Request for Proposals

The National Communication Association requests proposals for projects and events that will advance the discipline of communication. While there are many funding outlets for communication scholars to seek support for academic disciplinary research, NCA is uniquely positioned to support work that is focused on the discipline itself.  All funded activities should align with the goals of NCA’s strategic plan and should have widespread impact that reaches beyond a single department, campus, or NCA unit.  For information about projects and events that have been funded by NCA in the past, please click here.

Funding proposals submitted through this request for proposals should be for one-time funding not to exceed $5,000.[1]  Preference is given to stand-alone projects/events, but partial funding of larger projects/events will be considered provided that the funding is allocated to a specific piece of the larger endeavor.

Eligibility/ Funding Parameters 

• Principal Investigators must be NCA members at the time of submission.
• Travel, equipment, and other funding categories will only be allocated for items that are in direct support of the proposed project or event.  Examples of things that would not be eligible for funding under this term are attendance at NCA’s annual convention and purchase of office computers.  Funds may not be used to augment the budget of NCA convention-related activity.
• NCA will pay up to 10% indirect costs, but the total funding amount including both direct and indirect costs cannot exceed the $5,000 funding limit.

Application Process

The 2012 deadline is October 1 at 5 p.m.

Each proposal should be submitted with a funding request form that can be downloaded here. In addition to the funding request form, proposals should include the following (in Word or .pdf with as few attachments as possible):

• A detailed description of the proposed activity which includes answers to the following questions:

For events:

• What is the topic of the event?
• Why is this an important topic and how can the event be used to advance the discipline of communication?  How does this align with NCA’s strategic plan?
• In what way(s) will NCA members benefit from this event?  How many people are likely to benefit?
• What is the planned structure of the event?
• What are the logistical details of the event, e.g., dates, location, organizers?

For projects:

• What do you propose to investigate?
• Why is this an important project and how can the results be used to advance the discipline of communication?  How does this align with NCA’s strategic plan?
  What is the methodology by which you plan to accomplish this?
• In what way(s) will NCA members benefit from this event?  How many people are likely to benefit?
• What tangible deliverables will be produced through this project?
• A detailed budget including rationale for each expense and a list of other confirmed funding sources
• C.V. for each Principal Investigator that is no longer than three pages long and includes full name, contact information, and institutional affiliation

Obligations of Grant Recipients 

Attached to the funding request form are detailed documents describing assessment and reporting obligations as well as requirements regarding promotional activities and sponsorship acknowledgement.  All grantees are required to meet these obligations.

For additional information, please contact Brad Mello at bmello@natcom.org or 202-534-1103.