Call for Applications for the NCRECE Research Mentoring Program for Minority Scholars

The National Center for Research on Early Childhood Education (NCRECE) is sponsoring a fellowship program in 2009-2010 for research training and publication for up to five teaching or research faculty or postdoctoral researchers from underrepresented groups. The focus of the program is on secondary analysis of existing data sets that can be used to address issues of importance in the field of education, applied developmental psychology, child development, and related fields, with an emphasis on early childhood education. One of the Center's current foci of research is English language learning (available data sets include a large number of Spanish-speaking English Language learners); therefore, we especially encourage applicants with interests in that area.

The NCRECE fellowship program will provide mentoring experiences in writing articles for publication from large-scale, national samples data sets on early childhood education. The fellows will have access to large nationally representative data sets and an ongoing year-long association including up to three face-to-face working sessions with senior investigators who will provide mentorship. The available data sets are: NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development and NCEDL SWEEP. In addition the fellowship will provide for travel to the 2010 AERA meeting and a small stipend of $12000 to cover research expenses.

The fellows will be matched according to research interests with an NCRECE investigator (M. Burchinal, C. Howes, J. Downer, A. Williford, S. Field). The mentor will provide assistance in refining of research questions, data analysis, and preparation of presentations and manuscripts towards the end goal of developing a line of programmatic research.

Mentoring visits will happen at the home campus of the mentors. The Fellowship provides funds (travel, lodging, meals) for up to three visits. These working sessions will provide NCRECE Scholars with detailed background on the selected data sets in terms of design, methodologies, measurement, and constructs toward the end of linking scholars' interests to the capacities of these data sets to address questions related to their interests. The scholars are expected to bring to the working sessions a set of identified research questions. They should expect to do background reading enabling them to make good use of the session for the purposes of forming an analysis data set and analysis plan. Scholars also should be prepared to periodically send drafts of their work to the mentor for critiquing. All of the scholars and mentors will meet together during the 2010 AERA meeting.

Application procedures:

The applicants should write a 3-page cover letter outlining their research interests and goals. Specifically this letter should outline their plan for professional development using this experience, a brief conceptual overview of the work they want to conduct with these data sets, the research questions they intend to examine, and the methods in which they are proficient analytically. They should provide a Curriculum Vitae and a statement of support for their institution including the computing software and hardware available for this analysis. Two letters of reference should be provided.

Applications are due May 1, 2009. (See application form for address and other contact information.)

Eligibility requirements:

The scholar should be in the field of English language learning, early childhood education, applied developmental psychology, child development, or a related field and have a full-time faculty or research appointment at a university. The scholar should belong to an ethnic/racial group currently underrepresented in national faculty ranks. This is defined as membership in one or more of the following groups whose under representation in the American professoriate has been severe and longstanding: Alaska Natives (Eskimo/Aleut); Black/African Americans; Hispanic/Latino; Native American Indians; Native Pacific Islanders (Polynesian/Micronesian).

Please see our website for application information:

http://www.ncrece.org/wordpress/products/research-mentoring-program-for-minority-scholars/