What to Know When Applying to Funding Opportunities for Hispanic-Serving Institutions

ASU’s recent designation as a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) by the U.S. Department of Education means that researchers are now eligible to apply to select federal funding opportunities reserved for HSIs. We have outlined recommendations  for researchers to keep in mind when they are considering and applying to HSI opportunities. 

We also want to emphasize that these guidelines can also help while considering and applying to any funding opportunity, as many are not limited to HSIs but strongly emphasize principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). DEI is increasingly seriously considered in the review criteria, and more federal sponsors are requiring DEI plans as part of the submission process.

For all HSI opportunities, make sure to:

Check eligibility: ASU faculty are not automatically eligible for all HSI opportunities. Check eligibility of specific opportunities here, or contact your RA for additional guidance.

Evaluate if an opportunity is a good fit by considering the following questions: 

1) Why is the opportunity being offered? It is important to understand the goals of the sponsor offering the program. Research the program objectives, goals, and program officers to understand the motives behind the opportunity. Note that some opportunities are part of the Justice40 Initiative, which seeks to direct 40% of benefits from federal investments to marginalized, underserved, and pollution-affected communities. Understanding sponsor aims will help you determine if you will be able to make an effective case for why your project will be a good fit.

2) How could ASU fit into the opportunity? Make sure you understand ASU’s HSI designation. It is important to tie your understanding of ASU’s designation back to the sponsor goals. For example, some HSI opportunities are geared towards developing research capacity at smaller institutions, and thus an ASU application may not be competitive. On the other hand, 26% of full-time undergraduate students at ASU identify as Hispanic or Latino/a/x, demonstrating that ASU serves a very large Hispanic student body, which might be aligned with sponsor aims. (We use Hispanic throughout this document to be consistent with the term Hispanic Serving Institution.) Helpful guidelines and statistics on ASU's HSI designation can be found at these resources: 

• ASU HSI Initiatives 
• ASU HSI Narrative from Inclusive Excellence at ASU, an office facilitating inclusive transformations in learning, teaching and governance.
• ASU HSI Initiatives Playbook from Inclusive Excellence, which coordinates efforts to retain the HSI designation and related awards and partnerships. 
• ASU Ten Year Review can be used to find the total number of ASU students (graduate, undergraduate or all) enrolled in Campus Immersion or Total University (ASU Campus Immersion + Digital Immersion) by race/ethnicity and gender (pages 3-5, 20-22, 36-38). The Ten Year Review can also be used to find the total number of ASU faculty by tenure and non-tenure track, race/ethnicity, and gender (pages 17-18).

If you have already identified an HSI opportunity that is a good fit, consider the points below to help you craft a competitive HSI proposal:

Put together a winning team: Creating a strong application requires effective teaming, which should be initiated early and with purpose. It is important to be intentional in selecting your partners and to ensure that the principal investigators (PIs) are representative of the community you aim to serve. Be cognizant of the fact that PIs from historically marginalized groups often experience tokenization and devaluation of their research, so it is critical to ensure that they are full partners–which includes  bringing them into the process early and compensating them appropriately in the budget. To identify researchers, you can use ASU’s experts search, and reach out to RD at researchdevelopment@asu.edu for assistance.

Forge effective community partnerships: Collaborate closely with community partners to engage them in developing the proposed work–community partnering should not be an afterthought. Community contributions to, and involvement in, the project should be clear throughout the proposal narrative. Consider adding major partners as subawards to show meaningful contributions. Having strong community partnerships can also help ensure the proposed project is culturally relevant and that it will serve the community in ways that align with community goals. The Collaboratory database at ASU can help you identify community partners. You can also reference HSI initiatives at ASU collated by Inclusive Excellence to see which initiatives may have relationships with partners you’re interested in.

As you start writing your HSI proposal, keep the following recommendations in mind:

Consider servingness and culturally relevant initiatives: Understand that while specific goals of HSI opportunities vary, they are broadly designed to serve Hispanic students and communities. It is important to integrate the HSI-specific literature and best practices for serving Hispanic individuals/communities into your proposal (i.e., don’t propose “race-neutral” initiatives; Garcia 2021). One resource for thinking about different ways to incorporate servingness at HSIs is Garcia, Núñez, Sansone 2019. Demonstrate a serious commitment to the principles of the funding announcement by including a DEI professional position in the proposal, including in the budget. Utilize available resources at ASU, such as the Center for Broadening Participation in STEM (CBP-STEM), to enhance culturally relevant initiatives (including teaching). CBP-STEM is a research organization that specializes in developing and implementing inclusive and equitable educational strategies for underrepresented students in STEM, particularly Hispanic students. 

Thoroughly address evaluation and measurement: Clearly outline how you will measure and evaluate the project's accomplishments. ASU has two evaluation centers on campus that can assist with evaluation plans during the proposal development stage and after the proposal is awarded. Reach out to CREST and UOEEE for more information and watch the RD Crafting Evaluation Plans Workshop. Again, consider servingness and ensure your proposed activities  align with the needs of the target population and are guided by HSI research.

Employ effective language: Match the language the funder uses, but consider where you can use anti-deficit language throughout the proposal to foster a positive and inclusive tone. Emphasize strengths, assets, and opportunities within the community and target population.

Further Reading and Resources: 

Gina Garcia, scholar, activist, and author of Transforming Hispanic-Serving Institutions for Equity and Justice, provides resources and frameworks for HSI institutions to advance the way universities are actively serving minority students. She has also authored:

Garcia GA. 2021. A Love Letter to HSI Grant Seekers/Implementers and the Federal Agencies that Fund Them: Defining Servingness in Research, Practice, & Policy. Journal of the Alliance for Hispanic Institution Educators. 1(1):1-14. 

Garcia GA, Núñez A, Sansone VA. 2019. Toward a Multidimensional Conceptual Framework for Understanding “Servingness” in Hispanic-Serving Institutions: A Synthesis of the Research. Review of Educational Research 89(5): 745-84.