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University of Wisconsin–Madison

Facilitating Community-Based Research Partnerships in Wisconsin

Hands together symbolizing partnership. Photo by Pixabay.UW–Madison faculty and investigators extensively engage in research that relies on collaboration and partnership with, as well as outreach to and input from, communities across Wisconsin, including (but not limited to) rural, inner city, tribal, ethnic, disabled, elderly, immigrant and religious communities. It is crucial that all stages of such research—study design; sample recruitment; data collection, analysis, and interpretation; dissemination of results—are implemented in close collaboration with individuals and organizations who are members of such communities.

 

The Facilitating Community-Based Research Partnerships in Wisconsin initiative is intended to support existing collaborations, foster new partnerships, and strengthen relationships between campus researchers and communities. The initiative will provide resources for projects that include in the research team individuals that are members of the communities being studied. It aims to increase campus-community engagement, build trust and bolster collaboration between campus and communities, and facilitate thoughtful and community-informed practices in all stages of the research process. These activities are intended to further the Wisconsin Idea.

The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (OVCR) expects to support five, one-to-two-year community-based research projects with start dates in June 2025 or thereafter by providing a maximum of $10,000 per project for costs related to participation of community partners serving on the research team. Funds may be used to initiate a new study or to provide additional resources for ongoing community-based studies for which existing research funding does not provide any support to individuals in the community. Funding for this program is made available through a Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation donor designated fund. This is not a recurring initiative.

Applications are due April 1, 2025 at 4:30 p.m. Award recipients will be notified in May.

ELIGIBILITY:

The lead Principal Investigator (PI) must be a UW–Madison tenured or tenure-track faculty member or a researcher with permanent PI status.

CHS faculty, research professors and other academic staff without permanent PI status may participate as co-PIs.

TO APPLY:

The on-line application form is available at: https://inic-uwmadison.smapply.io/

Select “Institutional Nominations and Internal Competitions.” The lead PI must log-in using their UW–Madison NetID and password. Select the “Facilitating Community-Based Research Partnerships” program title. Click “Apply” to start a new application.

PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS

1.  Cover Sheet: PI information (name, email address, departmental/center affiliation), a list of anticipated co-Principal Investigators and co-Investigators, the community partner(s) organization and main contact person, extramural project information (if available) and human subjects protocol information (if available)

2.  Lay Paragraph (150 words): Please summarize your project in language suitable for someone outside of your academic discipline. This will help the OVCR convey the nature of your project to WARF.

3.  Research Plan/Project Description: Please upload a narrative, not to exceed five pages, that describes:

  • The significance of the research questions(s) for the community,
  • The study focus, design, data and methods,
  • The existing campus-community partnership or demonstrated potential to establish a strong new partnership,
  • The possibilities for generating real-world implications to inform programs, policies, and/or practices to benefit the community; and
  • The potential to lead to future extramural research support

4.  Total Funding Request and Budget Justification: Be sure to indicate your total funding request to the OVCR in the space provided. Please also provide a brief (no more than one page) budget justification that explains the rationale for each item in your budget. Proposals will not be reviewed without an itemized budget justification. Please note: payments to individuals may not exceed $5,000. Please see related details in the Payment and Funding section below

5. CVs or Biosketches: Please upload a single PDF file containing the CVs or Biosketches of no more than 5 pages each, for the Principal Investigator, co-Principal Investigators, co-Investigators, and Collaborators. Include all current and pending intramural and extramural research support for each investigator.

After completing the items above, you will be able to select “review” and “submit” before making your final submission. Please make sure to review the entire document before you select to “submit” it. You will also have the option to download the entire document.

EVALUATION CRITERIA

Criteria for evaluation include:

  • Significance of the research question(s) for the community;
  • Innovation in study focus, design, data, and methods;
  • rigor for addressing the research question(s);
  • strength of existing campus-community partnership or demonstrated potential to establish a strong new partnership;
  • potential to generate real-world implications to inform programs, policies, and/or practices to benefit the community; and
  • potential to lead to future extramural research support.

 

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

On an annual basis the VCR will request a brief progress report from the PI describing how the funds have been allocated, including the teams who received the funds, the identity of the communities and community member(s) involved, the nature and scope of the research, number of community members engaged, and whether the aims of the funding have been achieved (and if not, why not). Subsequently, this information will be compiled and used in annual reports to WARF.

ADDITIONAL PAYMENT AND FUNDING DETAILS

Awards will be set up as 135 projects, and subject to the OVCR Award Administration guidelines posted here: <https://research.wisc.edu/funding/administration-of-awards/>. Expenses may include travel reimbursement, and/or payments to individuals using the University’s PIR process. PIR payments must be one-time, not recurring, not to exceed $5000. Funds may not be transferred to organizations as sub-awards. This funding is not intended to cover human subject participant payments.

SOME KEY TIPS FOR SUBMITTING THE APPLICATION

  • The lead PI must initiate the application.
  • The PI can invite additional collaborators (writers/editors) to fill out the application form. However, the PI who initiates the application must also be the person that ultimately submits the application.
  • Remember to scroll down and select “mark as complete” at the bottom of each completed page.
  • You will be able to select “review” and “submit” before final submission.
  • You will have the option of downloading the entire application document.

 

For questions regarding the submission or eligibility, please contact: Lawrence (Lonnie) Berger, Associate Vice Chancellor for Research in the Social Sciences (lmberger@wisc.edu)

General or technical questions should be sent to: competitions@research.wisc.edu.