Imagine Fund Special Events Grant Proposals

Next Deadline: Monday, September 30, 2024
Applications Open: May 2024

The Imagine Fund Special Events Grant Program seeks to support new and ongoing activities across the University of Minnesota system that promote profound understanding of the human condition, excellence, innovation, collaboration, interdisciplinary dialogue, and greater public engagement with the University.

Special Events Grants are highly competitive. Proposals must relate to the areas of the arts, humanities, or design. Events should be open to the public and preference is given to events that prioritize public accessibility and engagement. Awards rarely will be granted for traditional academic symposia or conferences—these types of events must be innovative and include a significant public engagement component. It is recommended, but not required, that applicants seek collaboration and co-sponsors through the IAS or other centers and colleges.

The Imagine Fund is an initiative of the Executive Vice President and Provost, established in 2007 through a generous gift from the McKnight Foundation to provide competitive financial support for research and scholarship in the arts, humanities, and design at the University of Minnesota. The Imagine Fund Special Event Grants Program is administered by the Institute for Advanced Study.
 

Learn More & Review Past Recipients

 

Grant Rounds & Timeline

  • The deadline for Spring 2024 has passed.
  • For events commencing in Spring 2025 through Winter 2025, please apply in Fall 2024. Deadline for proposals: September 30, 2024.
  • For events commencing in Summer 2025 through Spring 2026, please apply in Spring 2025. Deadline for proposals: February 17, 2025.

 

Eligibility

  • Applicants for Imagine Fund Special Events grants must be tenured or tenure-track faculty, faculty holding full-time (100%) salaried continuous fixed-term appointments, or Academic Professional staff in the University of Minnesota system-wide. 
  • Note that eligibility does not include: visiting faculty, students pursuing a Ph.D. (unless they also meet the above criteria), non-salaried faculty appointment type W [without salary] or employees with T [financial] appointments or A [clerical] appointments.
  • Attention will be paid to ensure a representative proportion of non-tenured/tenure-track faculty applicants receive these awards. Faculty may apply collectively for the Special Event awards, but a faculty member may be listed on only one application.

 

Application Guidelines

PLANNING
Detailed and clearly articulated plans will receive preferential treatment. It is understood that some proposals for events in the early stages of development may lack confirmed collaborators, participants, and funding, but these plans should contain a timeline and articulate a clear plan for executing the event. If a proposal seeks funding for recurring funds to support events in multiple years, this proposal must contain a detailed plan to assess and report on the success of the first year’s event(s). The Imagine Fund Advisory Committee will review these reports before recurring funds will be released for subsequent years.

ENGAGEMENT
All proposals must contain an effective and significant community engagement strategy designed to attract the larger public’s attention and participation. Preference is given to programs that engage Minnesota communities.

BUDGET
A detailed budget plan must be submitted with a proposal. Additional funding sources are encouraged but not necessary for a successful proposal. If your budget includes items covered by other funding sources, please indicate which budget items would be covered by the Imagine Fund grant.

Administrative costs should not exceed more than 25 percent of any proposed budget, and grants typically will not cover a full-time graduate assistant. This endowment’s purpose is to support the substance of proposed events. Therefore, entertainment and hospitality costs should be kept to a minimum in any proposal and are generally considered the responsibility of the department(s) in which the organizers are housed.

For public events, please include provisions for accessibility, and funding for captioning of live-streamed and recorded events. CART captioning typically costs about $140 per hour, depending on the service you contract.

GRANT SIZE
Generally, grants range between $5,000-$15,000, but proposals beyond that range which represent exceptional opportunities—in terms of ideas, innovation, collaboration, interdisciplinary exchange, public engagement, and conscientious planning—will be considered by the committee. The award may be extended (upon reapplication and reconsideration by the committee) for up to two years after the first year of new proposed event, and for up to two years for already existing events.

 

Proposal Instructions

Proposals will be submitted online via InfoReady Review. Uploaded documents must be either Word or PDF; budget documents may be in Excel, Word, or PDF.
 
Required fields:

  1. Applicant’s email address
  2. Applicant’s appointment title (e.g., assistant professor, researcher)
  3. Applicant’s department
  4. Applicant’s college
  5. Applicant’s campus
  6. Event title
  7. Amount requested
  8. Event abstract — Note: If your application is successful, this abstract will be used to publicize your award (up to 150 words)
  9. Approximate event(s) start date
  10. Approximate event(s) end date

Required documents:

(1) Proposal for your event that includes the following elements:

  1. Description of the event, including target audience. (300 words max)
  2. List of collaborating/partnering individuals and organizations. Indicate whether these are confirmed or potential.
  3. How are the collaborators or the unit/organization positioned to carry out this event? (150 words max)
  4. What is your community engagement strategy? (150 words max)
  5. What are the anticipated impacts of your event? How will it benefit your audience and the wider community? (300 words max)
  6. What additional funding or other resources do you have? Indicate whether these are confirmed or potential. (150 words max)

    Requests for recurring funds should additionally include:
    —In the case of new events, a detailed plan for how to assess and report on the success and impact of the first year’s event(s). Reports will not be required after the second year in these cases. (300 words max)
    —In the case of already existing events, a clear and detailed report on the success and impact of the events that have already occurred. (300 words max)
     

(2) Detailed budget plan (300 word max)

A detailed budget must be submitted with a proposal. Additional funding sources are encouraged but not necessary for a successful proposal. If your budget includes items covered by other funding sources, please indicate which budget items would be covered by the Imagine Fund grant.

Include a budget justification describing why budget items are necessary and explaining the basis for cost estimates.

Administrative costs should not exceed more than 25 percent of any proposed budget, and grants typically will not cover a full-time graduate assistant. This endowment’s purpose is to support the substance of proposed events. Therefore, entertainment and hospitality costs should be kept to a minimum in any proposal and are generally considered the responsibility of the department(s) in which the organizers are housed.

For public events, please include provisions for accessibility, and funding for captioning of live-streamed and recorded events. CART captioning typically costs about $140 per hour, depending on the service you contract.