Conference Travel Assistance for Faculty with Caregiving Responsibilities

We recognize that caregiving responsibilities can create barriers to attending professional conferences. To assist faculty who are caregivers to participate in these important activities, Faculty Success offers funds to offset expenses associated with caregiving responsibilities incurred as a result of conference travel. This funding covers: 

• Dependent care costs at the conference location
• Dependent care or eldercare costs at home that exceed the cost of regularly scheduled care
• Travel expenses for a dependent and/or a caregiver (other than the applicant) when the dependent has a demonstrated need to travel with the faculty member

This support enables faculty members with caregiving responsibilities to engage more fully in their academic disciplines through conference participation.

Eligibility: All current, full-time S&T faculty with caregiving responsibilities. Application must be submitted at least 30 days before conference travel begins.

Funding: Funds are available (a total of $5,000/year) to help offset caregiving costs while a faculty member participates in a discipline-based conference. The funding limit is $750 per applicant, per academic year. These funds are considered taxable income and will be disbursed via payroll after travel is completed.

All expenses incurred must have an invoice and must be submitted for reimbursement within 60 days of the date on which the expense was incurred. Expenses must be incurred before the end of the academic year the grant covers. For example, a 2025-26 grant covers expenses at conferences held before the fall 2026 semester begins.

For the purposes of this funding opportunity, a dependent is defined as:

• A minor (up to age 18) who resides with the applicant and for whom the applicant is a substantial and regular caregiver, or:
• An adult with a disability who lives local to, or with, the applicant and relies on the applicant for substantial and ongoing assistance with essential daily needs.

Allowable Expenses:
The following expenses are eligible for reimbursement:

1. Dependent care or eldercare expenses during the travel period that are (a) incremental (rather than part of ongoing services), (b) are due to the faculty member's travel, and (c) are incurred during hours when a co-parent/guardian (if any) is unavailable.
2. Travel expenses for the dependent when (a) a co-parent/guardian is not available to stay home with the dependent or (b) the dependent has a demonstrated professional or medical need to travel with the faculty member (e.g., the dependent is nursing).
3. Travel expenses for a caregiver when the dependent is nursing and/or under the age of two or has a demonstrated medical need to travel with the faculty member. We expect that a dependent will normally stay home with a co-parent/guardian rather than travel with the faculty member.
4. The cost of shipping milk for a nursing child when the faculty member is a nursing parent of the nursing child and is traveling without the child.

Examples of allowable uses:
These examples are meant to be illustrative, not exhaustive. If you have questions about whether a particular situation or expense is covered by the travel grant, please contact Faculty Success at facultysuccess@mst.edu.

Example 1: The faculty member, who ordinarily provides in-home care for their mother, plans to participate in their professional society's annual meeting. The faculty member could apply for the travel grant to pay a caregiver to stay with their mother during their planned absence.

Example 2: The faculty member will attend a multi-day conference out of state. Their children will travel with them because there is no care available at home. The faculty member may request funds to cover the children's economy airfare and to pay for the conference's on-site childcare services.

Example 3: The faculty member will attend an overnight conference and could arrange for the regular daytime caregiver to remain at home overnight with their adult son, who has a disability and is their legal dependent. The faculty member could apply for the travel grant to cover the additional expense associated with the caregiver's extended hours.

Example 4: The faculty member will be away at a conference during the weekend. A co-parent will provide care for their child at home while the faculty member is away at the conference, except for Saturday morning when the co-parent is scheduled to work. Because weekend care is incremental and not part of regularly scheduled daycare, the faculty member could apply for the travel grant to pay for childcare during weekend hours when the co-parent is working.

Example 5: The faculty member is responsible for caring for their father in their home while he recovers from surgery but plans to present at a conference during this time. The faculty member may request funds to pay for a caregiver to stay with their father while they are away at the conference.

Example 6: The faculty member will travel overnight to a conference. Their 6-month-old infant needs to travel with the faculty member because the infant is nursing. On-site daycare is not available at the conference, and so the co-parent will travel with the infant to provide care while the faculty member attends the conference. The faculty member could apply for the travel grant to pay for travel expenses for the co-parent and infant.

Example 7: The applicant and co-parent are both faculty members and will both attend the same conference. No home care for their child is available, so their child will travel with them. The faculty member could apply for the travel grant to cover travel costs for their child.

Non-allowable expenses:
The following expenses are not eligible for reimbursement:

1. Travel for a child or caregiver without demonstrated need to travel with the faculty member.
2. Meals or travel expenses other than transportation.
3. Caregiving costs paid to a co-parent/guardian.
4. Caregiving costs that would normally be incurred if the faculty member was not traveling, such as regularly scheduled childcare, dependent care, or eldercare.
5. Airfare costs that exceed economy airline costs.

How to Apply: Complete the application at https://forms.office.com/r/0ZGGrFfB2u (or click the button below). Applications are accepted and reviewed by the Faculty Success Leadership Team on a rolling basis through May 1^st each year, or until funding runs out. You must submit your application 30 days before your conference travel begins.

Questions: Please feel free to send questions about this program to any member of the Faculty Success Leadership Team (https://facultysuccess.mst.edu/people/).