APPLICATION RECEIPT DATE: June 1, 2009 at 4:00 p.m. (Hawai'i time)
SUBSEQUENT APPLICATION RECEIPT DATES: June 1, 2010
PURPOSE OF THE FOA
This FOA is intended to encourage the submission of applications from faculty engaged in clinical and translational science. The primary goal is to provide bridging support, as a means of successfully transitioning faculty from career-development grant support to independent investigator-initiated research grant support.
OBJECTIVES
By taking full advantage of various NCRR- and other NIH-funding opportunities, the University of Hawai'i has made tremendous progress in expanding the critical number of faculty engaged in biomedical and biobehavioral research. However, a long-neglected need of growing concern has been a mechanism to effectively transition junior faculty from career-development support to independent funding. That is, because of individual differences in progress toward independence and the sometimes lengthy grant application process, some faculty find themselves at the end of their period of career-development support with no salary support and no recourse but to terminate their employment and/or to suspend their studies, while awaiting funding decisions on their pending R-series grant applications. As such, the "payoff" from the enormous investment made to junior faculty through these career-development awards is jeopardized. Moreover, with the increasingly competitive climate for R-series funding, faculty members are unable to sustain their research effort while having also to revise and resubmit their R-series applications. In response to this need, a Clinical and Translational Science Bridging Fund was established, through the Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) Program, to provide modest, short-term bridging funds to deserving faculty, based on their need and likelihood of securing independent R-series grant support.
MECHANISM OF SUPPORT
The support for this FOA derives from funding from the RCMI Program (G12RR003061) of the Division of Research Infrastructure, National Center for Research Resources, National Institutes of Health. Through this mechanism of support, the RCMI Program aims to significantly expand the number of R-series funded faculty engaged in clinical and translational science at the University of Hawai'i. The applicant will be solely responsible for planning, directing, and executing the proposed project. The total requested period for an application submitted in response to this FOA should not exceed one year. The earliest anticipated award date for the 2009-2010 grant year is August 1, 2009, with an end date of July 31, 2010, to coincide with the RCMI funding cycle.
APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY
Any faculty member of the UH System, who has a scored or unscored R-series NIH grant application which is being revised for resubmission, may apply for support from the Clinical and Translational Science Bridging Fund. In particular, faculty members who do not currently hold an R-series award or those who have never been principal investigator on a funded R-series NIH grant are encouraged to apply.
FUNDS AVAILABLE
A total of $100,000 is available to fund two or more new or competing grants. An applicant may request a budget with direct costs of up to $50,000. However, because the nature and scope of the requests will vary from application to application, it is anticipated that the size of each award will also vary. Continuation of support for a second year will be provided in rare instances, on a competitive basis. In all cases, support will be limited to two years. Grant support through the Clinical and Translational Science Bridging Fund may be used for salary, equipment, supplies, travel and other expenses.
APPLICATION PROCESS AND REVIEW
Applicants seeking support from the Clinical and Translational Science Bridging Fund must use the application form provided as a Word file with this FOA. Since this is an internal granting mechanism, no ORS forms are required. The completed application must be received electronically, as a single pdf file, on or before 4:00 p.m. (Hawai'i time) on June 1, 2009. Late submissions or paper applications will not be considered for review.
The application form requests the following information: applicant name, title, departmental and college affiliation; name of career-development program (e.g., RCMI, RCRII, CCRE, CRECD, COBRE, BRIN/INBRE, SNRP, AIDS SNRP, CNS, EXPORT, K, etc.) and period of support, if applicable; requested duration of bridging period; budget with itemization and justification for bridging period; summary and significance of research; statement of need; detailed research and time-management plan for bridging funds, including plan if request for bridging funds is denied; list of peer-reviewed publications, as well as manuscripts in press, submitted and in preparation; list of scientific presentations at national or international meetings; list of grant applications submitted during the past five years, and their outcomes; and other support information. The application must also include a copy of the scored or unscored R-series NIH grant application and the summary statement on which the bridging fund application is being based.
The principal investigator or program director of the career-development program in which the applicant currently receives support or formerly received support must endorse the application. For applicants who are currently supported or who were previously supported by S11 or K awards (or equivalent), the application must be endorsed by the departmental chair or unit director. Similarly, for applicants who were not supported by any of the listed programs, the departmental chair or unit director must sign the face page. Applications will be reviewed and scored by the RCMI Biomedical Research Coordinating Committee, the RCMI External Advisory Committee and the RCMI leadership. Award decisions will be based on the applicant's productivity during the period of career-development support, the applicant's statement of need, and the likelihood that bridging support will be leveraged into a fundable R-series resubmission. At the end of the support period, awardees will be required to submit a written report, in which a summary of research productivity and progress and the outcome of the R-series resubmission are provided. These reports will form an important part of the annual non-competing continuation progress report to NCRR.
WHERE TO SEND INQUIRIES AND TO SUBMIT THE APPLICATION
We encourage inquiries concerning this FOA and welcome the opportunity to answer questions from prospective applicants.
The completed application must be submitted, as a single pdf attachment, to the e-mail address shown below.
Richard Yanagihara, M.D., M.P.H.
Director, RCMI Program
John A. Burns School of Medicine
University of Hawai'i at Manoa
651 Ilalo Street, BSB320L
Honolulu, Hawai'i 96813
Telephone: (808) 692-1610
Fax: (808) 692-1976
Email: yanagiha@pbrc.hawaii.edu
