Carleton Faculty and Staff

The Initiative includes three distinct types of grant support for Carleton faculty, staff, and Indigenous partners.

1. Native American & Indigenous Studies Professional Learning Cohort 

Why: Indigenous Engagement in Place funds will establish a professional learning cohort to expand Carleton’s capacity to meaningfully engage Indigenous perspectives in our curriculum and to build a faculty Circle of Practice in alignment with best practices for Indigenous Engagement.

What: This innovative faculty professional learning community offers course releases to faculty members (one per individual) to support course development, redesign, and/or planning along with structured time to build familiarity with Indigenous approaches to teaching and learning, including dedicated time to engage Indigenous-authored scholarship as part of a faculty learning group. Fellows receiving support are expected to convene as a Circle of Practice with other Indigenous Engagement Faculty, the Mellon co-directors, and the Indigenous Communities Liaison. Faculty committing to the full year of professional learning community will receive one course release for their participation in the program; staff compensation will depend on the nature of their position and the consent of their division vice president. Compensation is commensurate with the anticipated time participants will dedicate to meeting together for dialogue and workshopping materials toward a final product over one academic year This program will support up to 5 faculty over two years (2-3 per year with one course release per faculty member).

Who: Faculty or staff seeking to meaningfully expand their engagement with Indigenous community partners and Indigenous approaches to their work. While faculty are the primary focus, staff whose work would be meaningfully impacted through engagement with Indigenous knowledges are invited to apply as well. While all faculty or staff are welcome to apply, this fellowship is best suited for those with limited to no prior knowledge in or experience with Indigenous partnerships but for whom future research or teaching collaborations with external Indigenous partners would meaningfully advance Carleton’s overall Indigenous Engagement strategy. 

When: 2 (or 3) in 2025-26; 3 (or 2) in 2026-27 

Applications due: Friday, February 7, 2025 for 2025-26; Friday, February 6, 2026 for 2026-27

All grant recipients will need to submit a brief report to the grant co-directors for internal use following the conclusion of their work.

HowApplication Elements

  • Brief Statement of Interest, including how Indigenous Engagement will transform their work at the college (up to 500 words)
  • Brief Statement of prior engagement with Indigenous knowledges / pedagogies / partners; if no prior engagement, the statement should speak to what draws you to this learning and engagement (if any) (up to 500 words)
  • Dept. Chair Approval or division supervisor approval

For queries about project elements or proposal questions, contact Michael McNally or Meredith McCoy.

2. Summer Curricular Development/Redesign Collaborations

Why: Summer funds are available to support innovative Indigenous Engagement through faculty course development or redesign that meaningfully enlarges the humanities (this includes lab-based research courses). Development or redesign must emerge in alignment with Carleton’s broader plan for ethical Indigenous engagement through collaboration with Indigenous partners, who will receive corresponding levels of compensation for their time and expertise. Please see the application procedures for information about how and when to contact community partners for these collaborations.

What: Proposed projects involve corresponding awards to both faculty and faculty partners:

  • $5,000 Faculty Stipends 
  • $5,000 Indigenous Partner Stipends 

Who: Any Carleton faculty member teaching at least three courses in the academic year in question; faculty who are currently part of the Native American and Indigenous Studies (NAIS) Professional Learning Cohort should wait to apply until their fellowship ends. These funds are best suited for Carleton faculty with some prior knowledge of community engagement, Indigenous partnerships, and/or Indigenous Studies. All faculty intending to work with Indigenous community partners should be familiar with the work of Carleton Indigenous Communities Liaison Marcy Averil. Recipients will be expected to ethically collaborate with Indigenous community partners in a semi-independent fashion, with guidance as needed from Mellon Indigenous Engagement in Place co-directors Michael McNally and Meredith McCoy, Indigenous Communities Liaison Marcy Averill, and CCCE Associate Director for Academic Civic Engagement Emily Seru.

When: Summers 2024, 2025, 2026 

Applications for Summer 2025 will be due no later than Friday, Feb. 7. Awards will be announced early in Spring Term. 

All grant recipients will need to submit a brief report to the grant co-directors for internal use following the conclusion of their work.

HowApplication Elements

  • In the first stage, applicants will submit a brief (up to 750 words) description and scope of work which should address how Indigenous Engagement will transform the course/curriculum. Applicants are expected to not yet have contacted their partners, unless they are building on a previously existing relationship, but they should indicate which partners they anticipate contacting in their description.
  • Following the initial stage, all applicants will meet with the co-directors and the Indigenous Communities Liaison and go over next steps for connecting with community partners in alignment with Carleton’s overall Indigenous Engagement strategy. 
  • In the second round of materials, applicants will submit their design for ethical and reciprocal engagement with partners and the contact information for their proposed Indigenous partners. 

For queries about project elements or proposal questions, contact Michael McNally or Meredith McCoy. Contact Marcy Averill with questions about community partners.

3. Experimental Research Partnerships

Why: The Indigenous Engagement in Place initiative seeks to establish an ethical and reciprocal balance to relationships between Carleton researchers and Indigenous Peoples by supporting research collaborations that reflect the priorities of Indigenous partners. While the majority of Initiative resources are keyed to curricular Indigenous Engagement, this opportunity recognizes that curricular transformation often begins with relationships born in research collaboration. Please see the application procedures for information about how and when to contact community partners for these collaborations.

What: Support for research collaborations with Indigenous Partners that reflect the priorities of partner Nations or Native led organizations. Indigenous Engagement in Place can provide funding at different levels for a range of projects. Proposals are anticipated in the $2,500-$7,500 range. While modest support is available to awardees to enable collaboration, support is intended to primarily compensate Native partners and knowledge keepers for their time, energy, and expertise in the collaboration. Funding can seed new projects, or can extend or deepen current collaborations.  

Who: Faculty who will be tenured, tenure track, or on continuing appointments are welcome to apply, as are staff whose research would be meaningfully impacted through Indigenous partnerships. These projects are intended to be significantly independent, with priority given for applicants who have demonstrated prior experience with Indigenous community partnerships, community-engaged research, and/or Indigenous Studies work.

When: For research collaborations completed by November 30, 2026 (conclusion of Mellon grant term)

Applications due: Ongoing

All grant recipients will need to submit a brief report to the grant co-directors for internal use following the conclusion of their work.

HowApplication Elements:

  • In the first stage, applicants will submit a description and scope of work, which should address the significance of the research and importance of the collaboration for both Carleton and community partners (1000 words or less).
  • Candidates should also submit a brief statement of their preparation to ethically engage with Indigenous community partners, including any prior collaborations, any work to build knowledge independently, and/or any work with Carleton’s Indigenous Communities Liaison, Marcy Averill. Applicants are expected to not yet have contacted their possible partners, unless they are building on a previously existing relationship, but they should indicate the partners they anticipate working with in their description (750 words or less).
  • Following the initial stage, all applicants will meet with the co-directors and the Indigenous Communities Liaison and go over next steps for connecting with community partners in alignment with Carleton’s overall Indigenous Engagement strategy. 
  • In the second round of materials, applicants will submit their design for ethical and reciprocal engagement with partners and either a brief affirmation of interest from their partner or information for their community partner so that the Mellon co-directors and/or Indigenous Communities Liaison can contact them.   

4. Other Support for Indigenous Engagement in Place

Bringing Indigenous Partners to Campus

Support is available to cover the costs of Indigenous partners’ trips to Northfield; to conferences, workshops, events, and other gatherings; and to other relevant sites for teaching and research. This includes ground or air transportation ($0.56 per mile or approximately $500 per round-trip flight), short-term lodging (approximately $150-$250 per night), and meals ($15 per meal). To apply, please submit a brief description of the anticipated travel, including the nature of the campus event, list of community partner attendees, and anticipated budget.

Faculty/Staff Travel

Support is available for Carleton faculty and staff for ground transportation ($0.56 per mile) and meals ($15 per person) during short trips to Indigenous partners’ locations and/or regional sites of interest. To apply, please submit a brief description of the anticipated travel, including the nature of the event, list of attendees, and anticipated budget.

Student-Faculty Research Teams

Travel funds are available to support innovative Indigenous Engagement by enhancing the knowledge and collaborative capacities of Carleton faculty and students. By working in teams, Carleton faculty and students can engage in intergenerational, two-way mentoring and shared learning. To build our collective knowledge base and capacities as a campus, funds are available to support teams of Carleton faculty members and students traveling to visit with Indigenous community partners, to attend Indigenous community events that are open to the public, to conduct research related to Indigenous partnerships, or to attend conferences and workshops such as the Native American and Indigenous Studies Association annual meeting. Funds can be used to cover expenses such as air travel (approximately $500 per round-trip flight), ground transportation (approximately $100 per trip), lodging (approximately $200 per night), and meals/incidentals (approximately $100 per day). Additional funds are available to support Indigenous partners’ travel to such events.

Teams should consist of at least one Carleton faculty and at least one student. All students must be in good academic standing and teams may come from any department/program so long as the shared learning meaningfully engages humanities topics or modes of inquiry.  

To apply, please submit a brief description of the anticipated travel, including the nature of the event (conference, travel to a community gathering, etc.), makeup of the faculty-student team, and anticipated budget.

Queries

For queries about project elements or proposal questions, contact Michael McNally or Meredith McCoy. Contact Marcy Averill with questions about community partners.