Small Grants Program

Public Programming Grants Program

The Mountain West Center invites applications of up to $500 for Utah State University sponsored events for its public programming grant. Any university organization that is planning a museum exhibit, lecture series, conference, or similar public program that includes outreach to the regional community is eligible to apply. The proposed program must make the case for how the event will further the understanding of the past, present, or future of the Mountain West region, its people, culture, history, environment, or land. 

To Apply

Email your application (700 words or less) to mwc@usu.edu. In the subject line, please state MWC Public Programming Grant Application. Allow up to two weeks for a decision on your application.

Application Requirements

• A narrative overview stating the name and title of the person(s) submitting the grant application, the amount you are requesting, and a description of the event, including the date, time, and place of the program.
• A statement of how the program will promote understanding of the area known as the Interior West, or Great Basin region located primarily between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada Range. Simply holding the event in this region does not qualify for a grant – the topic must further the understanding of the Mountain West.
• A statement of how you will engage the public beyond the campus community and who you view as your intended audience.
• A budget statement outlining specific use of funds.
• A notation of the group(s) sponsoring the event and any matching funds (from either on-campus or off-campus sources).

Requirements if Awarded

• The Mountain West Center must be listed on promotional materials and acknowledged at the event as a sponsor (contact MWC for proper logo). Please forward a copy of promo to MWC for our records.
• A brief report must be turned into the Mountain West Center within 30 days of the completion of the event. The report needs to include the outcomes of the event, and if possible, photos that the Mountain West Center has permission to use on their website.

Additional Information

• Public programming grant applications must be submitted by a Utah State faculty member who is the primary grant applicant. (Students may co-author a grant application with a faculty member.)
• Groups may only be awarded one grant per year.
• The grant has a rolling deadline; however, the grant cycle runs from July 1 to June 30 of each year with a limited amount of funds. When the allotted funds for the year have been awarded, no more grants will be available until the following July 1.
• Please note that indirect costs are not eligible to be covered by this award.

Faculty Small Grants Program

This program will fund grant requests up to $2,000 on a competitive basis for full-time, benefitted CHaSS faculty members of Utah State University (including RCDE; non-CHaSS faculty may inquire). Funds are awarded in support of research or creative activities with preference given to those leading to submission of a journal article, book chapter, book manuscript, or (other) creative product; however, MWC will consider other forms of "publication," such as development of a documentary for public release or archival deposit of important collected materials. Projects must advance our understanding of the culture and people of the Intermountain West. Small grants are not intended to fund meeting attendance or faculty salary. Faculty members who received MWC Small Grants in the previous grant cycle are not eligible to apply. 

To Apply

See Guidelines, Cover Sheet, and Budget Template. Please email mwc@usu.edu with any questions.

Examples of Funded Faculty Grant Proposals

• Jackson Hole Dude Ranching Folklife Project
• Cohort Differences in Determinants of Early
• Marriage: The Role of Selection and Social Context
• The Mechanics of Merit Selection
• Between 'I Love Drilling' and a .45 Taurus Judge Pistol
• The Cowboy Craze: Western-Themed Games of the Cold War Era

Grad Student Research Grants Program

This program will fund grant requests up to $1,000 on a competitive basis for full-time, graduate students matriculated in a USU College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHaSS) Masters or PhD program (non-CHaSS graduate students may inquire). Funds are awarded in support of research or creative activities leading to the completion of a thesis or dissertation. Small grants are not intended to fund meeting attendance, tuition or salary. 

To Apply

See Guidelines, Cover Sheet, Narrative, and Budget Template. Please email mwc@usu.edu with any questions.

Examples of Funded Graduate Student Proposals

• Mapping the Murals of the of the Intermountain Indian School
• Variability in Long Bone Processing: The Result of Bone Resiliency or Marrow Utility?
• Environmental Behavior Related to Air Quality: A Study of Chinese Immigrants