Lack of funding for educational research and a paucity of researchers with academic credibility have been identified as the key issues facing the medical education research enterprise. The authors argue that institutionally supported programs for educational research and development grants can help to address these issues. This report (1) describes the general rationale for having such programs, (2) describes the development of such a program at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine, and (3) reports the outcome of the first three cycles of awards. The program outcomes include 28 intramurally funded projects, a 200% increase in funds for educational research from local sources other than the medical school, two new grants funded from extramural sources, one peer-reviewed publication, three presentations at national meetings, and six presentations at local meetings. Such a program is an excellent mechanism for demonstrating the administration's support for educational efforts and also provides a way to factor peer review of educational efforts into the faculty promotion process. The authors argue that these two reasons alone are sufficient to justify the development of such programs, although the outcomes at the University of Wisconsin also show compelling added value.