Grant-in-Aid Awards

About the award

The Immigration History Research Center Archives at the University of Minnesota Libraries invites applications for the 2026 Grant-in-Aid Award. 

The Immigration History Research Center Archives (IHRCA) offers Grant-in-Aid Awards to support a visit to Andersen Library in order to conduct research in the IHRCA collections. The award is for travel and research-related expenses.

This award is open to researchers of all disciplines, backgrounds, and levels of training, and supports a research visit of 5 days. Awards are for $2,000 (USD), and four such awards are typically given each year. Grant-in-Aid Awards are intended to help support the expenses of people who are based outside of the Minneapolis-St. Paul (Minnesota, USA) metropolitan area, and are to be used within the 2026 calendar year.

Awards are made on a competitive basis, and for research specific to the IHRCA’s collections. In considering these applications, the committee will center those which develop a diversity of ideas and understudied histories, and/or employ new methodologies of archival research.

The Immigration History Research Center Archives is an internationally-known archives focusing on immigration to North America, with strengths in source material dating from the late 19th century to current refugee migrations. Key collecting areas include documentation on European and Near Eastern immigrants and 20th-century refugees, such as Displaced Persons after World War II, and more recent Africa, South America, Southeast Asia and elsewhere. The IHRCA provides access to immigrant and refugee assistance organization records, ethnic identity and fraternal organization records, personal papers, and print collections of periodicals and rare books. The IHRCA is part of Archives and Special Collections of the University of Minnesota Libraries, and collaborates closely with our campus partner Immigration History Research Center.

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Details, availability, and terms

Prior to submitting an application, review the IHRCA website to learn about collections, and consult with an archivist via [email protected] to confirm material availability and discuss relevance to proposed projects. As explained in the “Application materials” section below, information on your correspondence or conversation with an archivist is a required element of the application, as is providing details of the specific IHRCA material that you identify as pertinent to your research.

Researchers receiving an IHRCA Grant-in-Aid Award will be expected to 

• be in residence for 5 working days,
• acknowledge the IHRCA and the award in any resulting presentations and publication,
• donate a copy of resulting print publications
• donate a copy of resulting print publications, and
• allow publicity regarding the visit unless privacy is requested.

A photo, brief biography, and project description for public and promotional purposes will be required upon acceptance of the award unless privacy is requested.

The award is open to international applicants. We are not able to provide visa assistance to our international awardees. Please note: depending on tax treaty benefits, non-US taxpayer recipients may be subject to reporting and withholding requirements.

The award is payable in US funds only; funds are distributed after the visit, based upon completion  of all required forms. The Archives is not able to provide travel or accommodation recommendations; all such arrangements are to be made by the award recipient.

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Who may apply

Those who live outside the Minneapolis - St. Paul (Minnesota, USA) metropolitan area and who wish to make use of the IHRCA collections.

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Selection criteria and schedule

Selection will be based upon the following considerations: demonstrated connection between the research project and specific collections at the IHRCA; development of understudied histories or new methodologies of archival research; reading language proficiency of the languages used in the identified collections (consult archivist for details on source languages).

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Application materials

A letter of 1-2 pages including

• A letter of 1-2 pages including
  • a description of research project including goals, framework and preliminary thesis
  • a description of IHRCA consultation (see above), providing name of the archivist consulted,
  • specific IHRCA archival collections, books, and/or serials to be consulted (if archival collection is larger than a few boxes, the series and/or specific box numbers for selected material should be included),
  • estimated dates of residency, and
  • estimated budget.

• Current curriculum vitae (CV), résumé, portfolio, or similar

Applications must be received by September 1, 2025 (6 pm CDT) to [email protected], Attn: Grant-in-Aid Committee or received at the IHRCA office via postal mail by September 1, 2025 (mail to postal address: IHRCA Grant-in-Aid Committee, Immigration History Research Center Archives, University of Minnesota, 311 Andersen Library, 222 - 21st Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA).

Also awarded through this competition cycle is the Michael G. Karni Scholarship. Funded by the IHRC, this award supports visiting scholars  utilizing the IHRCA, with preference on projects using the Finnish American collections or the Baltic American collections. Please refer to the IHRC’s Karni Scholarship webpage for complete details.

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