Funding Opportunities
John and Polly Sparks Early Career Grant for Psychologists Investigating Serious Emotional Disturbance (SED)
The John and Polly Sparks Early Career Grant supports early career psychologists conducting research in the area of early intervention and treatment for serious emotional disturbance in children.
The John and Polly Sparks Early Career Grant supports early career psychologists conducting research in the area of early intervention and treatment for serious emotional disturbance in children.
The John and Polly Sparks Foundation partnered with APF to empower early career psychologists to produce scientifically-based research and programs that could provide models for broad-based applications across the country.
Eligibility
APF encourages applicants from diverse backgrounds with respect to age, race, color, religion, creed, nationality, ability, sexual orientation, gender, and geography.
Applicants must be early career psychologists (no more than 10 years postdoctoral with a degree from an accredited university)
Application Instructions
Application Materials:
- project proposal
- timeline of proposed project
- detailed budget and justification
- CV
- two letters of support (requested through application portal)
Evaluation Criteria
Applications will be evaluated on:
- conformance with stated program goals and qualifications
- quality and impact of proposed work
- innovation and contribution to the field with proposed project
- applicant’s demonstrated competence and capability to execute the proposed work
Please be advised that APF does not provide feedback to applicants on their proposals.
Please review our Program FAQs for important details on the application process.
Recent Recipient
Dr. Kate R. Kuhlman
Dr. Kate Ryan Kuhlman, University of California, Irvine
University of California, Irvine
“Mitigating depression among adversity-exposed adolescents using Positive Affect Therapy: A Pilot”
Past Recipients
2023
Dr. Mary Kathryn Cancilliere, Rhode Island Hospital/ Brown University
“Understanding the Characteristics of Suicidal Youth Who are Boarding to Await Inpatient Care”
Dr. Kate R. Kuhlman, University of California, Irvine
“Mitigating depression among adversity-exposed adolescents using Positive Affect Therapy: A Pilot”
Dr. Sarah Hope Lincoln, Case Western Reserve University
“Role of social support in reducing serious mental illness in racial and ethnic minority adolescents”
2022
John Cooley, PhD, Texas Tech University
“Initial Evaluation of a Brief Preventive Intervention for Aggressive Victims”
Joyce Lui, PhD, University of Maryland, College Park
“A Novel Responsive Intervention for Adolescents with Persistent and Severe Disruptive Behaviors”
Lauren Ng, PhD, The Regents of the University of California, Los Angeles
“Pilot Trial of an Integrated Care Treatment for Children with PTSD”
2021
Amy Byrd, PhD, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Autumn Kujawa, PhD, Vanderbilt University
Jennifer Silvers, PhD, University of California, Los Angeles
Maggi Price, PhD, Boston College
Marc Weintraub, PhD, UCLA Semel Institute
2020
Charlotte Heleniak, PhD, Columbia University
Sarah Kennedy, PhD, University of Colorado Denver
Yuliya Kotelnikova, PhD, University of New Orleans
Heather MacPherson, PhD, Emma Pendleton Bradley Hospital
Jennifer Suor, PhD, University of Illinois at Chicago
Brittany Zakszeski, PhD, Devereux Advanced Behavioral Health
2019
Alexandra Bettis, PhD, Brown University
Sarah Black, PhD, University of New Orleans
Jessica Lee Schleider, PhD, Stony Brook University
Rebecca Waller, PhD, University of Pennsylvania
2018
Sunhye Bai, PhD, University of California, Los Angeles
Spencer Evans, PhD, Harvard University
Lori Hilt, PhD, Lawrence University
Michelle Elizabeth Roley-Roberts, PhD, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center
2017
Melissa J. Atkinson, PhD, University of West England
Anna Van Meter, PhD, Yeshiva University
2016
Jennifer Thomas, PhD, Massachusetts General Hospital
2015
Brendan Andrade, PhD, CPsych, University of Toronto
Catherine DeCarlo Santiago, PhD, Loyola University Chicago
2014
Elizabeth Koschmann, PhD, University of Michigan Medical School
2013
Amy Przeworski, PhD, Case Western Reserve University
“Screening and Prevention of Anxiety & Depressive Disorders in Pediatric Primary Care”