About IDI Grants

Any student, faculty, staff, or unit at GW can apply for funding for programs and activities that use the lens of diversity and inclusion to advance GW’s academic, education, research, and service mission. This grants program is designed to promote and foster diversity and inclusion at every level of the institution by equipping and encouraging GW community members to integrate these principles and values in their respective areas and in ways they find most important.

The application review panel is made up of members of the Office for Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement's senior staff.

Application Requirements

Innovation in Diversity and Inclusion: Advancing The George Washington University Commitment To Academic Excellence

Innovation in Diversity and Inclusion: Advancing The George Washington University's Comittment to Academic Excellence (PDF), written by students and professors of the university and edited by Helen Cannaday, M.A.Ed., Associate Provost for Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement and Associate Professor Susan Swayze, Ph.D, highlights a selection of IDI-funded projects in hopes of bringing awareness to the innovative work being done at GW around diversity and equity.

The Innovation in Diversity and Inclusion grant application requires:

A clear description of the purpose of the project and the objectives it aims to accomplish / issues/problems it is intended to address.
A summary of expected outcomes.
An itemized budget (a required template is provided) and timeline.

Grant Guidelines

General information and guidelines:

There is no maximum or minimum amount for requests, and applications will be reviewed equally regardless of requested funding level. The total pool of funding is $50,000 per fiscal year.
Previously successful grant recipients may apply again, although priority will be given to individuals or units submitting applications for the first time.
Grant recipients are expected to assist in sharing their experience with the GW community through the Office for Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement newsletter and/or other publications and events.

For the IDI grants program, our office requires that:

Funds be used by the end of the fiscal year (June 30th) in which they are disbursed.
Upon conclusion of project/event, grant recipients are required to submit: 1) a final report which includes a narrative description of who participated, a brief assessment of outcomes (intended and unintended), and future plans for engaging diversity and inclusion efforts; and 2) a financial record to include all expenditures, income, and receipts.
Grant recipients must use award funding only for the purposes described in their grant application and approved by the ODECE. Any exception to this must be brought to the attention of the ODECE in advance and is subject to approval.
In any grant recipient publication, including websites, annual reports, literature, newsletters or news releases, etc., where reference is made to funding sources, GW’s Office for Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement and the Innovation in Diversity and Inclusion grants program should be included.

Grants cannot fund:

Activities that take place entirely off campus and have no obvious benefit to the GW campus.
Previous expenditures, permanent wages/salaries, and/or entertainment expenses with no educational component.
Existing programs as currently implemented.
Conference registrations or wages/salaries that do not have a large or long-lasting impact.
Travel expenses or personal need expenses, except for presenters brought to campus for a specific activity/event.
Scholarships or housing expenses.
For general examples of eligible and ineligible requests, see the Eligible/Ineligible Grant Examples document.

Tips for Successful Proposals

Project applications that exhibit one or more of the following will be given the highest consideration:

Connect or build upon other strategic priorities of the university.
Involve collaboration, whether they be interdisciplinary by field or by faculty/staff/student/unit makeup.
Have the potential for a significant impact (e.g., sustainable and/or far-reaching, broad or deep).
Identify a model/strategy that can be successfully replicated.
Include results and/or outcomes that are clearly measurable.
For general examples of eligible and ineligible requests, see the Eligible/Ineligible Grant Examples document.

Additionally, Innovation in Diversity and Inclusion: Advancing The George Washington University's Comittment to Academic Excellence (PDF), written by students and professors of the university and edited by Helen Cannaday, M.A.Ed., Associate Provost for Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement and Associate Professor Susan Swayze, Ph.D, highlights a selection of IDI-funded projects in hopes of bringing awareness to the innovative work being done at GW around diversity and equity.

For questions, contact our office at 202-994-7434, or email our office at [email protected]