EMU DEI Grants 

Eastern Mennonite University (EMU) values social justice, community, sustainability, service, and peacemaking. The Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is committed to helping our campus become even more inclusive, equitable, and welcoming for everyone.

The Inclusive Excellence Grant Program supports ideas and projects that promote racial and social justice, belonging, and sustainability justice—recognizing that equity and sustainability are deeply connected.

You don’t have to tackle huge issues—small actions can lead to meaningful change. This grant encourages EMU students, staff, and faculty to collaborate in a no blame, no shame environment and to imagine ways we can learn and grow together.

Proposals are accepted during the Fall semester, and funded projects can be completed anytime during the academic year.

We welcome proposals from EMU students, staff, and faculty for projects that:

• Bring people together across diverse cultural, academic, and campus roles
• Foster collaboration between departments, programs, or identity groups
• Promote DEIB and sustainability at our Harrisonburg, Lancaster, or D.C. sites
• Educate the community on racism, LGBTQIA+ justice, disability equity, and broader inclusion issues
• Have broad impact, benefiting the wider EMU community, not just a single group
• Include sustainability in any form—social, cultural, environmental, or structural

Your project should connect with at least one DEI + Sustainability Priority:

• Belonging & Inclusion – Cultivate a campus climate where all individuals feel safe, valued, and included

• Inclusive Curriculum & Experiences – Center diverse perspectives in academic and co-curricular programming

• Education, Training & Leadership Development – Build skills and knowledge across our community for inclusive engagement

• Equitable Institutional Structures – Reform policies or systems to remove barriers and foster equitable access

• Integrated Sustainability Justice – Unite environmental, social, and cultural sustainability with DEI goals

• Projects are eligible for up to $1,200, depending on the number of proposals received and the available budget.

• NEW: Proposals with a clear sustainability focus may be eligible for up to $2,000 in funding.

• We’re looking for creative, innovative, and lasting initiatives that help EMU better reflect and serve our diverse community.

Examples include:

• Workshops or trainings on allyship, inclusive language, or religious and cultural inclusiveness

• Art projects (e.g., murals, tapestries, or posters) that foster belonging

• Inclusive pedagogy initiatives or curriculum development

• Projects advancing disability awareness or equity

• Storytelling efforts, such as pop-up museums, photovoice, or archives that uplift underrepresented voices

• Policy or structural changes that embed diversity and inclusion

• Sustainability-focused projects that align with DEI goals

• Buying equipment for your project (unless it's just one part of a larger project).
• Projects that have already received a grant for the same purpose, unless you’re asking for a different aspect of the project (for example, first you asked for money for food, now you’re asking for a speaker's stipend).

You’ll need to:

1. Form a team. These grants require that co-leaders (a minimum of 2, but more than 2 are encouraged) collaborate and connect across differences. This entails that the co-leaders must fall into 2 or more of the categories outlined below. Examples include a graduate student collaborating with a staff member, co-leaders from EMU's main campus and the Lancaster site; or faculty leaders from different academic schools. These differences pertain to co-leaders, NOT to the audience or attendees of project events. 

 

Examples of collaboration:
✅ A graduate student working with a faculty member
✅ A staff member and an undergraduate student
✅ A project involving both the Harrisonburg and Lancaster campuses
❌ A student club working only with the department that oversees it

Difference Categories

•   Role- faculty, staff, undergraduate student, graduate student
•   Organizational Unit of Employees- e.g. Department, Academic School
•   Major/Minors of students
•   Race/Ethnicity 
•   Gender/Gender Identity
•   Geographic Campus location- Harrisonburg, Lancaster, Washington DC

1. Submit your proposal using the link on EMU’s DEI website under the Grants tab. Include a detailed budget using the template provided and email to dei@emu.edu.
2.  Refer to the deadline listed on the DEI Grant website.
3.  Email dei@emu.edu with any questions.   

We will select projects based on how well they:

• Promote personal growth, stronger relationships, and meaningful institutional change

• Align with EMU’s DEI and sustainability justice goals

• Involve collaboration across different campus roles or identity groups

• Are realistic, well-planned, and can be completed by the end of March

• Demonstrate creativity, thoughtful writing, and a clear vision

• Use the budget responsibly and include a solid plan for sharing results at the ACE Festival and in a final report

 Google application form

Budget Template

Final Report Template

Request for Proposals

We will not disburse grant funds directly to applicants.

How are the grant finances handled?

• You won’t get the money directly. The DEI office will handle payments for things like stipends or speaker fees.
• Stipends: If your project includes a stipend, the DEI office will process it through payroll.
• Guest Speakers: To pay a guest speaker, fill out a payment request form and submit it with their W9.
• Reimbursements: If you spend money on supplies, fill out an expense report and submit your receipts to the DEI office. You’ll either get a check or cash, depending on the amount.

Can I use the grant to buy equipment?

No, you can’t apply for a grant just to buy equipment. The focus of the grant is on projects that create change, not just purchases.

Can I apply for a grant for the same project more than once?

• If it’s the exact same purpose (for example, you got funding for food and are asking again for the same thing), no. Recurring projects need to be included in a department’s budget.
• If it’s a different part of the same project (like asking for funds for a speaker after getting funding for another part), then yes, you can apply.

What does "collaboration across differences" mean?

For your project to be considered, you must work with others who are different from you in some way. This could mean collaborating with people from different departments, majors, geographic locations (e.g., Lancaster or D.C. campuses), races, or gender identities. The idea is to bring together a variety of perspectives to make the project stronger and more inclusive.

Examples of collaboration:

• Examples of collaboration:
  ✅ A graduate student working with a faculty member
  ✅ A staff member and an undergraduate student
  ✅ A project involving both the Harrisonburg and Lancaster campuses
  ❌ A student club working only with the department that oversees it

Difference Categories

•   Role- faculty, staff, undergraduate student, graduate student
•   Organizational Unit of Employees- e.g. Department, Academic School
•   Major/Minors of students
•   Race/Ethnicity 
•   Gender/Gender Identity
•   Geographic Campus location- Harrisonburg, Lancaster, Washington DC

When do I need to finish my project?

• The Inclusive Excellence Grant now follows one application cycle per academic year, with proposals accepted in the Fall semester.

• All funded projects should be completed by the end of March to allow for presentation at the ACE Festival in April.

• A final report is due two weeks after the ACE Festival and must be submitted to the DEI Office.

• If your project cannot be completed on time, you may request an extension with prior approval by emailing dei@emu.edu.

Can I apply for more than one grant project? 

Yes! Individuals or groups may submit multiple proposals as long as each project is distinct and meets the goals of the Inclusive Excellence Grant program.
Each application will be evaluated separately based on its own merit, and funding is not guaranteed for all submissions.

This program is built on the premise that curriculum is the very foundation of a university, and we believe that the systemic change should start with decentering Western and white perspectives across our curriculum in favor of inclusion of non-Western and non-white perspectives, experiences, and modes of knowledge.

By funding initiatives on diversity and inclusion, the Hertzler-Koshy Faculty Fellowship Grant Program supports the mission of EMU to prepare students “to serve and lead in a global context.” Faculty and students at EMU are agents of change and have the opportunity to impact curricula (graduate, undergraduate, intercultural programs, training) in ways that advance equity and justice.

While this learning and growth may sometimes be uncomfortable, the goal is for us to learn together in a no blame/shame environment that is accessible to everyone. Faculty are encouraged to consider ideas that enhance the curriculum in ways that support a community of learners and provide all EMU students with opportunities to grow, learn, and belong together.

Faculty members who are serving full-time and are passionate about infusing DEI in our curriculum are invited to apply in collaboration with at least one student.

Full-time faculty are eligible to apply for up to two-semester terms with a course reduction (i.e., 3 hours of load per semester). Mini-grants of up to $500 are available to applicants in addition to release time. The total number of awards will depend on the number and quality of the proposals received.

Applicants are encouraged to develop, in collaboration with a student(s), creative and innovative projects in line with the program objectives listed in the RFP. Examples of possible initiatives:

• Mentor/work with students to advance projects that analyze power and identity in systems and cultures through the lenses of anti-racism and anti-oppression to promote justice and equity in the curricula (undergraduate, graduate, intercultural program, non-credit training). 
• Mentor/collaborate with students to examine the stories that shape them, understand their own stories, and recognize the stories that shape their communities and the world. 
• Facilitate with students curricular audits to assess, integrate, and infuse diversity into the curriculum with a specific focus on race, ethnicity, disability, and gender content in the curricula.
• Develop, deliver, facilitate, and evaluate a DEI or antiracist-related training in collaboration with at least one student.
• Develop and pilot DEI/antiracist/sense of belonging evaluation and assessment tools. 
• Advance the implementation of DEI/antiracism/inclusive pedagogy/queer pedagogy/feminist pedagogy/indigenous pedagogy in the curricula (undergraduate, graduate, intercultural programs, training), elevate traditionally marginalized narratives, and identify opportunities where there is a need to diversify the content of courses, programs, and training.

Some important benefits of this program include:

• This program offers participants time and resources to expand their curriculum to be more diverse and inclusive of marginalized narratives. 
• The community of Faculty Fellows gives participants the opportunity to engage in this work in partnership with students in a supportive network of colleagues.
• The projects taken on by these Faculty Fellows will advance the university’s commitment to increasing a sense of belonging for all members of the EMU community. A more diverse and inclusive curriculum will prepare students to become unifying leaders.
• Upon request, the Vice President of DEI will provide letters of documentation to demonstrate efforts by Hertzler-Koshy Faculty fellows to support their annual reviews and/or their rank and tenure process.
• Upon request, the Vice President of DEI will provide a certificate to acknowledge the participation of students in this program as agents of transformational change.

The Hertzler-Koshy Faculty Fellowship Program initiatives and terms are set annually by the Vice President of DEI and the Provost with input from the EMU community. The terms for the program are outlined in the Request for Proposals. Fellowship Program applications will be reviewed by the Faculty Scholarship Committee and the Vice President of DEI.

Post-award reporting and sharing

All applicants selected for funding are required to provide a follow-up report documenting the impact of the program/initiative/event by the set deadline. Awardees will also be responsible for sharing their project and its impacts with the EMU community through a workshop, panel discussion, presentation, art exhibit, and/or other method appropriate for the project/program. Details are provided in the RFP.

Please note the following key dates for the Hertzler-Koshy Faculty Fellowship Grant Program:

An email will be sent out to qualified faculty  Sept. 30, 2023, letting them know that the Request for Proposal (RFP) is open. Application details will have a link to the Faculty Fellowship Moodle Course. Applications should be submitted via the Moodle course by Oct. 31, 2023 by 5p.m.