Eli A. Wolff Memorial Fund for Disability Sport

About the Award

Eli A. Wolff was a force for good. As an activist and a champion for justice, he gave much of his life to the promotion of equitable opportunity and inclusion in sport, particularly for people with disabilities. He served as an advocate and educator to the public, as well as to his academic community. Eli was a Paralympian, a scholar, and an agent for social change.

When we lost Eli, we lost one of our greatest leaders.

To honor Eli’s memory, his family, in collaboration with the North American Society for the Sociology of Sport (NASSS), created an endowed memorial fund called the Eli A. Wolff Memorial Fund for Disability Sport (the “Fund”). The purpose of this call for proposals is to provide support for (a) research grants and/or (b) advocacy scholarships in disability sport. For this funding cycle, we are only taking applications for research grants in disability sport, and the Fund may award more than one application.

In addition to promoting a broad understanding of disability sport, and advancing disability in new and significant ways in other fields or in complementary ways with other topics, the following are funding priorities:

  • Education or awareness
  • Access, inclusion, equality, and respect
  • Intersectionality
  • Sport for development
  • Policy and Advocacy
  • Action research and its variants, such as community-based or participatory research

Eligibility

  1. Any NASSS member in good standing is eligible (i.e., at the time of application submission), except current NASSS Board of Directors are ineligible for funding.
  2. The primary recipient (i.e., investigator, advocacy scholar) of the award may win each award once, once for research funding and once for advocacy funding.
  3. Applications for research funding from research teams with a clearly identified primary investigator are acceptable.
  4. Preference will be given to individuals from historically underpowered or underprivileged groups, particularly people with disabilities.
  5. Student applicants may be part- or full-time at any accredited university in the world recognized by its country’s standards.
  6. Preference will be given to undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and early career faculty

Call for Funding Proposals (Up to $5,000 USD)

Application Due Date: September 14, 2026

This section details how to apply for research grant funding. Applications should include the following and adhere to the stated format.

  1. Primary Investigator (PI) name, affiliation, title, and rank (if applicable), demographic/social identity status as identified by the applicant.
  2. Title of Research Proposal
  3. Specific Aims (limited to 150 words)
    • Aims should be focused on disability sport, and disability sport should not be tacked on as part of a larger study or study that is primarily outside of disability sport.
  4. Background, Relevant Literature, & Significance/Need (limited to 400 words)
  5. Research Design and Methods (limited to 300 words)
    • Mention of IRB approval or application readiness for IRB
  6. Curriculum Vitae and bio for Primary Investigator (limited to two pages, single-spaced, 12-point font, and should include academic degrees, positions held, awards, publications, presentations, and other information relevant to the current proposal)
  7. Budget (limited to 1 page; a spreadsheet with annotations is acceptable)
    • Requests for budget may not exceed $5,000 USD. Requests must be directly aligned and needed to complete the proposed research. Requests may not be used for already purchased items.
    • Applicants may pay themselves for time to work on the project; however, the appropriateness of using the funds in such a way will be considered within the overall merit of the proposal.
    • The Fund does not pay any indirect cost to the scholar's institution.
    • For any reason (e.g., inappropriate or ill-fitting requests for funds, multiple applications that the Committee seeks to award) the Committee may request an applicant accept a lesser amount than requested. Such communication will occur prior to any applicant accepting the award.
  8. Timeline (limited to 1 page; an image with annotations is acceptable)
    • Include submission of abstract (approximately May) to NASSS member conference and presenting at the conference in November.
  9. Application should follow APA format where applicable.
  10. If a student applicant, please include a Faculty Advisor/Mentor letter of recommendation.
  11. To apply, use the following headings in bold typeface (i.e., font), include your materials within the corresponding sections, and email them as a single file (either .doc, .docx, or .pdf) to [email protected]. Email Dr. Brian Gearity, ad hoc chair of the Selection Subcommittee, with questions or concerns. You will receive confirmation of receipt of application by email.
    Name
    Title of Research Project
    Specific Aims
    Background
    Research Design
    CV and Bio of PI
    Budget
    Timeline
    Advisor Letter (as applicable)

Obligations

  1. The recipient must submit a progress report of 300 words or less within 30 days of the end of the funding period or upon completion of the project and a final budget of allocated funds. The report will be shared with the Fund Oversight Committee at NASSS and the Wolff Family. The report should be submitted to the NASSS Past-President, who is Chair of the Committee.
  2. After receiving the award, the recipient must present research or an article at the next NASSS annual conference.
  3. Any creations (e.g., products, services, deliverables, presentations, articles, reports) from the use of these funds shall acknowledge, “Support for this work provided by the Eli A. Wolff Memorial Fund for Disability Sport, which is administered by the North American Society for the Sociology of Sport (NASSS).” Furthermore, all creations should be submitted to the Chair of the Committee, for documentation and Fund promotion efforts.
  4. Recipient should immediately communicate any adverse effects or material changes or requests with the Fund Committee.
  5. Recipient should submit itemized receipts of all expenses to Chair of the Committee within 30 days of their occurrence, who in turn will verify expenses align with the approved budget.
  6. If recipient is unable to complete the project, funds must be immediately returned to the NASSS Eli A. Wolff Memorial Fund for Disability Sport.

Review & Award

  1. The Eli A. Wolff Memorial Fund for Disability Sport Committee will announce the winner(s) of the award and read a brief portion of the proposal and bio of the primary investigator at the Business Meeting of the NASSS annual member conference.
  2. Fund recipients will have one calendar year to complete the project.
  3. If the project cannot be completed within one year, the recipient should immediately notify the Committee and request an extension. The extension should acknowledge the status of the project and provide a new timeline.
  4. All applicants will be notified of funding decisions by approximately October 5, 2026.
    • The Committee will not provide feedback on any applications.

Award Committee

Brian Gearity, Chair, University of Denver, [email protected]
Jay Laurendeau, University of Lethbridge
Courtney Flowers, Texas Southern University
Fred Ariel Hernandez, UCLA

Previous Recipients

2025
Evan T. Baughman, University of California, Davis
Sanghyun Hwang, University of Alberta

2024
Irina Berry, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Contributing to the Eli A. Wolff Memorial Fund for Disability Sport

Contributions to the Eli A. Wolff Memorial Fund for Disability Sport can be made via the donations page.