About the SNF Agora Institute
The SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University, founded in 2017, is a multi-disciplinary academic and public forum dedicated to strengthening global democracy by improving and expanding civic engagement and inclusive dialogue, and by supporting inquiry that leads to real-world change. Through integrated research partnerships with scholars, practitioners, students, and the public, we identify and sharpen strategic choices that members of the public and civic and political stakeholders around the world can make to realize the promise of democracy.
For more information about the institute, please visit our “About” page.
Faculty Grants Program
The purpose of the SNF Agora Faculty Grants program is to encourage and support work by faculty at Johns Hopkins, particularly faculty from the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences (KSAS), that is complementary to SNF Agora’s mission. This could take the form of scholarship, convenings, public engagement, policy briefings, and more. SNF Agora wants to support and amplify this work through its institute, and foster faculty collaboration across the university on ideas and efforts that could reinvigorate global democracy and the civic spaces that fuel it. Please note that for convenings, public engagements, and other programming, SNF Agora staff have limited capacity to plan or produce programs, but are happy to promote these events through our channels.
The SNF Agora Faculty Grants program typically provides smaller grants (less than $5,000) to support faculty work, but may also provide one larger grant per year with up to $20,000 in funding.
The grants run on an annual fiscal year with a start date of July 1 and an end date of June 30. Funds will be dispersed in two tranches—the first at the start of the fiscal year, and the second upon completion of a semi-annual progress report. Specific details regarding reporting will be outlined in award letters.
Eligibility
Full-time faculty from across Johns Hopkins University are eligible to apply: Berman Institute of Bioethics, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Carey Business School, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, Peabody Institute of Music, School of Education, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, Whiting School of Engineering. Priority will be given to faculty from the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences.
Applicants can propose new projects or seek funding to supplement ongoing projects that are closely connected to SNF Agora’s mission.
Selection Criteria
Each proposal will be evaluated on four factors:
- Relevance to SNF Agora: The proposal must be for a project that supports the mission of SNF Agora. Ideal proposals draw a clear line from the project’s aim to the SNF Agora mission.
- Feasibility: The proposal must be implementable within 12 months from the start of the grant.
- Innovation: The proposal should offer an innovative or under-explored approach for addressing the issue it is taking on or seek to amplify uncommon perspectives on that issue.
- Public Impact: The proposal should articulate how the project will engage with public problems and include how its public impact will be examined.
Applications
We are currently welcoming applications for our AY 2023-24 Faculty Grants program. If you are interested in applying for a grant, please complete the application form found here. As part of your application, we ask you to draft a brief proposal narrative and budget (as described in the form). Please also include a current CV or resume. Applications will be accepted until Sunday, April 2, at 11:59 p.m. Decisions regarding Faculty Grants will be announced in mid-May. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to us at snfagoraapplications@jhu.edu.