Mini Grants
The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) offers competitive funding for faculty, staff and graduate student projects that promote equity and inclusion. The maximum award amount per project is $1,500; requests average $400-600 per project. Partial funding may be granted.
Timeline
2025 Awards
Applications open: November 6, 2024. Submit your application today! (NetID login required)
Review all survey questions before you submit.
Application deadline: January 17, 2025
Funds disbursed: February 2025
Deadline to use funds and submit report: December 2025
*If you plan to expend funds after the new fiscal year begins on July 1, 2025, please check with your business office to make sure funds can be rolled over.
Eligibility
University of Arizona departments, programs and individual faculty, staff and graduate students are eligible to apply for CSW mini-grants. Student programs must be officially recognized by the Associated Students of the University of Arizona. CSW can only transfer funds to a miscellaneous designated or sales and services type of University account. Consult with your department’s business office if you are unsure about your account type.
Applicants may submit proposals for multiple projects. Please provide a separate application for each project. Preference will be given to first-time applicants.
Use of funding must comply with all University and Office of the Provost policies and procedures. Funds cannot be used for political organizations or political events. The Commission on the Status of Women cannot fund groups or organizations not affiliated with a University department or unit. We cannot provide support for alcohol, door prizes, gifts, donations or any other use prohibited by University policy. We do not provide scholarships or tuition funding.
Criteria
Funding will be awarded based upon the project's expected impact (one measure of this is the number of people who will benefit from the funded activity) and how well it advances one or more of these CSW goals:
- To identify and provide leadership on issues that affect women and/or underrepresented minorities
- To develop and support university policies and practices that promote equity, diversity and inclusivity of all gender identities
- To increase advancement opportunities for underrepresented minorities
- To collaborate with other groups to create safe and inclusive communities
- To foster individual and collective accountability promoting justice, equity and diversity
- To educate the campus community about CSW's work and objectives
2025 Recipients
- Lavender Scholars Program Launch (W.A. Franke Honors College)
- IDEALS WISE WORKSHOP: Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Actionable Leadership and Strategy Workshop in Information Science Education (School of Information)
- Bridging Borders (BB): Honoring Interdisciplinary Talents (W.A. Franke Honors College)
- Celebrating the History of Women: A Panel Discussion (College of Medicine - Tucson)
- WIAS Beyond the License: Architecture Careers Uncovered (College of Architecture, Planning, & Landscape Architecture)
- Fostering Community and Belonging to Bolster the Undergraduate Psychology Exploration Program (Psychology)
- Kind Cats Science of Kindness Community Engagement Materials for Festival of Books and Beyond (Kind Cats)
- Advocating for Bilingual and Culturally-Responsive Higher Education (ABC Higher Ed) (W.A. Franke Honors College & Office of General Education)
- Bring Joy into #AdminLife (English)
- Virtual Writing Retreat: Mindfulness as Writing Tool (Writing Skills Improvement Program)
After Funding
If your proposal has been funded, you must use the funds by December 18, 2025. You must also provide an electronic summary (such as a PowerPoint presentation) to the Commission by that date. CSW may also request a brief oral presentation of your project outcomes at a meeting or event.
Previous Awardees
- WIMS Networking Event: Excellence in Women in Medicine and Science (Facilities Management/BioCOM)
- Writing Workshops for International Women Writers (Writing Skills Improvement Program)
- Women of Color Career Connections Program (Bartlett Academic Success Center)
- The Women in Healthcare Networking Panel (WISE)
- NACADA Region 10 conference presentation (College of Education)
- University of Arizona Women of Impact Program Expansion (Office of Research, Innovation, and Impact)
- Women in STEM Mentorship Program Closing Event (WISE)
- The Healthcare Provider’s Role in the Prevention and Identification of Human Trafficking and How to Provide Trauma Informed Care (College of Medicine - Tucson)
- VIRTUAL Grad CAFE Pilot (Graduate Center)
- A Campaign to Improve Career Outcomes for First-Generation Students (LRDSH Programs Student Engagement)
- Baby Changing Station UAPD (Police Services)
- Bartlett Academic Success Center Lactation Room (Center for Academic Advising)
- Black Joy Series (Honors College)
- Community of Engagement in Agricultural and Applied Economics (AG Econ Local Programs)
- Down to Business: Black Students' Experience at a Business College (Bcom)
- Evaluating the role of the micro biome in burn patients at a burn center (Surgery)
- Graduate Communities for Academic Fellowship and Efficacy (CAFE) (PC Fellows Club)
- Reading Group: Women in the diaspora (Spanish & Portuguese)
- Reducing Health Disparities Among the LGBT+ Community: How to Provide the Best Care for Your Patients (OCME Administration)
- Refugee Clinic Educational materials and supplies (Family & Community Medicine)
- The Impact of Hair Narratives on Black Adolescent Identity Development (Special Education)
- Unspoken penalties: Examining academic parents' decisions to use - or not use - extended parental leave (English)
- Building Women in STEM Leaders through Geoscience Outreach (WISE)
- Patching the Legal Pipeline: Increasing Interest in Advanced Legal Careers Among Underrepresented University of Arizona Students (PSYCH)
- Reproductive Health Access by Design (Enrollment Services)
- Digital safety and security for women and BIPOC (Journalism)
- Implementation of a Pilot STI Testing and Education Program at a Free Clinic (College of Nursing)
- Perceptions of Diversity, Inclusion, and Health Equity Among COM-T Students and Faculty (OCME)
- Increasing Gender Inclusivity in Data Science (School of Information)
- Mothers of Color in Academia (MOCA) Virtual Writing Retreat (Mexican American Studies)
- Association for Women in Mathematics Annual Diversity Workshop (Department of Mathematics)
- Inclusivity in Innovation at the UA Women's Hackathon (UA Libraries)
- Launching Your Career Symposium (UA Women in Optics)
- Policy Changes to Mitigate Unconscious Bias in Faculty Development (Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology)
- Professional Development Seminar Series (UA Graduate Women in Science)
- Recentering Growth: Creative and Professional Workshops for Writers at the Margins (Creative Writing Program, Department of English)
- Regional Gender and Women's Studies Network Meeting 2019 (Southwest Institute for Research on Women)
- Surgeon Lactation Room (Department of Orthopedic Surgery, College of Medicine – Phoenix)
- Women's Initiative for Leadership in the Outdoors (UA Campus Recreation)
- Women in STEM Student Council (Women in Science and Engineering Program)
- Workshop on Middle Eastern & South Asian Women and Campus Visibility (School of Middle Eastern & North African Studies)
- Women Tribal Scholars on Indigenous Knowledge and Natural Resource Management (School of Natural Resources and the Environment)
- TIME'S UP Healthcare (College of Medicine – Tucson)
- Rejuvenation of Mind, Body and Spirit for Professional-Personal Life Balance (Family and Community Medicine)
- Racism Awareness and Unlearning Workshop (UA Presents/ Arizona Arts)
- Social Justice Symposium 2018: Power & Privilege—Tackling Microaggressions in Public Health (Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health)
- Native Women in Governance Speaker Series (Native Nations Institute)
- Targeted Support for Women on the STEM Pipeline (Women in Science and Engineering Program)
- Social Sciences Lactation Room (Social & Behavioral Sciences Administration)
- The Unconscious Bias Project Workshop (Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology)