The University of Washington has a vision to model democracy in action by cultivating collaborative decision-making, respectful dialogue, civic engagement and belonging. In support of that vision, this initiative is pleased to offer a Catalyst Fund that awards small grants to encourage the development of new teaching and curricular innovations for activities and projects that seek to revitalize civic health and bolster democratic institutions across the country.
Innovations proposed for funding to this grants program must align with one or more of the pillars of this initiative:
- Preparing tomorrow’s civic-minded leaders
- Renovating and strengthening public institutions
- Clearing the paths to civic participation
The purpose of this funding mechanism is to support UW faculty members who have innovative proposals that approach civic health, civic engagement and democracy through new curricular perspectives, methods and activities. Our interests are broad in scope, so applications can propose projects with foci that include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Revise or create curriculum for a course or training to improve learnings regarding the fundamentals of democratic processes.
- Craft an interactive learning activity, such as a site visit, that exposes students to civic leadership in action.
- Design a student experience that works to foster connections across difference.
- Plan and deliver a training, workshop, or experiential activity aligned with one of the three pillars of this initiative.
- Partner with a community-based organization to create on-the-ground learning opportunities.
- Develop a relevant student consulting or research project embedded in a course.
- Support a community-based practitioner to present or co-teach in a civically-oriented course.
- Test a structure or structures for Dialogue for Democracy-style events where people can talk across difference regarding topics they care about.
Awards of up to $2,000 per project are available. Funds must be fully spent within 12 months of award.
This application is open to faculty members from all three University of Washington campuses (Bothell, Seattle, Tacoma). Applications must represent a new curricular element and cannot simply fund established courses or programs.
If awarded, applicants will be invited to showcase their work- and learnings-to-date at a mid-year gathering of awardees. A final report detailing project accomplishments and final budget reconciliation will be due within 60 calendar days following the end of the funding period.
The timeline for this funding opportunity is:
- Application Due: Thursday, May 1, 2025 (11:59 p.m. Pacific)
- Award Notification Made: early June, 2025
- Period of Performance: July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026
Awards of up to $2,000 in total expenses per project are available. School, college and/or departmental matching funds are encouraged but not required. Matching funds can take the form of either discretionary/non-discretionary monies or in-kind support.
Allowed expenses include:
- Personnel (i.e., salaries and benefits for faculty) or compensation for non-UW practitioners
- Materials and supplies that are relevant to the proposal
- Travel relevant to the work, including airfare, transportation and per diem (lodging, meals and expenses)
- Other direct costs related to the project (must detail the expense and include rationale)
Unallowable expenses include:
- Indirect/overhead costs
- Administrative support
- Receptions (e.g., alcohol, catering)
- Marketing efforts
Funds will be disbursed to the department of the UW faculty member for day-to-day administration.
All allowable expenses must adhere to applicable University of Washington policies. Please contact your department’s finance lead with questions regarding such expenses. An Office of Sponsored Programs review is not needed prior to submitting an application to this opportunity.
Successful applications should:
- Demonstrate how the proposed project is aligned with the vision and pillars of this initiative;
- Demonstrate how the work is a new curricular direction;
- Propose a project that is feasible during within the 12-month limit;
- Detail an assessment plan that clearly describes the outcome the project team is seeking (i.e., the measure of a successful project).
These grant applications are encouraged, but not required, to include a partial or full funding match (in funds or in kind) from the PIs school/college/department.
A panel of judges affiliated with the Civic Health Initiative will review and score all applications. Awards will be granted to the highest-scoring applications. Applications that include matching funds will receive priority in the event that two proposals receive the same review score.
Applications must meet the following standards:
- Submitted as a single PDF file
- Paper size no larger than standard letter (i.e., 8 ½” x 11”)
- Margins of at least 0.5 inch (top, bottom, left, and right)
- Single-spaced, 11-point font or larger using either Arial, Calibri or Times New Roman
- We do not require a specific citation format
Each application must contain the following sections:
- Completed cover sheet (project title, total budget, applicant name)
- Short answers to the following prompts:
- What are the anticipated number of students who you will engage?
- What is the anticipated course level of your offering?
- Are there any prerequisites to your course?
- For upper-level courses, will it be open to non-majors?
- Longer-form responses to the following questions:
- Please describe the scope of the work / the key activities you are proposing to complete if you receive a grant. Limit of 200 words
- Why should your proposed project be considered a new curricular effort? Limit of 100 words.
- How will you know if your project was successful? Limit of 100 words.
- How will you spend these funds (i.e., a brief budget justification)? Limit of 200 words.
- Please provide verification of matching funds if a cost share is proposed. A .pdf of an email from the individual making the commitment is sufficient.
Applications for the spring 2025 funding call can be submitted beginning on April 1, 2025. All applications are due by 11:59 p.m. (Pacific) on Thursday, May 1, 2025.
The application must be submitted as a single .pdf file through the following online submission portal.
Review by the Office of Sponsored Programs is not needed.
Please contact us with any questions regarding this award or the application process.