Deadline: April 3, 2023
Contact Person: Dr. Elsie Froment, Director of Research
PURPOSE
The Northwest Pathways for Tomorrow (2022) internal research competition funds academic research into specific Christian ministry-related questions and applications related to the following topics identified by the Pathways survey:
Social Media Influence
Consumerism
Gender and Leadership
Discipleship Training
Evangelism and Outreach
Engagement with Immigrants and/or the Needy
Applying Biblical Principles in our Daily Context
Sexual Ethics
Re-Imagining Church in a Secular Society
Family Ministries beyond Families with Children
Researchers are encouraged to engage these topics from the following perspectives:
Biblical and Theological Studies
History and Cultural Studies
Leadership Formation and Ministry Skills
Educational Innovation
Normally, Lifelong Learning and NIMER will expect a presentation and an article from the funded research.
ELIGIBILITY
Applicants hold a Northwest Baptist Seminary full-time, part-time or Professor Emeritus academic appointment. Applications that involve collaborators who hold graduate academic credentials and are engaged in full-time Christian ministry are encouraged. Student involvement is for the purpose of research training rather than completion of degree requirements.
GRANT AMOUNT AND TERM
There will be two grants of up to $4,000 CDN annually. The term of the grant is 18 months.
GUIDELINES
Researchers may make one application per competition as the Principal Investigator. The Principal Investigator is the correspondent for the application. The funds will be disbursed to and administered on the Principal Investigator’s behalf by the Northwest bookkeeper. Expense disbursement will be managed by the Northwest bookkeeper.
Applicants will complete every section of the application format in single-spaced, Times New Roman, 12-point type, with ¾ inch margins, following the instructions provided. Do not include attachments unless requested. Use narrative style with headings. Avoid jargon and explain acronyms; evaluators may not be familiar with your specialization.
Questions from applicants and review of applications (with at least one week lead time) to the Director of Research are welcome.
The submission deadline is April 3, 2023, by 8 p.m. The application will be submitted to the Director of Research by email as a PDF attachment. The awards will be determined by a three-member committee using the criteria below. Applicants will be advised of the competition results by April 17, 2023.
The award term is May 1, 2023-November 30, 2024.
Grant holders will make a report not exceeding one page at the conclusion of the grant term. Grant holders may not apply in future competitions if the Director of Research has not received the report.
Research involving human subjects must be approved by the TWU Human Research Ethics Board. If the research is found in breach of normative standards of academic integrity administered by the Board, the award must be returned to Northwest for redistribution in the next internal grant competition.
APPLICATION
Application Headings
- Researcher/Research Team
Principal Investigator:
Current Appointment:
Phone:
Email:
If applicable:
Co-investigator(s):
Collaborator(s):
Student(s):
Current Program(s):
- Research Project (word limits in parentheses, not including spaces)
Description of research project (350)
Short- and long-term objectives of research project (350)
Relation to ministry education (100)
Significance to specialization/anticipated impacts of research (250)
Research plan and methodology (350)
References (300)
Relation to other research conducted by research team members (200)
Research team roles (200)
Timeline (work completed before award term will not be funded) (100)
How research results will be disseminated (150)
If the research involves human subjects, it must be approved by the TWU Human Research Ethics Board.
- Budget
Detailed Budget
Budget justification
- Additional Information
Please submit a current curriculum vitae/resume for every member of the research team.
BUDGET
The budget may include all eligible expenses essential to planning and carrying out a relevant research project to the point of beginning to write a presentation or article for publication. All expenses must be identified and justified. If other sources of funding are being used to fund the research project, the budget should indicate the funding sources of these expenses and whether the funding is expected or secured. Northwest will not cover expenses requested from other funding sources. In addition, if the recipient receives another award covering expenses requested from Northwest, the recipient must inform the Director of Research so this amount may be recalled. If applicable, ethics approvals must be obtained before the grant funds will be released. Normally, funds can only be used as indicated in the application budget. Researchers are to consult the Director of Research regarding expenses not in the application budget. The Evaluation Committee may make a partial award and/or disallow ineligible expenses.
Eligible Expenses
- Cost of books, articles, etc., necessary to complete the research
- Specialized equipment or software rental or purchase up to $250 (essential for completion of the project, not supplied by the academic institution, purchase only if rental impractical or more expensive)
- Travel necessary to conduct the research (.40/km, economical airfares, modest accommodation, food $50/day domestic and $70/day international, snacks and alcohol beverages excluded). Childcare expenses may be requested for short-term travel (up to 5 days).
- Funds to buy out courses.
- Research assistant costs according to institutional guidelines.
- Institutional indirect costs: 5% of the total expenses
Ineligible Expenses
- Salaries
- Conference fees and accommodation
- Standard office facilities and expenses
- Equipment installation, operation, or maintenance
- Electronic communication, e.g., cell phone charges
- Association memberships and journal subscriptions
- Spouse travel expenses, animal care, entertainment
Budget overruns are the responsibility of the researcher.
Unspent funds will revert to the Northwest research budget at the end of the grant term.
EVALUATION
The applications are reviewed by a faculty committee comprised of the Academic Dean, a non-applicant faculty member, and a doctoral-level representative of Fellowship Pacific. The Director of Research ensures that no committee member has a conflict of interest, chairs the committee meeting, and does not participate in the granting decisions.
The evaluation is made on the strength of the application alone. Applications that do not conform to the competition format and style requirements will not be processed by the committee.
The committee members individually assign scores to each application. They rank the applications according to the scores they have assigned. The director averages the rankings and convenes the committee to review each application and assign the grant amounts of the successful applications. No additional information about any application is allowed into the discussion.
When the committee has completed its evaluation, the Director of Research notifies all applicants by email. Normally, the competition results are announced within two weeks from the close of the competition.
Criteria and Weighting
10 Proposal concise, well-organized, and well-argued, no spelling or grammar errors 5 Significance/anticipated impacts
5 Original and/or innovative
10 Quality of methodology
5 Likelihood researcher and/or research team can successfully complete the research project: qualified, realistic timeline
5 Budget items realistic, adequate, and necessary
5 Relation to research plan
5 Involves students
/50 Total score