1. Apply For Support
  2. Crossdisciplinary Research Clusters

For Faculty

funding spelled out in scrabble tiles

The Simpson Center administers two funding rounds per year, in Fall and Spring Quarters. Both fall and spring rounds support funding for the following year. 

 

Upcoming Opportunities

The next fall funding round opens in October 2024 and closes in November 2024

Crossdisciplinary Research Clusters

Applications accepted for both fall and spring funding rounds.

 

Crossdisciplinary Research Clusters are intended to seed new scholarly activity and develop further pathways for collaboration by bringing together UW faculty and graduate students from different departments and disciplines who share research interests. Projects in this category may vary widely in form and scale: innovative models beyond the speaker series are encouraged, as are clusters that develop emerging fields and communities of inquiry, crossdisciplinary or crossdepartmental curricula, and individual and/or collective documents.

Eligibility

Must be led by tenure-track faculty.

Criteria

Crossdisciplinary Research Clusters are intended to seed new scholarly activity and develop further pathways for collaboration by bringing together UW faculty and graduate students from different departments and disciplines who share research interests. Projects in this category may vary widely in form and scale: innovative models beyond the speaker series are encouraged, as are clusters that develop emerging fields and communities of inquiry, crossdisciplinary or crossdepartmental curricula, and individual and/or collective documents.

Interdepartmental composition and organization. Crossdisciplinary Research Clusters should seed new and vital research activity and are not meant to provide ongoing support of existing programs.

Terms of Award

Awards of financial and administrative support vary according to requests and needs.  Proposals for funding support of up to $20,000 will be considered. If project budgets exceed this figure, we ask that applicants consult with us for guidance prior to submitting the proposal. Funds can be used to support meeting costs, visiting speakers, etc. We typically support crossdisciplinary research clusters for a maximum of three years.

Application Instructions

Complete the Application Form. Upload to the form as a single, bundled .pdf the below materials:

      • Proposal Narratives. Limit to eight pages. Proposal narratives should include:
        1. Detail the focus of the cluster and the activities to be funded
        2. Address near-term goals, and longer-term ambitions if cluster is intended to lead to other forms of collaboration and project development
        3. Include a list three or more participating faculty and graduate student
      • CV. Include one CV for primary project liaison (limited to five pages), and, key organizers (optional—may also be represented in the narrative or an appendix as short bios).
      • Budget. Detail anticipated expenses (e.g. honoraria, travel, accommodations, promotional materials, printing, postage, hospitality, and facilities rentals) as applicable. If you have questions about building your budget, contact Julie Stoverink at scfiscal@uw.edu.