MITHIC funding opportunities

Dear colleagues,

We are thrilled to announce applications can now be submitted for the second round of funding for the MIT Human Insight Collaborative (MITHIC), a presidential initiative that elevates human-centered research and teaching and connects scholars in the humanities, arts, and social sciences with their colleagues across the Institute.

MITHIC aims to harness the power of human insight to address today’s most pressing challenges, educate tomorrow’s leaders, and expand humanity’s horizons.

There are three funds under MITHIC, which together provide $3 million in annual support:

• The SHASS+ Connectivity Fund is designed to support research that builds bridges between humanities, arts, and social sciences and other fields at MIT. Proposals require a project lead in SHASS and another project lead whose primary appointment is outside of SHASS. The fund awards $2 million per year across all projects. An information session for the SHASS+ Connectivity Fund will be held on Friday, September 12, 10:30–11:30 a.m. Join us on the Friday Zoom.
• The Humanities Cultivation Fund supports projects in the humanities and arts in SHASS. The fund will award $500,000 per year across all projects. An information session for the Humanities Cultivation Fund will be held on Monday, September 15, 11:30 a.m–12:30 p.m. Join us on the Monday Zoom.
• The SHASS Education Innovation Fund supports new educational approaches in SHASS fields. Proposals must be led by SHASS and group proposals are encouraged. The fund will award $500,000 per year across all projects. An information session for the SHASS Education Innovation Fund will be held on Wednesday, September 10, 10:00–11:00 a.m. Join us on the Wednesday Zoom.

The deadline to submit proposals for each fund is Thursday, October 23 at 12 p.m. EST. There will be a second funding cycle for SHASS+ proposals in the spring, with proposals due Tuesday, March 17, 2026.

Both full proposals and planning grants will be accepted. An individual may only be the project lead on one full proposal per fund but may submit multiple planning grants or be listed as a collaborator on multiple proposals. Please consult the RFPs for full eligibility details.

We encourage all faculty members and researchers to visit the new MITHIC website and consider how you might engage with MITHIC’s resources and team.

If you have an idea for a project and are looking to connect with potential collaborators from across the Institute, we encourage you to propose a topic for a Meeting of the Minds event. Or if you have an idea and are trying to make connections with other disciplines at MIT, MITHIC can help get your topic circulated to other MIT researchers.

We also invite you to join the MITHIC team for an information session and networking reception on Wednesday, September 24, 2025, 12:00–1:00 p.m in Killian Hall (14W-111). MITHIC faculty lead Keeril Makan, associate dean of SHASS, will lead the session.

We look forward to collaborating with you and seeing the transformative projects that will continue to emerge from this effort.

For any information or questions, please reach out to mithic@mit.edu.

Anantha P. Chandrakasan
Provost

Agustín Rayo
Kenan Sahin Dean, School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences