Public Engagement Grants

Public Engagement Grants is sponsored by ASCB (American Society for Cell Biology). The ASCB Public Engagement Grants provide funding, mentoring, and project assessment directly to ASCB members interested in engaging with their community and gaining experience in public outreach.

ASCB Public Engagement Grants - ASCB | ASCB Diversity, Equity, Inclusion ASCB Public Engagement Grants Unfortunately, ASCB will not be able to offer another round of funding for 2022-2023. Check back later in 2023 for any updates.

ASCB is seeking to expand leadership in science outreach, including science literacy for the public and advocacy/public policy by providing funding and support for scientists with bold ideas to engage their communities in the process of science. Help scientists reach public audiences to build trust in scientists and increase appreciation and understanding of science.

Enable scientists to take a pilot project to the next level and possibly become competitive for funding from other sources to sustain and expand their project. Support scientists who may want to transition to a career in public engagement or increase the professionalism of their approach to engaging the public. Provide mentoring and networking opportunities to scientists who want to expand their public engagement work.

Train scientists to develop assessment tools. View our webinar from Feb. 18, 2021: How to Submit a Successful Public Engagement Grant Application Application Process/Selection The ASCB Public Engagement Grants will provide funding, mentoring, and project assessment directly to ASCB members interested in engaging with their community and gaining experience in public outreach.

ASCB will award grants from $10,000-$35,000 to pay for materials and supplies, marketing, and salaries. We hope to catalyze pilot projects to enable them to become competitive for even more substantial funding. These grants can be thought of as bridge funds to help individuals move from completely homegrown efforts to fully funded efforts.

A team may apply, but one individual must be designated as the lead. We are hoping for applications for diverse projects. ASCB will provide grantees with: 1) Access from start to finish to a dedicated person at the Center for Research Evaluation for individual help with developing assessment tools.

2) Access to mentors (who can be a sounding board for your project and who can help you make connections to broaden your network) 3) Funds to attend the ASCB|EMBO Meeting as well as a science communications meeting or training program (e.g., AAAS, NABI). 4) Networking via a private group on the ASCB Community.

Application Process/Selection Applicants will be asked for the following: 250-word abstract that includes brief project description, target audience, hoped for impact. maximum 6-page Project Plan that includes the following elements, preferably in this order: 1) What are the intended impacts (short and long term)? Include a clear definition of the audience you plan to reach.

2) Full project description, including how it can be implemented in the context of the coronavirus pandemic; 3) How will your project achieve your proposed impacts (e.g., Will it increase appreciation of the science topic? How? Will it increase diversity in science?

How?) ; 4) Have you piloted elements of the project? If so, what were the outcomes?

5) What other outreach experience do you and/or your team have? 6) Project timeline. Budget and budget justification ( Download our sample budget sheet ) How will finances be handled (institutionally or individually)?

Note: If your award will be paid to and/or handled by your institution, contact the appropriate person at your organization to determine whether they will charge administrative fees. If so, please include them in your budget and limit to no more than 20% of total costs.

Name of potential mentor to provide feedback on project and connections (ASCB can help identify a mentor if necessary) The application site will be open from January 15 until March 31 midnight Eastern. NOTE: You must be or become an ASCB member. More info/Join here.

Your membership will become active on the next business day after you apply, so be sure to apply for membership well before the application deadline. If you cannot apply before the deadline because of your membership status please email Thea Clarke to let her know.

A review panel will select grantees on the basis of the following criteria: Prior work and experience (Does the grantee have a track record of accomplishing a related project at a smaller scale?) Impact on audiences (Will the project have a positive impact on the community it is trying to reach?) Innovation (Is the project novel?)

Engagement approach (Has the grantee thought about how to work with the community rather than involving the community only as an audience?) Likelihood of success (Do the project and budget seem realistic? Is the grantee prepared to accomplish the project they describe?

Can it be done virtually?) All applications will be judged on their individual merits. Questions?

Contact Thea Clarke at tclarke@ascb. org Application open on ASCB website Applicant review, selection, and notification of successful grantees Grantees continue work on projects Grantees identify and potentially attend science communication conference or course. Grantees connect with mentors Grantees participate in science communications sessions at ASCB annual meeting in December.

Networking session and lecture Grantees present their work if applicable Grantees provide interim budget Grantees complete projects Grantees submit final report The Feeding Minds and Families program will be an after-school, STEM outreach program at Strong Vincent Middle School in Erie, Pennsylvania that brings together Gannon University faculty, staff and community partners to encourage interest in STEM and STEM-related careers.

Through this program, students will learn about STEM through interactive, hands-on activities followed by family meal gatherings with local leaders in the STEM fields. The Flipped Science Fair flips the traditional science fair format on its head: middle school student judges will evaluate graduate students and postdocs presenting their current research.

Middle school students learn about cutting-edge research from real scientists in a small-group setting, with plenty of opportunities to ask questions and participate in hands-on demonstrations. Through workshops and individualized coaching, presenters learn how to tailor their research pitch to a general audience, with emphasis on keeping things exciting, understandable, and relevant.

“Science Outside the Lines” is a science and arts integration afterschool program that works with third and fourth grade students in the Baltimore City area. Using art as a non-intimidating platform to teach and share science, we use interactive projects using media such as paints, ceramics, ink, and mix-media to re-inforce concepts taught within the Baltimore City Public School STEM curriculum.

We work with a local non-profit, Art With a Heart, to develop these interactive lessons, which are executed by graduate students and post-docs at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. The Young Scientist Program at UC Davis is piloting a new extension of their K-12 science education outreach program called Stockton CAN (Close the Achievement Gap Now).

Overall, our mission is to increase access to science enrichment activities for socioeconomically disadvantaged and minority students. Through Stockton CAN, we will establish an after-school science club at a Tier 1 elementary school in Stockton, CA. Students will benefit from peer-mentorship and immersive, hands-on science activities while preparing for the San Joaquin County Science Olympiad.

Scientific education is vital for teaching students how to think critically and develop the right questions. This depends on early, consistent scientific exposure and confident teachers.

To improve elementary scientific education, we have developed a program in Berkeley, CA, that increases hands on scientific lessons and demonstrates to teachers how to approach science demonstrations by having a team of graduate students visit the same school and classrooms to run NGSS driven scientific experiments throughout the school year.

The Canadian Association for Girls In Science (CAGIS) is a volunteer-run science club for girls aged 7-16. Chapters hold monthly events where they bring girls to the workplaces of women and men in STEM fields to do fun, hands-on activities. The grant will be used to modernize and increase the organizational efficiency of CAGIS, create a new website and stronger online presence, and secure long-term funding.

The Prince Edward County Environmental Molecular Biology Institute (PECEMBI) seeks to build a student research network between the undergraduate students of Hampden-Sydney College and Longwood University and the life science high school students of a 6-county region of rural central Virginia (Appomattox, Buckingham, Charlotte, Cumberland, Nottaway, Prince Edward).

Undergraduates at both Hampden-Sydney and Longwood will be mentored by faculty on the best approaches to bring long-term authentic research experiences to the classrooms of rural central Virginia schools that in many cases consist of a majority of students from groups traditionally underrepresented in the STEM disciplines.

The undergraduates will receive invaluable professional development experiences in mentoring and outreach while the high schools will gain access to research experiences not often available to schools such as these with limited resources.

Savannah Cook, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Kinase Kids Science Club: Engaging children experiencing homelessness with science education activities at Mary’s Place shelters and lab-based experiences at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle.

Brooke Danielsson, Virginia Commonwealth University Engineering Practices in Color (EPIC): After-school STEM outreach for 7 th and 8 th grade dyslexic students using a curriculum that explores STEM using sensory-based activities and engineering design process.

Rafael Garcia-Mata, University of Toledo Expanding the SCOPE of Science Classes through Cyber-Enabled Instrumentation: Working with middle and high school students and home schoolers in Ohio and Michigan to remotely control an electron confocal microscope at University of Toledo to study science.

Rogelio Hernandez-Lopez, University of California, San Francisco Science Clubs International 2020/2021: Offering hands-on STEM workshops in Spanish and Portuguese for high schoolers and undergrads in Latin America taught by grad students and postdocs.

Janet Iwasa, University of Utah Finding a Refuge in Visualization: Partnering with an after school program for minority/refugee students to teach, create, and showcase scientific visualizations.

Beverly Naigles, University of California, San Diego SCIENCE class: Graduate students teaching science to adults incarcerated in San Diego county jails, to increase science literacy and humanize science as well as develop cultural competency of future STEM leaders.

Anusha Naganathan, University of Rochester University of Rochester Science Stories: Bringing the experience of scientific experimentation to students at Groveland Correctional Facility in western New York.

Camila de Avila Dal’Bo, Mayo Clinic Navajo Science—Mentorship in STEM of collegiate Navajo Nation students at Diné College campuses in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah Jessica McAnulty, University of Michigan Developing Future Biologists—An educational outreach program led by grad students and postdocs at University of Michigan to reduce barriers for underrepresented students to experience biomedical science research and learn about careers in STEM Fanuel Muindi, STEM Advocacy Institute Science Communication Summer Research Program—A virtual science communication and engagement program to provide research and professional development opportunities for college undergraduate students across the United States Jessica Sowa, West Chester University of Pennsylvania Nematode Hunters—A classroom-based citizen science project that will allow 4 th grade teachers at underserved schools in Pennsylvania to engage their students in authentic biological research Kristina Young, University of Texas at El Paso Science Moab Science Certification Program—A program to advance place-based science appreciation and literacy by training outdoor recreation guides in southeast Utah to communicate science concepts and local scientific research to visitors Funded by Science Sandbox, an initiative of the Simons Foundation