W.E. Upjohn Institute Grant Announcement

2008 Grant Program

The Upjohn Institute invites submission of proposals to conduct policy-relevant research on employment issues under our 2008 Grant Program. We expect to fund research on a variety of issues related to employment policy and economic development.
The Institute awards both Research Grants and Mini-Grants. For Research Grants, the maximum funding amount is $75,000. For Mini-Grants, the maximum funding amount is $5,000.
The Upjohn Institute will be funding its Grant Program at a level that is comparable to prior years, but unlike prior years, there will be a single grant cycle in 2008.

Research Grants

Through its Research Grant Program, the Upjohn Institute supports policy-relevant research on employment issues as described in our Research Program. Grants made under this program are expected to result in research of a rigorous nature that is accessible and of interest to practitioners and policymakers. The research is expected to produce a book-length manuscript publishable by the Upjohn Institute.

The Institute will consider all employment-related topics. Successful grants in the past have included the following:

An integrated compilation by an author of a series of published articles on a research area that extends previous findings,
A thorough analysis of an employment-related policy—historical development, research or evaluation evidence on efficacy and equity, suggested policy improvements or alternatives,
Use of a new, innovative source of data to analyze an important issue on either the demand or supply side of the labor market.

The following paragraphs suggest topics that would be of interest; however, applicants should feel free to pursue any topic that fits the general area.

Social Insurance
The Institute maintains an active interest in social insurance programs and empirical evaluation of their design and performance. We are interested in studying systems that cushion wage earners against the vagaries of a market economy, including unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation, disability insurance, and public retirement programs. Our interest also extends to the impact of protective labor legislation, including prohibitions against discrimination in employment by age, gender, race, disability, and other factors.

Employment Relationships
Research is encouraged on employment relationships between workers and firms, how they are changing, and the policy implications of these changes. Research should explore the reasons underlying changes in such areas as the level and distribution of worker compensation, training and productivity, and unemployment, as well as the implications of these changes for policy. Research that compares recent developments in the United States with those in other countries is also encouraged.

Low Wages and Public Policy
The Institute is interested in supporting research on policy responses to the problems of low earnings of the poor and to the sluggish wage growth of the middle class. Policies of interest include wage subsidies, education and training, economic development, public service jobs, minimum wages, unionization, and tax policy.

Workforce and Economic Development Programs
Studies are encouraged that address the efficacy of government programs that promote workforce and economic development. These studies may address the effectiveness of states and localities in matching local resources to local needs, explore the proper incentive structure to accomplish program goals, assess the outcomes achieved by programs, and analyze program impacts on human capital development and economic growth.

Application Procedure

Applicants will submit 8 copies of both a 3-page summary outlining their proposed research and a vita that describes their professional qualifications.
The selection committee will evaluate the preliminary proposals and invite a subset of applicants to submit a full 15-page proposal for evaluation and selection. The invitation to submit a full proposal may include suggestions and comments by reviewers on ways to strengthen the proposal.

The 3-page summaries and full proposals will be evaluated according to the same criteria. We anticipate that about half of the invited full proposals will be funded.

Evaluation Criteria

The selection committee will consider all proposals that contribute to the Institute’s research program. Proposals will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

Contribution to important policy issues and to the professional literature
Technical merit
Professional qualifications
Likelihood of timely completion of the project
Cost effectiveness
Consistency with the Institute's research agenda.

Mini-Grants

The Institute will consider proposals for funds to conduct research and write scholarly papers on innovative research topics.

The purpose of the Mini-Grant Program, which is reserved for untenured junior faculty within six years of earning their PhD degree, is to provide flexibility to meet special funding needs that, without support, would prevent researchers from pursuing the project.

Funds could be used as summer compensation or to acquire special data sets, meet unusual computer processing or programming needs, or to cover travel to collect primary data. Special consideration will be given to those who use data from the Institute’s Employment Research Data Center.

We recognize that research universities provide many of these services, but we also recognize that empirical research, particularly that oriented toward policy, may have unusual expenses that prevent the pursuit of topics that are particularly relevant to policymakers or practitioners.

Unlike the Research Grants, a book-length manuscript is not required, although always welcome. Instead, we expect the recipient to submit his or her paper to a reputable journal, to prepare a synopsis of the research for consideration as an article in the Institute’s newsletter, Employment Research, and to enter the paper in the Institute’s working paper series.

Application Procedure

Applicants will submit 8 copies of both a 3-page summary outlining their proposed research and a vita that describes their professional qualifications.
Mini-Grant proposals will be evaluated solely from a 3-page summary. The submission of full proposals will not be required.

The summary should address the innovative nature of their research and how the funds requested are critical to successful completion.

Evaluation Criteria

The selection committee will consider all Mini-Grant proposals that are policy-relevant and that contribute to the Institute’s Research Program. Proposals will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

Contribution to important policy issues and to the professional literature
Technical merit
Professional qualifications
Special funding needs.

Submission Deadlines and Notification Dates

February 1, 2008 - Deadline for 3-page summary applications

February 29, 2008 - Research Grant finalists invited to prepare a full 15-page proposals

April 11, 2008 - Full proposals due and Mini-Grant proposals due

May 9, 2008 - Cycle 1 announcement of awards.

Submission deadlines and other details on the 2009 Grant Program will be announced in November 2008.

General Instructions

Fax and e-mail submissions will not be accepted.

For the Research Grants, the maximum funding amount is $75,000. Requested funding levels are an important consideration in the grant selection process. Grants that approach the funding ceiling typically include the administration of surveys or the compilation of unpublished administrative data.

For the Mini-Grants, the maximum funding amount is $5,000. Most of our grant budget is allocated to Research Grants, and we expect to fund only a few Mini-Grants each year.

The Institute does not pay indirect costs but will entertain any legitimate research expense as part of the budget. Acceptable items include costs for professional, technical, and support personnel; data acquisition; materials and supplies; computer services; and some travel. The Institute does not fund dissertation research (although it does have a Dissertation Award program).

Although we expect the research to be completed within a year, we recognize that up to an additional year may be needed to complete a book manuscript suitable for publication. The principal investigator of each Research Grant is expected to present the study at the Institute before the manuscript is submitted for final review.

Grant awards are essentially performance-based contracts. Payments under the grants will be made on a quarterly schedule, conditional on timely completion of the research and the book manuscript.

Applications for grants (both three-page summaries and full 15-page proposals) and all work submitted under grants become the property of the Upjohn Institute. It is Institute policy to assume ownership, copyright, and all publication rights to all manuscripts deemed acceptable for publication. Unaccepted proposals and rejected manuscripts will be returned upon request, without restrictions on further use by others. It is also Institute policy to encourage publication of the sponsored research in scholarly journals following submission of the book manuscript to the Institute. Submission of any material waives all rights to make any claim because of any use thereof by the W.E. Upjohn Unemployment Trustee Corporation, its agents and employees.

Inquiries from prospective applicants and applications are to be addressed to:

Institute Grant Committee
W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research
300 South Westnedge Avenue
Kalamazoo, MI 49007-4686

Inquiries may also be directed to : webmaster@upjohninstitute.org

Recent Grantees

Research Grants

The Effect of Health Care Costs on the Growth and Survival of Small Business, Adela Luque, The Urban Institute, C.J. Krizan and Alice Zawacki, Center for Economic Studies, Census Bureau
The International Law of Economic Migration: Toward Market Access for Labor, Joel Trachtman, Tufts University
Private Pension Policies: A Comparative Analysis, John Turner
Food Stamps and the Working Poor, David S. Ribar, University of North Carolina at Greensboro
States of Occupational Regulation: Evidence from Case Studies, Morris Kleiner, University of Minnesota
Process Evaluation of the Kalamazoo Promise, Michelle Miller-Adams, Grand Valley State University
How Demanding Work Schedules Affect Occupational Injury Risk, Allard E. Dembe, Ohio State University
Health Care Costs and Employment Gains and Losses, Anne Beeson Royalty, Indiana University
UK/US Workforce Policy, Michael Wiseman, Goerge Washington University
Work After Welfare Reform and the Well-Being of Children: Evidence from the Michigan Women's Employment Survey, Rucker Johnson, University of California-Berkeley
Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise: Employment-Based Health Insurance and the Plight of Low-Skilled Workers, Nan Maxwell, California State University-Hayward
The Role of Caregiving in Mothers' Time Use: Recent Evidence from the New American Time Use Survey, Rachel Connelly, Bowdoin College, and Jean Kimmel, Western Michigan University
Education and Employment Outcomes of Minority Youth: What Determines Success or Failure?, Harry Holzer, Georgetown University, and Carolyn Hill, Georgetown University
Business Organization and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Employment Opportunities in the United States, William Lazonick, University of Massachusetts Lowell and INSEAD
How Important Are the Incentive Effects of Unemployment Insurance (UI)? Implications for Public Policy, Brian McCall, University of Minnesota, and Wei Chi, Kansas State University
Apprenticeship Training: Evaluating the Impact on Human Capital among Today's Changing Entrants, Frank Neuhauser, University of California, Berkeley
Moving Up or Getting Stuck? Former Welfare Recipients' Job Retention and Advancement, Kristin Seefeldt, University of Michigan, and Rukmalie Jayakody, Pennsylvania State University

Mini-Grants

The Effects of College Quality on Student Performance and labor Market Outcomes: A Case for Affirmative Action Policy, Kalena Cortes, Syracuse University
Estimating the Gender Wage Gap with Gender-Specific Measurement Errors, Jungmin Lee, Florida International University
Women Breadwinners and the Labor Supply of Their Husbands, Christy Spivey, Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville
Reducing Health Care Costs for Employers – Financial Incentives for Company Gym Use, Justin Sydnor, Case Western Reserve University
Working Poverty in Michigan: Scale, Determinants, and Policy Implications, Udaya Waglé, Western Michigan University
The Impact of Off-shoring on Wages and Unionization in Latin American Export Processing Zones, Mark Anner, Penn State University
Health Insurance Availability and Entrepreneurship: Evidence from New Jersey, Philip DeCicca, McMaster University
How Much Does Work Pay? New Data on Combined Marginal Tax Rates, Jennifer Romich, University of Washington
Global Competition, International Integration – Implications of Trade and Offshoring for American Workers, Susan Chun Zhu, Michigan State University
The Impact of Local Antidiscrimination Employment Laws on the Earnings of Gay Men and Lesbians, Roddrick Colvin, John Jay College, CUNY
College Major and the Changing Labor Market, Lisa Dickson, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Infertility and Female Labor Supply, Jungmin Lee, University of Arkansas at Fayetteville
Employee Choice of Flexible Spending Account Participation and Health Plan, Jim Marton, Brown University
Rising Health Insurance Premiums and Job Displacement, Younghwan Song, Union College
The Impact of TANF on Maternal Employment in Low-Income Families Raising Children with Disabilities, Susan L. Parish, University of North Carolina
China's New Cooperative Medical System: Implications for Household Labor Allocation, Alan de Brauw, Williams College
Does Receiving Unemployment Insurance Raise the Likelihood of Finding Re-employment with Health Insurance?, Jeffrey Wenger, University of Georgia
The Extra Health Costs of Living with a Disability, Sophie Mitra, Fordham University
What is the Value of Cum Laude? An Application of Regression-Discontinuity to Latin Honors, Isaac McFarlin, University of Texas at Dallas
State-Level Variation in the Effects of Trade on Job Displacement, Roger White, Franklin & Marshall College
Reducing Direct Care Turnover: Does Policy Matter?, Reagan Baughman, University of New Hampshire
A Nonparametric Analysis of Monopsony in the U.S. Nursing Labor Market, Debrasi Mukherjee, Western Michigan University
Valuing Variety: How Much Do Workers Value Having Choices among Health Insurance Plans? Jean Abraham, University of Minnesota
The Effects of Public Health Insurance on Job Lock: A Study of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), Cynthia Bansak, San Diego State University
The Use of Federal Work Opportunity and Welfare-to-Work Tax Credits by Temporary Help Service Firms and their Implications for Workers' Labor Market Outcomes, Sarah Hamersma, University of Florida
Layoffs and Lemons: The Racial and Gender Disparities, Luojia Hu, Northwestern University
Rising Health Care Costs: Effects on Labor Demand and Retiree Health Insurance Benefits, Jennifer Schultz, University of Minnesota Duluth
An Empirical and Theoretical Investigation on the Cyclical Properties of Aggregate Employment, Hours of Work, and Wages of Skilled and Unskilled Workers, Daniele Coen-Pirani, Carnegie Mellon University
The Economics of Optional SAT Scores: Gender and Race Implications, Stacy Dickert-Conlin, Syracuse University
Have Minimum Wages Benefited South Africa's Farm and Domestic Workers? Thomas Hertz, American University
The Long-Term Costs of Women's Work Interruptions, Mary Noonan, University of Iowa
Research on the Impact of Labor Force Absence on Pension Savings, Jason Seligman, University of Georgia
Generational Aspects of the Great Compression: A Cohort Analysis, Takashi Yamashita, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Effects of Information Technology on Labor Supply and Gender Wage Differentials, Myeong-Su Yun, Tulane University
Public-Private Contracting and Internal Labor Markets: The Case of Urban Transit, Roland Zullo, University of Michigan

FAQs

Should the three-page summary include a budget? No.
Should the three-page summary include a timetable or work plan? No.
Should the three-page summary be single- or double-spaced? Double-spaced.
If invited to submit a full proposal for a research grant, how many copies of the proposal should I send? Seven.
How detailed should the three-page summary be? Do you require information on such things as the types of analyses conducted and descriptions of possible multivariate models? Whatever best conveys the intent of your proposal.
Is there a desired format to follow when composing the three-page summary? No.
Do you require the "full academic format" for vitae? Yes.
Does the application deadline refer to postmark date or the date of receipt by the Institute? Date of receipt by the Institute.
Do you only fund academics? What about professional writers or PhD students working on their dissertations? We require that grantees possess a PhD or another relevant terminal degree.
Do you accept submissions via e-mail or fax? No.
Do you need to be a U.S. citizen to apply? Does research need to focus on the U.S. labor market? No. The Institute imposes no geographic restrictions on those applying for grants.

2008 Grant Announcement (pdf) | Institute Home Page