Undergraduate Travel Support to the International Conference for Infant Studies: 2024 - 2028 - Abstract
The purpose of this conference travel grant proposal is to secure funds to facilitate
undergraduate student involvement in the biennial International Conference on Infant Studies,
with a particular focus on students from underrepresented groups. Meetings are held every two
years in spring or summer, both in U.S. and international locations. Undergraduates play a
large role in infant research, and the goal of this initiative is to provide support for them to attend
the conferences and thus inspire them to pursue a career in STEM. From previously NICHD
funded R13 initiatives, we have evidence that such attendance encourages students to pursue
developmental science in graduate school or other allied disciplines. Moreover, it allows
students to see the central role of science in the study of development. The future success of
the field of infancy research depends on diversity of researchers, participants, and questions.
This initiative dovetails nicely with national efforts to engage ethnic and racial minority
undergraduate students in science and to encourage their continued engagement following
graduation. This initiative also aligns with the efforts of the International Congress on Infant
Studies (ICIS), the organization that sponsors the biennial conferences. Promotion of
undergraduate research experiences will result in the next generation of diverse infancy
researchers. This proposal seeks to support student travel to the next three conferences –
2024, 2026, and 2028 – with $20,000 per conference (total request is $60,00). This funding rate
should offset travel expenses for 20 undergraduates per meeting. In addition to learning about
the latest research in infancy science, undergraduates will receive pre-conference support to
prepare for the experience, an introductory session at the conference focused on making the
most of their time at the conference and conference etiquette, networking opportunities for
undergraduates to learn about graduate school and post-college employment, and a post-
conference debrief. Finally, both short-term (immediately following the conference) and longer-
term assessments (up to 6 years later) will evaluate outcomes.
