Ethics Institute Research Fellowship Grant Program

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Fellowship

The Office of the Provost and the Ethics Institute are committed to our shared community values and ethical obligations. We define ethics broadly: we view ethics as the norms of behavior that guide how we treat one another, our environment, and institutions. We recognize that ethics are normative, grounded in rationality, religious beliefs, our understanding of nature and natural law. Each person has a set of ethical beliefs. 

The Ethics Institute Research Fellows Grant Program provides funding for MSU-affiliated investigators to pursue small, focused projects that have the potential to improve understanding of ethical dimensions and ethical practice in a specific field. While many types of projects will be considered, the program prioritizes projects that enable awardees to generate sufficient progress needed for successful applications for external funding and/or published research work. Work that contributes to institutional transformation at MSU and other institutions is also welcome.

There will be three grants awarded for the Spring of 2026. There will be another call for proposals in the Fall of 2027 for three grants.

Applications for spring 2026 are due Nov. 17, 2025. Access the application online.

 

Submission Details

Up to $15,000 per grant/one year

Can be used for:
•    Student hourly
•    Conference travel
•    Journal publication fees
•    Participant incentives
•    Course buy-out (for the following semester)

Cannot be used for:
•    Indirect costs
•    Faculty salary support
•    Summer salary support

Please note that the funds need to be expended within a year of the award.

The awarded research fellows will engage in two meetings (one hour each) to collaborate with other fellows, once in the spring semester (2026) and once in the fall semester (2026). The fall semester will highlight the progress of the work to a broader audience (MSU administration, Ethics Institute, donors, etc.). Awardees agree to provide regular updates throughout the year. A research manuscript or case study and a blog/news story/podcast highlighting the findings will be submitted.

Investigators at all levels are encouraged to apply. Grant recipients for each award must include at least one MSU faculty or academic staff member to serve as the lead investigator. Collaboration among faculty and interdisciplinary research is encouraged, as is the engagement of graduate student researchers.

Pilot projects should emphasize one or more of the following themes:

  • Research ethics around marginalized populations
  • Ethics and diversity
  • Ethics and gender
  • Ethics and social justice
  • Ethics and democracy
  • Ethics and the environment/sustainability
  • Ethics and religious tolerance
  • Ethics and health and well-being

Letters of intent (submitted via Qualtrics) should include the following:

  1. Title of the research project, names of lead investigator and collaborators (collaboration is encouraged)
  2. Alignment with ethical themes (see above) (1,000 characters with spaces)
  3. Project aims/goals (1,000 characters with spaces)
  4. Potential for impact (1,000 characters with spaces)
  5. Timeline (document upload)
  6. Budget & justification (document upload)

Please submit letters of intent via the Qualtrics survey by Nov. 17, 2025.

Letter of Intent Deadline: Nov. 17, 2025
Notice of Invitation for Full Proposals: Dec. 8, 2025
Deadline for Full Proposals: Jan. 16, 2026
Notice of Award: Feb. 6, 2026

A Full Proposal Submission will Include the Following:

  • Names and affiliations of all investigators
  • Brief description of the topical ethics issues and their significance
  • Proposed research questions or objectives
  • Methodological approach and research details
  • Anticipated deliverable (e.g., grant proposal, paper, case study)
  • References
  • A full budget
  • Project timeline

The full proposal should be no longer than 5 pages, 1” margins. The page limit excludes references, budget, and timeline.
 

2025-26 Ethics Research Fellows

Kune Park, School of Social Work

Ethical Dilemmas at the Intersection of Child Protection and Juvenile Punishment 

Park’s project examines how race, ethnicity, and gender shape child welfare decision-making that can channel foster youth, disproportionately Black youth, into the juvenile legal system. Using vignettes, interviews, surveys, and bias assessments, the team aims to inform policy and practice that promote equitable decisions and reduce unnecessary referrals. 

Michelle Pham, Center for Bioethics & Social Justice, and Megh Marathe, Center for Bioethics & Social Justice and Media & Information

Ethical Oversight in Neural Device Research 

Through ethnographic interviews, the team investigates how Institutional Review Boards understand and address ethical risks in neural device research involving people with disabilities, an area with high promise but unique concerns about exploitation, risk, and informed consent. Findings will inform neuroethics governance and participant protections. 

Courtney Venker, Communicative Sciences and Disorders

Tales of Inclusion? Ethical Representations of Autistic Friendship in Children’s Literature 

Venker’s team will code 100+ children’s books about autism to identify patterns in how friendship is portrayed often through neurotypical lenses and partner with autistic collaborators to develop ethically grounded storytelling recommendations for educators and authors.