Pursuing Funding in the Public and Private Sectors: Opportunities and Challenges

Securing funding is one of the most consequential — and least openly discussed — dimensions of a research career. For scholars whose work centers social inequality and structurally marginalized communities, pursuing funding carries unique political and institutional complexities. This workshop engages those realities directly. Participants will examine how funding priorities are shaped, how research agendas can be both advanced and constrained by funders, and how to build a diversified, sustainable funding strategy across sectors — without losing sight of their scholarly mission or community commitments.

In this workshop, Dr. Rashawn Ray, whose funding portfolio spans federal agencies, private foundations, and philanthropic institutions, will demystify the landscape of public and private research support. Through a combination of presentations, case discussions, and small-group work, participants will leave with:

1. A working knowledge of the public funding landscape. An understanding of how federal agencies like the National Science Foundation fund social science research, including how to identify the right programs, align research questions with agency priorities, and navigate the review process.
2. Familiarity with private and philanthropic funding. Insight into how foundations such as the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Russell Sage Foundation operate, what differentiates their funding logic from federal agencies, and how to position applied scholarship for philanthropic support.
3. Awareness of the structural dynamics of funding. A candid examination of how funding opportunities are not equally distributed and strategies for navigating and challenging those inequities.
4. A personalized funding roadmap. A draft funding strategy tailored to each participant’s research agenda, career stage, and institutional context, with identified targets across both public and private sectors.

Registration and fee are required to receive Zoom link. Zoom link and welcome packet will be emailed shortly before the event for those registered. Attendance is required as no sessions will be recorded.

To learn more and register, click HERE.