Over the past decade, research universities and funding agencies have vigorously encouraged research that works towards solving pressing and large-scale problems related to education in an increasingly diverse and unequal society. It is widely accepted that such research often demands broad-based research teams that are multi-disciplinary and employ a range of research methods from the social sciences. Constructing and actualizing such broad-based teams both within and across universities increasingly demands that scholars leverage institutional support to pursue external federal, state and/or private foundation funding and work across disciplinary and methodological boundaries to accomplish their goals.
