The University of Michigan’s Mixed Methods Program, housed within the Department of Family Medicine, has received a two-year, $86,000 grant from the Foundation for Child Development to improve the methodological quality and rigor of proposals submitted to the foundation. The grant is effective Sept. 1, 2022, and lasts until August 31, 2024.
Mixed Methods Program faculty members will provide consultations to grant applicants in conducting qualitative and mixed methods research. This will occur via internet video conferences, phone and email. In addition, John Creswell, Ph.D., senior research scientist with the University of Michigan and a founder of mixed methodology, will lead a webinar in best practices for writing qualitative and mixed methods grant applications. Assistant Professor Melissa Dejonckheere, Ph.D., in U-M Department of Family Medicine, also will provide consultation services in connection with the grant.
“As interdisciplinary methodologists, we are well positioned to provide consultation across diverse disciplines and topics, including Foundation for Child Development goals to improve care, well-being, and education in early childhood,” program members said in a shared statement.
Mixed Methods faculty members, including Program Director Mike Fetters, MD, MPH, MA and Associate Director Tim Guetterman, Ph.D., have been providing qualitative and mixed methods consulting and training to interdisciplinary faculty-level investigators across the globe since the program’s inception in 2015. Program members have worked with the Foundation for Child Development since 2019, when it received its first foundation grant.
“The University of Michigan’s Mixed Methods team has been an instrumental partner in supporting early-career scholars applying to the Foundation for Child Development’s Young Scholars Program,” said Program Officer Andrea Kent at the Foundation for Child Development, based in New York City. The Young Scholars Program funds implementation research that is policy- and practice-relevant and that examines the preparation, competency, compensation, well-being, and ongoing professional learning of the early care and education (ECE) workforce.
“The (Mixed Methods) team’s assistance helps scholars strengthen their research grant proposals, increase their understanding of mixed methods research, and refine their research designs to answer complex research questions. We appreciate this continued partnership in nurturing early-career scholarship,” Kent added.
Founded in 1900, the Foundation for Child Development has a mission of using research to ensure that all young children benefit from early learning experiences that affirm their individual, family and community assets; fortifies them against harmful consequences arising from poverty, racism, prejudice, and discrimination; and strengthens their developmental potential.
For more information about U-M’s Mixed Methods Program, go to www.mixedmethods.org and http://www.mixedmethods.org/qmmll.html to learn about the Qualitative and Mixed Methods Learning Lab.
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