proposal. Phase I entails submitting a concise abstract of no more than 250 words, outlining the project's key components for the Research & Implementation Grant (see pages 3-5) and addressing all criteria listed in the project applicability checklist (see page 1-2).
The Phase I (abstract) submission must be emailed to Tasnim Haq at tfhktb@umsystem.edu by TBA.
The Phase II directions will be sent upon approval of the Phase I abstract.