AAR’s strategic plan for 2026-2031 aims to have all its currently offered awards and grants fully endowed (funded by non-operation funds) by the end of 2031. In addition to seeking long term legacy support for existing grants and awards, we welcome the opportunity to receive gifts with the purpose of establishing new named awards or grants.

Currently endowed awards and grants include:

AAR Religion and the Arts Book Award
The Selva J. Raj Endowed International Dissertation Research Fellowship
The Judith Plaskow Annual Meeting Travel Grant
Religion and the Arts Travel Grant

Award and Grant Programs in Need of Funding

AAR Excellence Awards

The AAR Katie Geneva Cannon Excellence in Teaching Award, the AAR Lawrence H. Mamiya Excellence in Public Service Award, and the James H. Cone Excellence in Mentoring Award recognize the importance of academic teaching, public service, and faculty mentoring, and honor outstanding legacy bearers in each of these separate yet related fields.

To fully endow one of the Excellence Awards, we seek an initial endowment of at least $100,000 USD.

AAR International Collaborative Research Grants

The International Collaborative Research Grant Program supports generative research collaborations between and among scholars located in different geographical regions who wish to pursue focused, joint projects in any area of the study of religion.

In order to fund this grant program for the next decade, we require a funding commitment of at least $50,000 USD.

To fully endow this grant for the future – which would include an opportunity to name the grant — a gift of at least $120,000 USD is required. Please consider supporting international  and collaborative research by funding this program.

AAR Individual and Collaborative Research Grants

Supporting our members’ research is at the core of our mission. Please consider donating to the Research Grants Fund.

If you are able to support a grant program through a large donation that will create an endowment to secure the grant’s future, please contact the executive director.

Establish a New Grant, Award, or Other Program

The AAR wishes to offer a diverse portfolio of prizes and awards. Therefore, new prizes should be substantially different from existing prizes; prizes focused on subfields or segments of the profession for which there are already several established AAR prizes are less likely to be approved. Please consult our policy on Donations, Gifts, and Sponsorship Contracts for further information and feel free to email the executive director to discuss your particular interest.

Gifts for the purpose of establishing a prize are subject to the following terms:

  • Prizes must be consistent with the AAR’s mission.
  • Prizes that the board of directors deems too difficult to administer will not be established.
  • Before they can be initiated, prizes or named awards funded by an endowment require a minimum initial contribution.
    • For prize endowments for which the principal cannot be spent, that minimum is $50,000.
    • For prize endowments whose principal can be spent, that minimum is $10,000 or enough funds to support the prize for 10 prize cycles*, whichever is larger.
    • These prizes must be structured to ensure that they can be funded solely by the endowment and subsequent donations, without additional funds from the AAR’s operating revenue. The board of directors reserves the right to make reasonable adjustments to endowed prizes, such as reducing the prize amount or frequency at which a prize is awarded, to ensure their long term sustainability.
  • Prizes funded by an outside organization require a funding commitment of no fewer than 10 years or 5 prize cycles*, whichever is longer. Renewals of funding commitments are to be of this same length.
  • Prizes funded by endowment are to be structured financially with provisions for the long-term use of the endowment, such as periodic evaluation of the prize amount, the establishment of a second prize or fellowship, or with a prize amount set based on earnings.
  • Prize endowments will be invested in accordance with the AAR’s investment policy.
  • Prizes must be defined broadly enough to ensure a significant number of competitors for the prize and sufficient candidates for the prize selection committee.
  • The AAR is committed to having a portfolio of prizes and awards that do not unfairly disadvantage underrepresented minority groups. The board of directors strongly urges potential donors to craft their prizes consistent with this commitment.
  • Prizes will normally require AAR membership as a condition of eligibility.
  • The AAR will charge to each prize fund reasonable direct and indirect costs. These costs will normally be set at 20 percent of the value of the prize, though the board of directors may set a higher or lower percentage based on the specifics of a given prize.
  • The AAR must have legal counsel review all prize MOUs before they are approved and signed.
  • Any prize requiring a designated session at an annual meeting must be approved by the program committee of the AAR as well as the board of directors.
Prizes Including a Lecture

Due to space constraints on meeting programs, there is limited opportunity for new prizes that include a lecture or other session at an annual meeting. Therefore, the minimum founding contribution for a prize associated with a lecture or other session at an AAR annual meeting is $100,000. Sponsored prizes including a lecture normally require a commitment of no fewer than 20 prize cycles. No prizes requiring a plenary session will be accepted; the only plenary sessions at AAR meetings are the presidential plenaries.

* A prize cycle is equal to the frequency at which a prize is awarded, regardless of the number of prizes awarded in each cycle. For a prize in which three awards are presented on an annual basis, a prize cycle is one year. For a prize in which one award is presented every third year, a prize cycle is three years.