Faculty Research

The purpose of these grants is to fund research that explores the interconnectedness of conflict and change at multiple scales (macro, meso, micro, me-cro). Research can be pure/basic (contributing to a knowledge base about conflict and/or change), applied (moving insights about conflict and/or change into diverse forms of action), and/or community-engaged (working alongside communities navigating conflict and/or change).

We are interested in a wide range of research on conflict and change, from diverse disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives. 

We will give preference to projects that: 

• Focus on novel research questions about conflict and change 
• Emphasize how a particular field, discipline, and/or interdisciplinary approach illuminates key aspects of conflict and change
• Demonstrate an attentiveness to complexity and nuance in particular communities, contexts, and/or cultures
• Explore the notion that conflict and change are interconnected at every scale (macro, meso, micro, me-cro)
• Engage in reflective practice about the researcher’s positionality in relation to the contexts that are the focus of the research
• Make explicit if the researcher(s) is/are observing, examining, analyzing, participating in, and/or contributing to the conflict and/or the change
• Demonstrate how research and application are connected
• Integrate collaboration at multiple phases of the research project
• Make explicit the ethical components of their research design
• Highlight diverse research outputs, audiences, and impact
• Have the potential to be used for pedagogical purposes (teaching and learning about conflict and change)

For specific questions about budgets, please email the Collaborative in Conflict Transformation. The Office of Grants and Sponsored Programs may also need to be consulted in certain cases.

In thinking about your budget, consider including elements that would not be possible without this support, such as travel for interviews or to visit archives; presenting at conferences; open access publication fees; hiring research assistants during the academic year or summer; collecting data; or summer salary that allows you to devote yourself full-time to research. 

Budgets must follow all institutional policies surrounding budgets and expenditures.

Yes. Summer and/or sabbatical salary is available for those setting aside time dedicated to the project. The number of hours that will be committed to the project should be included in your budget justification. Please refer to Middlebury’s guidelines for budgeting in these categories. Successful awardees must follow all institutional procedures for receiving grant-supported salary payments (e.g., submit a Time & Effort Form; view the guidelines here).

Please note that the CT Collaborative research grant period follows a calendar year basis by default. If you are planning to request sabbatical salary for a full academic year, your application should explicitly note this; if approved, your grant period will be adjusted to accommodate the academic year schedule. 

PIs approved for academic year sabbatical salary should contact the CT Collaborative to confirm the adjusted grant period.

Also note: if you are requesting sabbatical salary for a full academic year, the grant cannot pay your salary over a single semester. It must be distributed across the full academic year.

This funding cycle covers the calendar year 2026 (between 1 January 2026 - 31 December 2026). Any funds awarded but not spent by December 2026 will return to the CT Collaborative to be reassigned, unless an extension has been approved by the CT Collaborative in advance. You may reapply for funding annually, though priority will be given to new awardees. 

In addition to following our reporting guidance at the end of the grant (see next question), we expect successful recipients to:

• Execute administrative processes associated with running their grant activities
• Proactively monitor their budget balances; PIs will be set up to receive monthly automated reports showing their grant expenses and transactions
• Supervise any student hires
• Reach out to the CT Collaborative with questions, concerns, or proposed changes to the grant’s scope/budget allocations

Prospective PIs should also review the CT Research Grants Guidelines for additional information.

We will check in about your grant midway through the project period and send a survey to all recipients asking about their work at the end of the funding period. Additionally, success of these grants is measured in terms of scholarly output. This might include conference presentations, traditional peer-reviewed publications (including academic journal articles, book chapters, or books), or public-facing scholarship that describes accomplishments or lessons learned for policy or practice. Please keep the Collaborative updated on dissemination. The CT Collaborative will reach out annually to ask grant recipients for their related citations, etc., though recipients are also welcome to share updates on an ad-hoc basis. Grant recipients will also be asked to present their research via CT Collaborative and other Middlebury convenings.