Research Accessibility Support Fund
The Research Accessibility Support Fund was launched to fill gaps in research accessibility needs for U of A faculty. Funds are limited and will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.
The fund is now open!
Terms of Reference and Funding Request Process
Purpose of Fund
The Research Accessibility Support Fund is led by the Office of the Vice-President (Research) to support researchers who have accessibility-related costs associated with their research or research dissemination. These funds are not intended as a means of sole research support, but rather as a supplementary resource to address specific accessibility needs and ableism-related barriers faced by D/deaf, disabled and neuro-divergent researchers. This cycle of the fund is $10,000. Approved funds will be released on a first-come, first-served basis.
Eligibility of Applicants and Expenses
- Faculty who hold a primary appointment at the University of Alberta are eligible to apply once per year.
- Must self-identify as D/deaf, disabled, neurodivergent, or with other identities impacted by systemic ableism and structural inaccessibility.
- Funding must be used to remove accessibility or ableism-related barriers faced by the requester that are directly related to their research program. Some possible uses of the funds include but are not limited to: accessing or modifying inaccessible research sites, buying or modifying research equipment to increase researcher accessibility, ensuring accessible travel for research or dissemination, providing personal protective equipment for research participation, enabling more accessible research or dissemination-related communication, and removing barriers for D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent trainees without other coverage.
- Ineligible expenses include salary support of any kind, indirect costs of research, direct costs of research with the exception of the items noted above, psychotherapy or coaching for executive function, and providing professional development opportunities to students.
- Applicants may request funding annually if they have applied with the administrative requirements of their funding. Funding will be released on a first-come, first-served basis
- Applicants can apply for funding for expenses incurred between April 1st, 2026 and March 31, 2027. For expenses that have not been incurred, costs must be paid using the provided Research Accessibility Support Fund Speedcode and reconciled before January 31st, 2027. Previously reconciled transactions charged to departmental speed codes will be considered on a case-by-case basis, provided the expenses are eligible and occurred in the current fiscal year.
Request Process
Requesters must meet the eligibility requirements and complete the Research Accessibility Support Request Form. The form includes space to provide a rationale outlining the need for the funds (i.e., identify barriers to be addressed and the intended impacts of the funding) and consideration of other sources of funding. Expenses under $2000 CAD that are expressly for access needs (e.g., oxygen, ASL interpretation) will be administered on a first-come-first-served basis. Expenses over $2000 CAD (e.g., first class travel) or those that will be used to purchase multi-use expenses (e.g., iPads) will require additional review while maintaining expedient funding decisions.
Fund Administration
To request funds, researchers need to complete this application form by November 9th, 2026. Incomplete funding requests will be deemed ineligible and not reviewed.
Funds should be spent and reconciled by January 31st, 2027.
Deadline
This is a limited fund allocated twice annually, between April 1st, 2026 and January 29th, 2027. Applications will be accepted until 4:30 p.m. on November 9th, 2026, or until the funds have been exhausted.