AAR Public Scholarship Grants

AAR Public Scholarship Grants is sponsored by American Academy of Religion (AAR). The AAR Public Scholarship Grant program offers grants to support scholars of religion whose work engages public audiences in innovative ways, through projects designed for presentation in public spaces and outreach through publicly accessible sites.

AAR Public Scholarship Grants – AAR You can now follow AAR on Instagram ! AAR Public Scholarship Grants Support scholars of religion whose work engages public audiences in innovative ways, through projects designed for presentation in public spaces and outreach through publicly accessible sites. AAR Public Scholarship Grants Please note, in order to access the application button on this page, you will need to be logged in as a member.

Please login now. The AAR Public Scholarship Grant program offers grants to support scholars of religion whose work engages public audiences in innovative ways, through projects designed for presentation in public spaces and outreach through publicly accessible sites.

Grants provide support of up to $5,000 for research, writing, travel, and other activities leading to the creation and publication of works, or the execution of exhibits, community-engaged projects, community-based workshops, or other programming that is grounded in engaged religious studies scholarship and promotes the public understanding of religion with a primarily public audience.

Applicants must have current AAR membership and maintain it throughout the grant period. Applications may be submitted by an individual or a collaborative group. A collaborative group must apply through an AAR member designated as the Project Director.

The Project Director must have a current AAR membership and maintain it throughout the grant period. Applicants and/or collaborators cannot have received this grant in the two years prior. AAR members who meet the eligibility requirements may submit more than one proposal and may apply to more than one grant program.

However, the same grant proposal may not be submitted to more than one grant program. If selected, only one grant proposal will be funded to a member who submits multiple proposals or to multiple programs.

Indirect and overhead costs Travel to attend the AAR November Annual Meeting including lodging, ground transportation, meals, or other related expenses Applicants must submit their application form and required materials through the online AAR grant application submission system. Late, emailed, or incomplete application or materials cannot be accepted.

Applicants should be prepared to upload the following required materials, all of which must be compiled into a single document in PDF or Word format: Applicant’s email address Institutional Affiliation/Independent Scholar Grant Type: Individual or Collaborative List of Collaborators & Contact Info (for collaborative projects) Requested grant amount (USD) A narrative description of no more than 500 words Project Goals or Objectives Supplemental Materials (Optional) Only include if helpful to ascertain project scope or investigator preparedness, e.g. name prior projects or include agreements with community partners Project Budget and Timeline: Completed budget template (use the template provided) 1-2 page narrative explanation of expenses; project funds must be requested in US dollars (USD).

Budget should include other sources of support—e.g., funds granted by your institution, funds requested from outside agencies—and indicate the total award amount sought from the AAR One page description of the project timeline For individual projects: A CV of no more than two pages For collaborative projects: A CV of no more than two pages for the Project Director A CV of no more than two pages for each collaborator The signed consent must be included as a separate document/page.

All eligible grant proposals will be reviewed and assessed by the AAR Public Scholarship Grants Jury using the following criteria: Clarity of Project description and goals/objectives Innovation (i.e. does the proposed project create or contribute something novel or unique or necessary within the defined context) Contribution to engaged religious studies scholarship (i.e. relevance of project to the public understanding of religion and grounded in engaged scholarship) Scope of the proposed project (i.e. is it appropriate for the time allotted) Preparation of applicant(s) to pursue the project (i.e. do applicants have relevant training and does the project fit into the larger scope of their work) Clarity of benefits to public (as audience or engaged community) Relevance of proposed budget (i.e. is reasonable and tailored to the proposed project).

Application Status Notification Notification of the application status will typically be sent in January to the applicant/Project Director. For awarded projects, expenses may be undertaken anytime within the calendar year of the award year The grant period starts on January 1 and ends on December 31. Successful applicants will have the entire calendar year to complete the grant funded activities.

Grant Winner Expectations Grantees must maintain their AAR membership throughout the grant period. For awarded individual projects, grant funds will be made payable to the individual grantee. For awarded collaborative projects, grant funds will be made payable to the Project Director.

Note: Grant funds cannot be remitted to a grantee’s institution, a collaborator or someone other than the individual grantee/Project Director. The grant payment will be made in the form of an electronic funds transfer. For awarded projects, grant funds will be disbursed until June 30 of the award year.

The required forms must be submitted to AAR Accounting by May 31. The AAR will issue the individual grantee/Project Director a Form 1099 in the amount of the grant for income tax use. The individual grantee/Project Director will be responsible for any applicable income taxes due on the grant revenue.

AAR cannot provide tax guidance. A final report is due within 30 days of completion of the grant.

By January 31 of the following calendar year, the individual grantee/Project Director must submit an expense report along with a report on the research supported by the AAR grant Expected Outcomes & Reporting Requirements: Grant recipients must submit a final report within 30 days of project completion, including: Summarize key accomplishments and impact Include documentation (copies of or links to published work, programs from events/exhibits, photographs, etc.) Financial report detailing how funds were spent For any questions, please contact us at grants@aarweb.

org . September 22, 2025 6:00 pm ET