The Foundation for Child Development is accepting proposals for its 2023 Young Scholars Program (YSP). The Letter of Intent deadline is Thursday, June 9, 2022. 

YSP supports scholarship for early-career researchers. The program funds implementation research that is policy- and practice-relevant, and that examines the preparation, competency, compensation, well-being, and ongoing professional learning of the early care and education (ECE) workforce. Research awards are up to $225,000 for primary research and up to $180,000 for secondary data analysis.

To increase the diversity of research perspectives, the Foundation encourages applications from:

• Scholars who are from underrepresented groups that have historically experienced poverty, racism, prejudice, and discrimination. Such groups include, but are not limited to, researchers of color, first-generation college graduates, culturally and linguistically diverse scholars, and researchers from low-income communities
• Scholars who represent a variety of disciplines and methodological approaches

Eligibility
Eligible researchers must have received their doctoral degrees (e.g., Ph.D., Ed.D., Psy.D., J.D., etc.) between January 1, 2013 and June 30, 2021. Physician applicants must have received their M.D. degrees between January 1, 2010 and June 30, 2021.

Research Focus
proposed research must have primary questions that are relevant to the ECE workforce. All proposed research questions must support scientific inquiry into the implementation of specific ECE programs, policies, or practices. Implementation research provides the opportunity to engage in meaningful exploration of what works (or not), for whom, and under what conditions using a variety of methodological approaches and research designs. The Foundation highly recommends reviewing Getting it Right: Using Implementation Research to Improve Outcomes in Early Care and Education, as it explains the Foundation’s perspective on the value of implementation research and provides guidance on various implementation research approaches and methods. The Foundation also recommends reviewing its companion piece, Getting it Right: The Conversation Guide for Preparing the Next Generation of Implementation Researchers. Finally, all supported research must have a clear connection to policies and practices that have the potential to result in a positive impact on the ECE workforce and on the young children in YSP’s priority populations.

Please email questions about the application and the online system to [email protected].