Funding for this grant comes in partnership from the Institute for Firearm Injury Prevention (IFIP) and the Institute for Research on Women and Gender (IRWG). This special funding opportunity invites applications for impactful scholarship aimed at understanding the intersection of gender and firearm injury prevention, broadly understood. Support may be requested for individual activities, such as research assistance, research-related travel, or research materials. We also support collaborative projects, such as pilot studies or initial research efforts. While providing funds for new and emerging work is a priority for this program, requests to add a gender component to an ongoing research project may also be considered. Applications from faculty of all academic disciplines, including the arts, humanities, sciences, and health are welcome.
Possible research topics could include but are not limited to:
- The intersection and association of gender and/or sexuality with gun ownership, experience, attitudes, and/or safety practices
- Women, peace, and security in a former war zone
- Masculinity and perceptions of manhood and firearm behaviors and experiences
- Firearm-related intimate partner violence
- Firearm-related suicides and the intersection of gender and/or sexuality
- Understanding and addressing gender and/or sexuality disparities in firearm injuries and deaths
Deadline:
Monday, October 26, 2026
Award(s):
This partnership has $20,000 in funding available, which could be awarded to one or more projects with timelines of up to two years.
Eligibility:
- Tenure-track, non-tenure track, clinical faculty, research faculty, and librarians/curators at the University of Michigan are eligible.*
- Applicants are encouraged to include students in project plans, but the principal investigator may not be a student or postdoctoral fellow.
Please speak with Savannah Hall (savbhall@umich.edu) or Michele Demers (mirude@umich.edu) if you would like to request dispensation from any of the eligibility criteria.
*U-M faculty who are not yet affiliated with IRWG are encouraged to apply to be an IRWG affiliate through a simple form.
How to Apply:
Applications must be submitted by 5:00 pm ET, Monday, October 26, 2026 through InfoReady. Applicants are required to provide an ORCID number. If you have not yet set up your ORCID, please see instructions here.
Submissions must be single-spaced, ½ inch margins, 11 pt Arial font and should include the following:
1. Title Page – Proposal title, principal investigator and co-investigator names, and affiliation.
2. Project Abstract – 100 word summary accessible to a general reader. If awarded, we will use this description on our website and in social media.
3. Project Narrative – In no more than three (3) pages, excluding references, please include the following:
- Background/Problem Statement: Provide context on why this project is needed
- Goals & Objectives: What does this project hope to achieve (include proposed research questions/ topics of exploration), and how does it contribute to the missions of IRWG and IFIP?
- Activities: Include proposed project activities, methods used, and an estimated timeline
- Roles of the Collaborators: Include anyone named in the proposal, their roles and responsibilities, and expected level of effort (e.g. percentage of time or hours committed)
- Project Deliverables/Dissemination Plan: This may include journal articles, a book project, performance/s, community events, etc.
- Future Research Plans: Explain how the seed grant would contribute to future research agendas and/or become sustainable (e.g. does it establish new partnerships, offer proof of concept data, provide training of junior scholars, lead to external funding applications, etc.)
4. Itemized Project Budget – Please adapt the provided Google spreadsheet template to suit your project.
5. Budget Justification – In no more than two (2) pages describe your project’s budget
- Outline budget expenses, including their justification.
- Specify contingent budgets.
- Any salary expenses must include appropriate calculation of benefits. Please note that faculty salary will not be funded.
- Please list any other sources of funding (and amounts) that you’re receiving or applying to receive for this project. This may include any percentage of match funding from your own discretionary account, startup funds from your department/college, or other sources of research funding. If applicable, explain why you need additional funding to the ones listed in your budget justification.
6. Short Curriculum Vitae – An abbreviated (max 3-page) curriculum vitae or NSF/NIH biosketch will be accepted. For projects with multiple collaborators, please include a one-page resume for each person including affiliation, major publications, and grant awards.
7. Letters of Support (if applicable) – Include a brief, one-page letter of support for any institutional or community partners involved in this project, should there be any.
Selection Criteria:
Reviewers will score the applications based on EACH of these criteria:
- Quality and significance of the scholarly or creative activity proposed;
- Centrality of research on women, gender, and/or sexuality;
- Centrality of research on firearms, and/or injury prevention;
- Value of the project to the career development of faculty (in terms of scholarly, training, or obtaining further external funding) or that of students;
- Inclusion of an intersectional approach (including appropriate attention to issues of race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, culture, social class, nationality, religion, disability, or other social differences).
Answering the following questions will strengthen your proposal and reflect the fact that our evaluation criteria may differ from other funders:
- Why should IRWG + IFIP fund this project?
- Why is your project important for the field of gender or sexuality studies? What impact will it have?
- Why is your project important for the field of firearm injury prevention? What impact will it have?
Additional Information:
Reviews will be completed by an interdisciplinary panel of faculty affiliated with IRWG and IFIP.
Human Subjects Review: Compliance with all appropriate regulations governing conduct of research will be required. Research proposals involving the use of human subjects will be subject to project review and approval by the appropriate IRB prior to the release of funds. It is the responsibility of the applicant to obtain IRB approval in a timely manner so that research is not delayed. For the purposes of the application, you do not need to have IRB approval before submitting for consideration.
Applicants who might want to include community engagement within their proposal are invited to reach out to the Ginsberg Center for supportive consultations.
Post Award Expectations:
- Acknowledge IRWG + IFIP support in presentations and publications resulting from the funded project.
- Inform IRWG and IFIP of resulting funding, presentations, and publications for publicity purposes.
- Attend 1-2 status meetings to be scheduled by IFIP to provide project updates.
- Attend and present (either an oral or poster presentation as per the invite) at the annual IFIP Research Day (tentatively planned to be in the Fall of 2027).
- Agree to serve as a reviewer for future awards.
- Provide a brief, written progress report 1 year from the date of the award and a final grant report at the conclusion of the project. Awardees will receive an email to submit these reports through InfoReady.
- Return any unused funds to IRWG or IFIP (as applicable) at the conclusion of the funding period, unless an extension is granted.
- Deposit project data in the IFIP data repository.
- Funded applicants will only remain eligible while at U-M for the duration of their
Questions? Email Savannah Hall at savbhall@umich.edu and Michele Demers (mirude@umich.edu)