AACES Grant 2026

Eligibility

Applicants must be:

• affiliated with the Alberta Teachers' Association (ATA) or one of the university partners (UCalgary, UAlberta, ULethbridge) and
• be either (i) an ATA member (certificated teacher) or (ii) a faculty of education sessional instructor, member, professor emeritus, adjunct or postdoctoral fellow.

Summary

The Alberta Advisory Committee for Educational Studies (AACES) is a partnership between the Alberta Teachers' Association (ATA), the University of Lethbridge, the University of Calgary, and the University of Alberta. AACES is particularly interested in projects designed to improve teacher preparation or to benefit elementary and secondary education. Preference will be given to projects that are investigating educational issues or questions. AACES will not support activities whose major purpose is to produce commercial products (such as books, texts, curriculum guides and audiovisual aids) or that are deemed to constitute professional development.

Intakes occur on October 15 and June 1 annually.

Refer to the AACES Grant program page for application information.

Submission Process

Do not submit the online application form to the funding sponsor until you have received final institutional approval from Research Services.

1. Applications must be submitted to Research Services (RSO) for institutional approval and mandatory administrative review through the Research Management System (RMS) by May 27, 2026 at 12:00 p.m.
2. Complete a Pre-Award/Application record in RMS and “Submit for academic approvals” (Under Save & Progress) in good time to allow for approvals from your Department Head and/or ADR prior to the RSO internal deadline.
   1. The online application form for AACES Grants does not allow generation of a PDF prior to submitting the form. Thus, at a minimum, you must attach the project proposal, budget, and budget justification to the RMS record.
3. Upon review and approval, the PI may submit the application to the funding sponsor.

Overhead

Not eligible as stated in the grant guidelines.

Application deadlines

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

RESOURCES

Reminder: The sooner the researcher engages with Research Services, the more help we can be!

Contact the following Research Service units for support with:

Projects Involving Indigenous Research:

Support with incorporating wise practices in Indigenous research, community engagement, and Indigenous data management is available through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST).

Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage.

Knowledge Mobilization, Research Impact Assessment, DORA:

Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation, community partnerships, research impact, responsible research assessment (DORA), and open science, is available through the Knowledge to Impact team.

Applicants can reach out by email to the KI team at knowledge.impact@ucalgary.ca.

For more information and access to resource archives, please visit the KI team webpage.

Research Data Management:

For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@ucalgary.ca.

EDI in Research:

RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice.

Contact edi.rso@ucalgary.ca for more information.

Research Security:

The Research Security Division is available to ensure researchers adhere to research security guidelines and policies, including the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships (NSGRP) and the policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (STRAC).

Visit the Research Security website to learn more or contact researchsecurity@ucalgary.ca.

Pre-Award Submissions:

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application