Funding
For
Language Documentation and other Linguistics Projects
Prepared by Keira
G. Ballantyne
edited by Kaori Ueki
General Guidelines
The type of funding that you should apply for should fit the type of project that you are planning to pursue.
Use small grants to prepare yourself if you’d like to apply for larger grants in the future. For instance, consider writing a smaller grant proposal for a pilot study.
Consider who will be reading the grant you are writing. Will it be a specialist in your field of linguistics, a person with general expertise in linguistics, or a lay person with no experience of linguistics at all? Write for your audience.
Be sure to read any and all grant preparation guidelines carefully. Some are very detailed and grants which do not fit the criteria will be rejected.
If the grant you choose requires supporting documentation such as evidence that you have Human Subjects clearance, or a travel visa, be sure to factor in the time that it will take for these processes. Remember that outside agencies may take longer than they promise. (http://www.hawaii.edu/irb/)
Useful resources at UH:
Office of Research Services
This is the centralized grant clearinghouse at UH. Their webpage has lots of good advice, especially if you are applying for larger grants. It has tutorials for writing grant proposals.
CA$H (Computer Aided Scholarship Help)
http://dbserver.its.hawaii.edu/cash/
This UH database contains over 1,000 local and national scholarships, grants, and
financial aid information.
The Student Equity, Excellence and Diversity (SEED) Office has a number of smaller grants and scholarships listed on its homepage:
http://www.hawaii.edu/diversity/
Announcements in the UH Newsletter:
http://www.hawaii.edu/ur/newsatuh/staffnews.htm
This is the place to find announcements for the Arts and Sciences Advisory Council Award, among others.
Legwork: It’s worthwhile taking a stroll around campus to check out various notice boards for funding opportunities. Good places to look are; Linguistics Department clipboards outside the secretaries’ office; library notice boards; notice boards in the Graduate Division (3rd floor, Spalding Hall).
When filling out an
application form
If you are
not a linguistics student -
It
is good to team up with an advanced
graduate student or a faculty member.
Many applications ask for academic credentials; if you do not
have the
types of publications/ academic experience they are looking for, it is
better
to put the graduate student/faculty’s name under ‘Principal
Investigator.’
Follow the guidelines of each organization exactly
Each
organization will have a list of questions or a template that they want
you to
follow.
It is best to follow them exactly in the order that is
shown. This is not the time to be
creative. Don’t try to write a separate
essay; just follow their format.
It is also important to incorporate their terminology in your application. The NSF, for example, has an automatic text reader that looks for ‘key words.’ Applications that do not contain these key words will automatically be excluded.
Contact the people involved before applying
Many organizations are surprisingly helpful when you are applying for grants. A large funding agency, such as the NSF, has program officers for each area. You should try to contact the person in charge of linguistics before applying, explain what you want to do, and see how your project will be received. You can also ask how to position your project so that it will have a better chance of being accepted.
Finally... if you don’t succeed the first time, try again
It is possible to get feedback from many organizations on why you did not get funding. Then, based on this new information, you can modify your proposal and apply for the next year. A lot of grant/proposal writing comes from experience, so don’t give up after the first try!
Grants for Endangered Languages
These grants
give priority to projects which deal with highly endangered languages.
Endangered Language Fund
Sample
letter: Sample
cover:
Sample
proposal
http://www.ling.yale.edu:16080/~elf/
For
projects that benefit both the community and linguistics
Important
factor is level of endangerment; priority to languages in danger of
disappearing within the next 2 generations
Average
$2000
Deadline
April 20, 2004
Foundation for Endangered Languages
http://www.ogmios.org/home.htm
For documentation, protection, and promotion
Prefer work done in the communities where the language is spoken
Willing to comment on draft proposals
Up to $1000
Deadline January 18, 2004
Lisbet Rausing grants for Endangered Language Documentation (SOAS)
http://www.eldp.soas.ac.uk/doc_home.htm
Need link
with university
Primary
goal is documentation, not revitalization
Must admit
preliminary application, then some are asked for detailed applications
Deadline
August 8, 2004
Has
different types of funding
Postdoctoral
fellowship (up to 2 years, ₤50,000-100,000)
Graduate
studentship (2 or 3 years, ₤15,000)
Major
documentation project (6 mo. - 3 years, ₤40,000-130,000)
Field trip
(6-12 mo. ₤10,000)
Pilot
project (9-12 mo. ₤10,000)
Volkswagen
Foundation (Volkswagen Stiftung)
http://www.volkswagenstiftung.de/foerderung/index_e.html
Primary
goal is building an archive/database
Should
have cooperation with German institution/scholar
Has
detailed guidelines on what they want you to document
Deadline:
November 1, 2004
3 years,
possibly 2 more years as follow-up
Resources
Grants for endangered languages are often
announced on the Endangered
Languages List
http://listserv.linguistlist.org/archives/endangered-languages-l.html
National Foreign
Language Resource Center at UH
may have information regarding heritage language programs (native
American, Asian, Pacific)
http://www.nflrc.hawaii.edu/nflrc_home.cfm
Specific departments such as the Center for Pacific Island Studies and Japanese Studies (up to $500) may have funding available for relevant languages.
Small grants
Amounts: Up to $2000
Advantages: These grants are usually easier to apply for. They involve shorter proposals, shorter lead times, and are generally less competitive that bigger grants.
Disadvantages: They are for smaller amounts than bigger grants
Suitable for: Paying a language consultant for a semester of elicitation; travel to a field site; equipment purchase; pilot study.
Tips for smaller grants:
These grant proposals are usually read by non-linguists, so you should either avoid or explain technical jargon.
Do your homework. If the grant is a scholarship endowed by an individual, find out if there is some aspect of your research that fits with the purpose of the endowment. If the names of faculty members who are on the granting committee are available, consider how your project might fit with their research interests.
Try to find a list of previous projects that the grant has funded.
Some of these scholarships do not pay the full amount in a lump sum, but pro rate the amount over an academic year.
The
Arts &
Sciences Advisory Council offers grants from $200 to $2000. The
Award is
granted twice a year, and is usually announced in the UH Newsletter. These
are open to graduate and upper level undergraduate students who want to
initiate a project ‘not available through regular coursework.’
http://www.artsci.hawaii.edu/alumni/students/scholarships_artsci.htm
Outside of the
university
If your project does not exactly come under “endangered languages,” there are other possibilities besides the typical funding agency. Often times, applying to a typical funding agency takes a long time and is complicated. These may be more locally oriented and more receptive to your project.
Embassies
in your country may support projects, especially if it
is not a large scale one. The Australian
embassy is known to fund small education projects.
Major corporations that are in your country (e.g. Continental Airlines, Mobil Oil)
They are often eager to fund projects to ‘give back to the community.’
Department of Education in your country
Non-profit
community organizations
Rotary Club, for example, funds community service projects.
Big grants
These grants pay larger amounts (usually several thousand dollars) and are suitable for dissertation research projects.
Advantages: With a large grant, a single amount of money can fund an entire project.
The proposal that you write can also serve as your dissertation proposal with a minimal amount of rewriting.
Disadvantages: These grants are highly competitive.
A great deal of time is involved in putting together a grant proposal
Tips for writing larger grants
Enlist a faculty member as a mentor. Some of these grants must be submitted by a faculty member on behalf of a student.
Research the granting institution. Most of the larger institutions will list the titles and abstracts of projects that they have already funded. This is a good way to see if your project is a good fit with the institution.
Ensure that you set aside enough time for preparation. Budget extra time for approval by Human Subjects committee, visa approval, feedback and rewriting, and submission to the Office of Research Services, if required.
Read the grant preparation guidelines carefully.
Find out who will be reading your grant proposal, and write accordingly.
A useful resource for grant preparation is:
Peters,
Ann M. 1986. Handbook for Grant Proposal
Preparation. Linguistics Society of
American Association of University Women (AAUW)
Supports research which benefits women and girls.
http://www.aauw.org/fga/fellowships_grants/index.cfm
AAUW International Fellowships
for female non-citizens
$18,000 masters, $20,000 doctorate, $30,000 postdoc
Deadline: December 15
AAUW
Hawaii Pacific American
Fellowships
Run by the Hawaii chapter of AAUW: for women, Hawai‘i state residents
Asian/Pacific studies
$5,000
Deadline: March 1
Contact the Pacific Fellowship Committee,
American
Association of University Women, 1802 Keeaumoku
St.,
Honolulu, HI 96822; tel: 808.537.4702.
The Toyota
Foundation
http://www.toyotafound.or.jp/etop.htm
Has a
variety of funding programs for research, dissemination
Deadline: May 20 or October 20, depending on the
program
National
Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Reference Materials Grants
www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/referencematerials.html
Institution must apply
For grammars and dictionaries
$50,000-$350,000 (up to 67% of cost)
Deadline
(for 2003): July 15
Other sources for
fellowships, scholarships
The
Linguistics
Department Fund offers grants of up to $500 twice a year.
Announcements are
posted to ling-l. Only
students in the UH Linguistics
Department may apply.
International students can apply for the Dai Ho Chun or Mildred Towle Scholarships.
http://www.hawaii.edu/issmanoa/financial.html
Only one application is required to apply for both of these. International students should note that grant monies may be taxable if your home country does not have a tax treaty with the United States.
Samuel E. Elbert Endowed Graduate Scholarship
$3,000
For Hawaiian and Polynesian languages
Deadline: May 15
Pick up application at Spalding 255
Questions:
hip@hawaii.edu
East-West Center Graduate Degree Fellowships
http://www.eastwestcenter.org/edu-sp.asp
Pacific Island Studies;
also programs for students from different areas such as South Pacific,
Okinawa, East Timor
Required to live in dorms (no children)
Deadline:
Nov 1
Dorothy Ing Tom
Fellowship
www.hawaii.edu/chs/
973-0989
For Hawaiians or Polynesians
$1,000
Heyum
Endowment Fund
http://www.hawaii.edu/cpis/Financial-Aid.html
grad or undergrad
Deadline: May 15
Indigenous to islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, Polynesia
Up to
$3,000