Elon University handing out $500 diversity 'mini-grants' to faculty and staff

Elon University’s Office of Inclusive Excellence Education and Development is seeking applications for grants to increase the campus’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion principles.

The school’s I-Excel Mini-Grant is “designed to support faculty and staff members at Elon University in enhancing their self-awareness and critical consciousness in matters of diversity, equity and inclusion,” the school’s advertisement page says. 

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“This mini-grant aims to empower individuals to actively engage in inclusive excellence education and development activities addressing their personal journey to foster a more inclusive campus environment,” it continues.

The deadline for submissions is Monday, October 28. Winners will be announced on Monday, November 4.

The grant “supports learning activities that enhance skills to recognize complex systems of inequity at Elon and in society,” a news article on the school’s website says. “The mini-grant also seeks to support engagement in professional development activities that will enhance the experiences and sense of belonging of historically and presently marginalized identities at Elon.”

School administrators provide DEI criteria for faculty and staff members to determine whether they can receive up to $500 from the grant. 

One requirement is that the project increases “knowledge and understanding of concepts, theories, histories, and relationships related to anti-bias, identities, diversity, equity, inclusion and other Inclusive Excellence constructs.” 

Here, the university links to its list of “Core Constructs” of “Include Excellence.” Those core constructs include “Anti-Black Racism,” “Anti-Racism Education,” “Cisgender,” “Graysexuality,” “Historically and Presently Marginalized Groups,” “Protected categories,” and other social justice-themed terms.

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Campus Reform has previously reported many examples of colleges and universities awarding diversity, equity, and inclusion grants. Earlier this year, the University of Michigan granted nearly $500,000 to “anti-racism” projects.

This past summer, the University of Connecticut’s School of Fine Arts gave tens of thousands of thousands for “anti-racism” research “to support efforts to create a just, diverse, and fully inclusive society at all levels, from the local to the global.”

In January, the University of Chicago awarded “Inclusive Climate Grants” to faculty and staff.

Campus Reform contacted Elon University and the Office of Inclusive Excellence Education and Development for comment. This story will be updated accordingly.