Grant Writing Workshop for Historically Black Colleges and Universities Allen Ruby, Ph.D. Katina R. Stapleton, Ph.D. Policy and Systems Division National Center for Education Research

Who We Are: IES’ Legislative Mission Describe the condition and progress of education in the United States Identify education practices that improve academic achievement and access to education opportunities Evaluate the effectiveness of Federal and other education programs

Who We Are: Organizational Structure Office of the Director National Board for Education Sciences National Center for Education Research National Center for Education Evaluation National Center for Education Statistics National Center for Special Ed Research

What We Do: Provide Funding Opportunities for Education & Special Education Research

Overall Research Objectives of Grant Programs Develop or identify education interventions (practices, programs, policies and approaches) that enhance academic achievement and that can be widely deployed Identify what does not work and thereby encourage innovation and further research Understand the processes that underlie variations in the effectiveness of education interventions

Final Outcomes of Interest are for Students Preschool School readiness Developmental outcomes for infants and toddlers with disabilities Kindergarten through Grade 12 Academic outcomes in reading, writing, math and science Behaviors, interactions, and social skills that support learning in school and successful transitions to post-school opportunities High school graduation Functional skills for independent living of students with disabilities Postsecondary: enrollment, persistence, and completion Adult Education : basic reading, writing, and math

HBCUs and IES Funding Opportunities No HBCUs have received an IES grant to date. We encourage HBCUs to apply for Education Research and Special Education Research grants. We encourage HBCUs to take advantage of technical assistance IES provides.

How Can HBCU Researchers Get Started? Recognize that competing a successful grant application is a process that begins before the initial application submission. And that preparing a grant application is part of building your program of research.

Increase HBCU Awareness of Available Funding Opportunities At the Institutional Level... Become knowledgeable about IES funding priorities and competitive grant competitions ( Identify researchers on campus who do work in that area (i.e. potential applicants). –They may come from outside your education department/school. Make sure the potential applicants are aware of available funding opportunities and IES program officers in their areas of interest. Coordinate phone or in-person meetings with IES staff to discuss your institution’s research capacity & interests.

Increase HBCU Awareness of Available Funding Opportunities At the Researcher Level... Become knowledgeable about IES funding priorities and competitive grant competitions ( Sign up for the IES Newsflash ( to be notified about new competitions. Identify your own research interests and strengths and see if they overlap current funding priorities. Contact the relevant IES program officer to discuss your ideas.

Locating the Requests for Applications (RFAs) FY 2012 Requests for Applications are available on: Sign up for the IES Newsflash:

“Does IES fund the kind of research that I (we) do?” 1.What question do you want to answer? Or what problem do you want to solve? 2.Does the underlying issue of this research question/problem fit within one of the grant competitions? 3.Does the research method to be used fit within the methodological requirements?

Next Step? Identify Appropriate Research Program Review RFAs Review Project Abstracts Talk to IES Program Officers

Steps of the Application Process Read the Request for Applications carefully Build a good team Talk to your Program Officer Write a good application

FY 2012 Research and Research Training Grant Requests for Applications Education Research Grant Programs Special Education Research Grant Programs Statistical and Research Methodology in Education Evaluation of State and Local Education Programs and Policies Postdoctoral Research Training Grant Programs National Research and Development Centers

Focus of this Presentation Education Research Grant Program (84.305A) Special Education Research Grant Program (84.324A)

Identify Appropriate Topic within Research Program (84.305A and A)

Education Research Grants Programs (84.305A) Reading and Writing Mathematics and Science Education Cognition and Student Learning Social and Behavioral Context for Academic Learning Education Technology Effective Teachers & Effective Teaching Improving Education Systems: Policies, Organization, Management, and Leadership Postsecondary and Adult Education Early Learning Programs and Policies English Learners ≈

Special Education Research Programs (84.324A) Early Intervention and Early Learning in Special Education Reading, Writing, and Language Development Mathematics and Science Education Social and Behavioral Outcomes to Support Learning Transition Outcomes for Special Education Secondary Students Cognition and Student Learning in Special Education Professional Development for Teachers and Related Service Providers Special Education Policy, Finance, and Systems Autism Spectrum Disorders Technology for Special Education Families with Children with Disabilities

Identify Appropriate Goal (84.305A and A) Your Research Question(s) and Research Method(s) determine the goal.

FY2012 Research Goals Exploration Development & Innovation Efficacy and Replication Scale-Up Evaluation Measurement

Exploration Goal Explore associations between education outcomes and malleable factors. Possible methodological approaches include: –Analyze secondary data –Collect primary data –Complete a meta-analysis

Development & Innovation Goal Develop a new intervention (e.g., curriculum, instructional approach, program, or policy) OR further develop an intervention that is in the early stages of development AND collect data on its feasibility and usability in actual education settings AND pilot data on student outcomes.

Efficacy & Replication Goal Evaluate whether or not a fully developed intervention is efficacious under limited or ideal conditions. OR Gather follow-up data examining the effects of the intervention.

Efficacy & Replication Goal Ask what might be needed to implement intervention under routine practice Reduce appearance of conflict of interest for developer-evaluators Do not require confirmatory mediator analyses but recommend exploratory ones New requirements for single-case efficacy studies

Scale-up Evaluation Goal Evaluate whether a fully developed intervention that has evidence of efficacy is effective when implemented under typical conditions through an independent evaluation.

Scale-up Evaluation Goal Maintain past requirements –Implement intervention under routine practice –Evaluators independent of development/distribution –Strong efficacy evidence for intervention Do not expect wide generalizability from 1 study – Expect multiple Scale-up projects to this end –Sample size not a key distinction from Efficacy Do not require confirmatory mediator analyses but encourage exploratory ones Implementation limited to 25% of budget

GoalTypical Range per Year (direct + indirect costs) Maximum (direct + indirect) Exploration Secondary data With primary data $100,000 - $300,000 $100,000 - $400,000 2 years, $700,000 4 years, $1,600,000 Development & Innovation $150,000 - $400,0003 years, $1,500,000 Efficacy & Replication Follow-up study $250,000 - $650,000 $150,000 - $300,000 4 years, $3,500,000 3 years, $1,200,000 Scale-up Evaluation Follow-up study $350,000 - $900,000 $250,000 - $400,000 5 years, $5,000,000 3 years, $1,500,000 Measurement$150,000 - $300,0004 years, $1,600,000

The Goals Build on One Another Exploration should lead to: –Develop or modification of an intervention –Efficacy evaluation of an intervention Development and Innovation should lead to an Efficacy evaluation if found feasible and pilot data is supportive Efficacy and Replication should lead to a Scale-up evaluation if impact found Measurement should feed into the other goals

Which Goal and Topic are Right for You? Choose topic and goal that fit your research agenda and require your expertise and skills Start to think about which goal is appropriate for the question(s) you want to answer Look at the abstracts of projects funded under a research topic:

What if My Program is “Between” Goals or Topics? PICK ONE! –Read the Request for Applications –Break the project down into smaller pieces –Don’t just go for the largest amount of money –Aim for a well-crafted project that will deliver what it promises –Discuss with a program officer

The Application’s Research Narrative Key part of your application 4 Sections –Significance –Research Plan –Personnel –Resources Requirements vary by program & goal 25 pages, single spaced

Significance Describes the overall project –Your research question to be answered; intervention to be developed or evaluated, or measure to be developed and/or validated Provides a compelling rationale for the project –Theoretical justification Logic Models, Change Models –Empirical justification –Practical justification Justifies the overall importance of the work

Research Plan Describe the work you intend to do –How you will answer your research question; develop your intervention; evaluate the intervention, or develop and/or validate your assessment Make certain Research Plan is aligned to Significance section –All analyses should have justification in Significance – answer the research questions. Step-by-step process –Timeline to show when everything will be done

Build a Good Team

Convince reviewers that your team has the skills and experience to implement the proposed work Show team contains all expertise required for project If all the expertise required for your project is not available on your campus, consider partnering with another institution Demonstrate your productivity Make sure the team includes a senior researcher with a strong grant record Ensure all team members commit sufficient time to implement the proposed research

Personnel Section Link each person and their expertise to their role in the project –Qualifications –Roles –Responsibilities –Percent of time devoted to the project Show every aspect of project has person with expertise and time to do it

Personnel Strategies for PI Senior Researcher –Show adequate time to be PI –Make credentials clear: not all reviewers may know Junior Researcher as PI –Show you have adequate expertise not only to do work but to manage project Continuation of graduate research Management skills as graduate student –Reviewers more comfortable if you have senior person(s) on project to turn to for advise Co-PI, Co-I, contractors, advisory board Have them on for enough time to be taken seriously

Resources Show the institutions involved have the capacity to support the work –Don’t use university boilerplate If your institution lacks a strong research or grant management record –Consider partnering with one that does for first grants Show that all organizations involved understand and agree to their roles –The responsibilities of each institution, including schools, to the project –Show strong commitment of schools and districts - have alternatives in case of attrition

Resources (continued) Data issues –Document permission to use and access to confidential data –Show familiarity with data – show that it can be used to do the proposed work –If merging datasets, show that it can be done

Next Steps Read the Request for Applications closely one more time and confirm that your idea fits the requirements for a specific Topic (e.g., Read/Write) and Goal Then talk to your Program Officer

Talk to the Program Officer Call or IES program officers early in the process IES program staff can provide feedback on: –research idea –topic –goal –abstracts and draft proposals

Preparing the Grant Application  Request for Applications  Currently available at  Grants.gov Application Submission Guide  Will be available 4/21/11 for June deadline  Application Package  Will be available on Grants.gov on 4/21/11 for June deadline

Funding Opportunities Webinars For further guidance... – Basic Overiew Webinar – The Application Process Webinar – Grant Writing Workshop – Grant Writing Presentation for Exploration Projects – Grant Writing Presentation for Development and Innovation Projects – Grant Writing Presentation for Efficacy and Replication Projects – Grant Writing Presentation for Young Investigators

Key Dates FY 2012 NCER (305) & NCSER (324) Grant Programs Application Deadline Letter of Intent Due Date Application Posted Start Dates 305A: Ed Research 324A: Sp Ed Research 324B: Sp Ed Postdoc 6/23/114/21/11 3/1/12 to 9/1/12 305A: Ed Research 324A: Sp Ed Research 305B: Postdoc 305C: R & D Centers 324C: Sp Ed R&D Ctrs 305D: Stats/Methods 305E: State/Local 9/22/117/21/11 7/1/12 to 9/1/12

Peer Review Proposal is reviewed for compliance. Proposal reviewed for responsiveness Compliant and responsive proposals are assigned to a review panel. Two or three panel members conduct primary review of each application. At panel meeting, the most competitive applications are reviewed by full panel.

Peer Review Process Information

Tips for Grant Writing Reviewers focus on significance of work, research method, personnel, and resources Write for education specialist/generalist Write for substantive person and methodologist Panel has expert in every component of your study Punchline up front Clear description of intervention Consistency throughout application Evidence that work can be done

Notification All applicants will receive notification of the status of their application. All applicants receive copies of reviewer comments. If you are not granted an award the first time, plan on resubmitting, and talk to your program officer.

Remember You can’t get funded if you don’t submit an application Revise and resubmit is the rule, not the exception Persistence (often) pays off

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