BER August 2026 Newsletter
Last Update: August 17, 2026
Greetings, Educational Researchers! We hope the beginning of the fall semester finds you refreshed, inspired, and ready for another year of creativity and collaboration!
For the August edition of the BER newsletter, we are highlighting some key research funding opportunities with upcoming deadlines. We have listed some of these below, but please go to the BER News & Events for a complete list.
Continuing the trend from last year, we are still seeing a high number of non-traditional funding calls, many with short deadlines and unique requirements. So if you are considering a submission, please reach out early to grants@education.illinois.edu. We are happy to schedule a time to chat!
Research Events
- DPI Institute Theme Call for Proposals Town-Hall Meeting. 8/25/26, 4-5pm. New interdisciplinary research themes that advance Responsible AI, leveraging resources and the industry scale of Chicago to address significant scientific and societal challenges. Register to attend in person (CSL Room B02) or by Zoom.
- There has been a renaming! The Center for Social and Behavioral Sciences (CSBS) is now the Social and Behavioral Science Institute (SBSI), following approval as a permanent campus institute. SBSI is staging a Grand Opening Celebration on Tuesday, 9/1/2026, 4-6pm, in the Lobby of NCSA, it’s new home. Register to attend.
- NCSA Industry Conference 2026. 10/13-14/2026. Brings together industry leaders, researchers, and innovators to explore the latest in advanced computing, collaboration opportunities, and real-world impact. Register to attend.
Training Opportunities and Resources
- Russell Sage Foundation (RSF) Best Practices for Grant Writing Webinar, 9/22/26, 1 pm CT. RSF has just announced a suite of upcoming competitions on social topics (see below). Register to attend. https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_RaBaZ8g9TIOsHv6ivC1oZA#/registration.
- Beckman Institute NIH Training Grants Workshop, Tuesday, 10/6/26, 12:30 - 5pm. Join Jaclyn Schurman, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders program officer, and other faculty members for a training grants workshop. See the full agenda and register by Monday, Sept. 28.
Research Funding
- Campus Research Board Research Support Awards. Support research projects critical to full-time tenured/tenure-track faculty scholarship, in new and/or interdisciplinary directions, preliminary studies to improve the potential for attracting external research support, and in fields for which external support is either quite limited or unavailable. Four AY27 Due Dates: 8/26/26, 10/14/26, 1/20/27, 3/10/27.
- Arnold Ventures (AV). Building Evidence: Support for QEDs to Evaluate Social Programs and Policies. This RFP seeks to advance the knowledge base about potentially effective policies, programs, and interventions by funding rigorous, causal research using quasi-experimental methods in AV policy areas that include Higher Education and Career Pathways. LOI Due 9/11/26. Full Proposal (if invited) Due 1/15/27.
- NSF EDU Core Research (ECR: Core). Research on STEM education in one or more of three research areas: STEM learning and learning environments, broadening participation in STEM, and STEM workforce development. Due 10/8/26.
- National Academy of Education. NAEd/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowships. Encourages new generations of scholars to undertake research that improves education and supports early-career scholars who work in critical areas of the field. Due 10/8/26.
- Arnold Ventures (AV). Strengthening Evidence: Support for RCTs to Evaluate Social Programs and Policies. This RFP aims to strengthen the body of proven, effective policies, programs, and interventions by funding researchers to conduct rigorous RCTs across the spectrum of social policy. LOI Due 9/11/26. Full Proposal (if invited) Due 1/15/27.
- DPI Institute Theme Call for Proposals. New interdisciplinary research themes that advance Responsible AI, leveraging resources and the industry scale of Chicago to address significant scientific and societal challenges: LOI due 9/15/26; Proposal due 10/15/26.
- American Council of Learned Societies ACLS Fellowships. Research on topics grounded in any time period, world region, or humanistic methodology. For 2026-2027, 10 additional fellowships to scholars confronting official constraints on their research and writing owing to the contested nature of their field. Due: 9/17/26.
- NEH Collaborative Research Grants Program. Supports teams of scholars with the potential to make lasting impact with significant scholarly outputs. Current funding cycle supports projects focusing on American history or culture, or Western civilization. Due: 9/16/26.
- NSF Research on Advanced Technological Education. The education of technicians for high-technology fields, involving partnerships between academic institutions (grades 7-12, IHEs), industry, and economic development agencies. Due 10/8/26.
- NSF Mathematical Foundations of Artificial Intelligence. Establish innovative and principled design and analysis approaches for AI technology, yielding explainable and interpretable models that can enable sustainable, socially responsible, and trustworthy AI. Due 10/9/26.
- Russell Sage Foundation (RSF) research priorities: Social, Political, and Economic Inequality; Future of Work; and Special initiative, Implications of the 2023 Supreme Court Decision to Ban Race-Conscious Admissions at Colleges and Universities For Educational Attainment and Economic Mobility. Two funding mechanisms: (1) RSF Sheldon Danziger Pipeline Grants; for early-career scholars, grantees are paired with mentors; due 10/21/26. (2) RSF Core Research Grants, Next LOI Due 10/28/26; Proposal (if invited) Due 2/22/27. Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences Residential Fellowships. Residential fellowship for advancing research and thinking in social science, including education. Due 10/30/26.
- American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Digital Justice Seed Grants and Digital Justice Development Grants. Projects that diversify the digital domain, advance justice and equity in digital scholarly practice, and/or contribute to public understanding of racial and social justice issues. Due 11/3/26.
- Institute of Education Sciences (IES) Research Funding competitions, Tranche 1 of 3 for Fall 2027. LOIs due 9/3/26, applications due 10/1/26 for the following:
- General Education (NCER):
- Statistical and Research Methodology in Education — 84.305D. Topics included: https://ies.ed.gov/funding/grants/2027/statistical-and-research-methodology-education-84-305d
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Education - methods to identify biases, and for causal inference.
- Core Components Research
- New approaches to assessment item parameter estimation with small samples, including Bayesian models and AI-augmented models.
- Alternative approaches to analyzing and modeling NAEP data.
- Curated Data Resources.
- Reviews of the Use of Methods, which can also include addressing the use of AI tools in conducting statistical and evaluation research.
- Using Longitudinal Data to Support State Education Policymaking - 84.305S https://ies.ed.gov/funding/grants/2027/using-longitudinal-data-support-state-education-policymaking-84-305s
- Research Training Programs in the Education Sciences - 84.305B https://ies.ed.gov/funding/grants/2027/research-training-programs-education-sciences-84-305b
- Statistical and Research Methodology in Education — 84.305D. Topics included: https://ies.ed.gov/funding/grants/2027/statistical-and-research-methodology-education-84-305d
- Special Education (NCSER):
- Research Training Program in Special Education - 84.324b https://ies.ed.gov/funding/grants/2027/research-training-programs-special-education-84-324b
- Using Longitudinal Data to Support State Education Policymaking in Special Education - 84.324S https://ies.ed.gov/funding/grants/2027/using-longitudinal-data-support-state-education-policymaking-special-education-84-324s
- General Education (NCER):
- NSF Grants for Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) in Engineering and Computer Science. Deadline: October 14, 2025. $600,000 over up to 3 years.