NLU disrupts inequity by strengthening education and supporting communities. Our scholarship flows from this mission and from the lived experiences of our students, faculty and partners. Research and expert practice are at the core of everything we do. We foster collaborative inquiry. We generate usable knowledge. We inform and learn from change. Together with our students and partners—as public scholars and thought leaders—we commit to knowledge creation as a public good.

This is scholarship at NLU.

NLU has three internal grant programs to support research projects.

Our seed grant program, an initiative of the Provost’s Office, provides small grants to support full time faculty and staff in launching research agendas that hold the promise of external funding and link to NLU’s strategic priorities.  The annual request for proposals is issued in early spring.  See the Seed Grant Request for Proposals to learn more.

New in 2021, NLU offers two types of fellowships to support small groups of faculty in carrying out research in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) model.  The Fellowships are designed to activate and support the examination and study of NLU faculty teaching and learning practices intended to advance equity for NLU students. Learn more here.

Faculty Research Residencies of the National College of Education are an innovative approach to ensuring that NLU’s teacher preparation courses are grounded in the reality of today’s classrooms.  The residencies allow faculty teams to carry out small field-engaged research projects and renew syllabi based on the findings.  See research reports on NLU’s Digital Commons.

As some examples of successful proposals, here are the 2021-2022 awarded seed grant proposals.

Psychological Barriers to Equity in Public Safety Policies

Principle Investigators: Ericka Mingo, PhD. & Judah Viola, PhD.

Practicing Multiplication Facts in the MSpell Way

Principle Investigator: Xiuwen Wu, Associate Professor

Language Equity in the Postsecondary Classroom

Principle Investigators: Colleen Hamilton, PhD. & Ryan McCarty, PhD.

Enrollment Continuation Needs of First-Generation College Students

Principle Investigator: Sherell D. Wilson, Ph.D.

Multimodal Meaning-Making in Academia for Powerful Communication Project (MAPC)

Principle Investigators: Tiffeny Jimenez, PhD., Jason Stegemoller, PhD., Bradley Olson, PhD., & Shaunti Knauth, PhD.

NLU’s Office of Advancement can provide information and logistical support for proposals for external funding.  See their About Grants page for further information.

The National College of Education’s Center for Inquiry in Education (CFIE) houses the online journal inquiry in education (i.e.) and provides a wealth of information and resources on research in the college.