Grants and Institutes

As part of its vision, Mercer University will make contributions to the frontiers of knowledge through distinctive research agendas. Doing so involves attracting externally funded research projects.

Among the grants awarded in the 2009-10 academic year are:

NEH Institute for School Teachers: Cotton Culture in the U.S. South, 1865-1965

The southern studies faculty of Mercer University's College of Liberal Arts will allow twenty-two teachers of English, history, economics, government, geography, art, and music to learn about the complex social structures of the U.S. South in the crucial yet frequently misunderstood hundred years after the Civil War, a period that included both major social problems and amazing cultural development. Learn more >

Center for Undergraduate Research in Public Policy and Capitalism

Founded in 2009 by a gift from the BB&T Charitable Foundation, the Center for Undergraduate Research in Public Policy and Capitalism is part of the Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics, and supports the exploration of capitalism and its role in public policies aimed at promoting the economic well-being of people.  Through teaching and collaborative research, the center explores capitalism and its link to prosperity.  The center is built on the assumption that liberty is valuable in its own right and is central to economic development. Learn more >

McAfee Center for Teaching Churches

Lilly Endowment Inc. has awarded a five-year, $1 million grant to Mercer University’s James and Carolyn McAfee School of Theology to establish the McAfee Center for Teaching Churches, building on a previous grant that funded a pilot Transition-into-Ministry project. The new center will enable McAfee to sustain its work in helping young ministers make the transition from theological education to full-time ministry. The previous Endowment grant allowed McAfee to provide resources for young ministers, including a supervising pastor, a peer group, a congregation-based Clinical Pastoral Education program, and a resident support committee. See the news release >