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2025 Call for Proposals
Community-Based Participatory Research Projects.
Deadlines: August 15, 2025
Amount: $15,000 – $25,000
Geography: United States & Territories
The Sociological Initiatives Foundation (SIF) is dedicated to the belief that research and action are intrinsically inseparable. We invite concept proposals for community-academic partnerships that link an explicit research design to a concrete social action strategy. Projects should have specifically stated social change goals.
In the past, SIF has funded projects in civil rights, community organizing, crime and law, education, health, housing, immigration, labor organizing, and language/literacy.
The Foundation will continue prioritizing projects promoting racial justice and fairer and more equitable laws, policies, and practices. We expect applicants from academic institutions to apply with a community partner.
Preference is given to applicants that are:
- community-academic partnerships
- advocacy or community groups that conduct research that can withstand challenges in academic and policy arenas
- grassroots organizations that organize or link to a constituency through their research
A limited number of concept applicants will be invited to submit full proposals.
Projects typically take two years, so applicants should consider such a timeline.
Some examples of desired applicants are:
-
- community-led academic partnerships
- advocacy or community groups that conduct research that can withstand challenges in academic and policy arenas
- academics allied with a constituency through their research
Types of Support and Limitations
-
- Preference is given to providing support in areas that tend to be underfunded and for projects of a size where a Sociological Initiatives Foundation grant can make a difference.
- For nonprofits, grants are restricted to organizations that are tax-exempt under Section 501(c) 3 of the Internal Revenue Code and classified as “not a private foundation” under section 509(a).
- The Sociological Initiatives Foundation does not make grants directly to individuals for any purpose.
- SIF also welcomes applications from academic institutions and other qualified organizations wishing to sponsor research projects by individual scholars or practitioners.
- No awards are made for dissertation research, honoraria, or political purposes.
- The Foundation does not provide operating support or capital grants.
- Grant sizes normally range from $15,000 to $25,000.
- The geographic focus is limited to the United States.
Generally, the Foundation will not consider proposals that:
-
- represent the work of a lone academic without an ongoing partnership with a community organization
- do not demonstrate the capacity or intent to carry out bona fide research, as indicated by either a past track record or a credentialed researcher partner
- are led by government/municipal agencies,
- result only in reports, publications, websites, gatherings, films, theatrical productions, concerts, conferences, or the like that are not part of a larger explicit social change strategy
- only evaluate existing programs. Program evaluation is not a priority.
- request funds for operating support or capital grants
Investment Policy
The Foundation directors consider it our fiduciary responsibility to align our fiscal practices with our social mission. Therefore, we have adopted a policy of socially responsible investing.
AI Based Application Success Predictor
1. 🧠 Applied Social Science Approach
SIF exclusively funds applied research using qualitative or quantitative sociological methods, including:
Participatory Action Research (PAR)
Community-based participatory research (CBPR)
Ethnography, interviews, focus groups
Mixed methods and community surveys
✅ Success Predictor: Your project uses rigorous social science methods to address real-world issues — not just academic theory.
2. 🧑🤝🧑 Genuine Community Partnerships
Projects must be co-developed with and for communities, such as:
Grassroots or nonprofit organizations
Marginalized or underserved populations
Coalitions addressing social inequities
SIF prioritizes projects where communities have decision-making power — not just as subjects of study.
✅ Success Predictor: The research is community-driven, not top-down, and includes equity in leadership.
3. 📣 Clear Advocacy or Social Change Outcomes
Funded projects aim to:
Influence policy, practice, or systems change
Build community organizing strategies
Develop advocacy campaigns based on research findings
✅ Success Predictor: The research directly supports community empowerment or systemic change — not purely academic publication.
4. 🧾 Sharp Problem Definition & Specific Goals
Successful proposals are:
Targeted in scope (e.g., tenant rights in NYC, language access in healthcare, policing in rural towns)
Backed by a clear research question and theory of change
Feasible within the grant size ($10,000–$25,000 typical)
✅ Success Predictor: You have a well-scoped, actionable project with defined goals, roles, and deliverables.
5. 🌍 Priority Populations and Issues
Successful past projects often focus on:
Racial and social justice
Immigrant and refugee rights
Gender equity and LGBTQ+ inclusion
Labor and economic justice
Education reform
Language access
Environmental justice
✅ Success Predictor: The project centers marginalized voices and tackles structural inequity.
💵 Typical SIF Grant Profile
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Grant size | $10,000 – $25,000 |
| Project types | Research + action |
| Eligibility | U.S.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofits or fiscally sponsored groups |
| Funding use | Personnel, training, materials, data collection, analysis |
| Not funded | Pure service provision, academic-only research, capital projects |
🧪 Example of Funded Projects
Community-based research on criminal justice reform in urban communities
Ethnographic study with farmworkers on pesticide exposure and organizing strategies
Participatory evaluation of a language justice initiative in public schools
Youth-led research into housing instability and gentrification
✍️ Tips for Successful Applications
Involve community members as researchers, not just informants
Use plain, accessible language in your proposal
Be explicit about how the research will lead to advocacy or policy impact
Provide a clear timeline and community roles
Demonstrate previous collaboration or trust with community groups
Specialties
Eligibility Requirements
It also supports research that furthers language learning and behavior and its intersection with social and policy questions.
Sponsor Details
Sponsor Institute/Organizations: Sociological Initiatives Foundation
Sponsor Type: Corporate/Non-Profit
Address: c/o Prentice Zinn, Administrator GMA Foundations 2 Liberty Square Boston, Massachusetts, 02110-1006 USA V 617-391-3091
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Grant
Final Deadline:
Aug 15, 2025
Funding Amount:
$20,000
Host Details
Affiliation: Sociological Initiatives Foundation
Address: c/o Prentice Zinn, Administrator GMA Foundations 2 Liberty Square Boston, Massachusetts, 02110-1006 USA V 617-391-3091
Website URL: https://www.sifoundation.org/guidelines/
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