Applications are solicited annually for grants from the Jordan Endowment Fund of the American Cichlid Association. Applications close on April 30 of each year. The goal is to support research on any aspect of the biology of cichlid fishes, irrespective of status, nationality, or membership in the American Cichlid Association.
The original and two copies of the application (see format below), postmarked no later than April 30, should be sent to:
Dr Michael Kidd
Texas A&M International University
5201 University Boulevard
Laredo, TX 78041
The awards are announced at the American Cichlid Association’s National Convention. The Convention is normally held in mid- to late-summer, and the money is dispatched soon thereafter to the applicants named. Individual grants are typically in the range of $600 to $1,500, depending on the amount available each year and the number and quality of the applicants.
Application Format
Start with a cover letter saying a bit about the relevance of your proposed goals to cichlid biology. An e-mail address is helpful. The text of the application, including a brief but informative title, should consist of no more than five pages (double-spaced, 1″ margins and 12 point font). The Introduction should place the research in the pertinent literature, clearly state the objectives, and explain the significance of the anticipated findings. The Methods sections should be brief but sufficiently detailed to assess the reality of the project in relation to the stated objectives. Although this funding is not aimed at conservation issues, a brief mention of the relevance of your project to conservation would be enlightening to the ACA Board of Trustees. Append a separate section for
Literature Cited
Provide separately a detailed budget, listing the items in order of priority, if possible, because some awards may be reduced below the requested amount. Give a separate, short, section justifying the budget items. We also need from you a list of any and all other financial support available or anticipated for this and related research.
Please enclose a curriculum vitae (not to exceed one page, single spaced) with home address, phone number, e-mail address and, for citizens of the United States, a social security number. List separately any personal publications within the past five years.
Award Condition
An easily fulfilled and pleasant condition of accepting an award is that the recipient shall publish a short popular account of the findings in Buntbarsche Bulletin (the journal of the American Cichlid Association); photos in the article are welcome, even for a lab study, and including one of yourself. Of course, the investigator is expected first and foremost to publish the findings in a referenced scientific periodical. We expect the recipient to acknowledge support from the Jordan Endowment Fund in any publication resulting from the support.
The history of the Jordan Endowment Fund was published in the Buntbarsche Bulletin issue 226 (February 2005) in the article “A BOG’s History of the Guy D. Jordan Endowment Fund” by Wayne S. Leibel (updated by the author as “A BOG’s History of the Guy D Jordan Endowment Fund – Revisited” in issue 292 [June 2017]).
The American Cichlid Association is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Donations to the ACA are tax-deductible.
