2026 Research Grants on Reducing Inequality

Overview

Research grants on reducing inequality fund research studies that examine programs, policies, or practices to reduce inequality in the academic, social, behavioral, or economic outcomes of young people ages 5–25 in the United States, along dimensions of race, ethnicity, economic standing, sexual or gender minority status (e.g., LGBTQ+ youth), language minority status, or immigrant origins.

We fund:

• Descriptive studies that describe, explore, or explain how programs, practices, or policies reduce inequality.
• Intervention studies that provide causal evidence on the effectiveness of programs or policies for reducing inequality.

Our focus on reducing inequality grew out of our view that research can do more than help us understand the problem of inequality—it can generate effective responses. We believe that it is time to build stronger bodies of knowledge on how to reduce inequality in the United States and to move beyond the mounting research evidence about the scope, causes, and consequences of inequality. Thus, we fund research that focuses on responses to inequality.
 
Research Interests 
Our research interests center on studies that examine ways to reduce inequality in youth outcomes. We welcome descriptive studies that clarify mechanisms for reducing inequality or elucidate how or why a specific program, policy, or practice operates to reduce inequality. We also welcome intervention studies that examine attempts to reduce inequality.

We invite studies from a range of disciplines, fields, and methods, and we encourage investigations into various youth-serving systems, including justice, housing, child welfare, mental health, and education.

Recognizing that findings about programs and practices that reduce inequality will have limited societal impact until the structures that create inequality in the first place have been transformed, the Foundation is particularly interested in research to uproot systemic racism and the structural foundations of inequality that limit the life chances of young people.

Applications for research grants on reducing inequality must:

1. Identify a specific inequality in youth outcomes.
2. Make a convincing case for the dimension(s) of inequality the study will address.
3. Articulate how findings from your research will help build, test, or increase understanding of a program, policy, or practice to reduce the specific inequality that you have identified.

New for 2026: Please note that you may only submit one application per cycle as the Principal Investigator. For example, you may submit only one major grant or one Officers’ research award letter of inquiry.

Eligible Studies

• Only studies that 1) align with the stated research interests of this program and 2) relate to the outcomes of young people between the ages of 5 and 25 in the United States are eligible for consideration.
• We do not support non-research activities such as program implementation and operational costs, or make contributions to building funds, fundraising drives, endowment funds, general operating budgets, or scholarships. Letters of inquiry for ineligible projects are screened out without further review.

Fit with Research Interests

• The proposed study aims to examine a program, policy, or practice to reduce inequality in the academic, social, behavioral, or economic outcomes of young people ages 5–25 in the United States.
• The study focuses on reducing inequality along the dimension(s) of race, ethnicity, economic standing, sexual or gender minority status, language minority status, or immigrant origins.
• Studies that focus primarily on documenting the causes and consequences of inequality are not a fit with our interests.

LOI: For major research grants applications, based on internal review of the letter of inquiry, the Foundation either invites a full proposal for further consideration, or declines the application. We do not accept unsolicited full proposals. Officers’ research grants are awarded on the merit of the letter of inquiry alone.

Award Information
Major Research Grants

• $100,000 to $600,000 over 2-3 years, including up to 15% indirect costs.
• Projects involving secondary data analysis are typically at the lower end of the budget range, whereas projects involving new data collection and sample recruitment can be at the higher end. Proposals to launch experiments in which settings (e.g., classrooms, schools, youth programs) are randomly assigned to conditions are usually on the higher end. We encourage applicants pursuing cluster randomized designs to apply for additional sources of funding to ensure support for a sufficient sample.

Officers’ Research Grants

• $25,000–$50,000 over 1-2 years, including up to 15% indirect costs. 
• Studies may be stand-alone projects or may build off larger projects. The budget should be appropriate for the activities proposed.