SIRC IDC research pilot projects call for proposals

SIRC Research Pilot Projects

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

The Southwest Interdisciplinary Research Center at ASU is pleased to invite applications for a fourth round of funding to support pilot research projects. The pilot program is designed to encourage and support promising early-stage investigators to develop and carry out novel research projects that address health disparities causes and solutions and help the investigators obtain the data and expertise necessary for successful externally-funded grant applications.

Successful applicants will receive up to $50,000 of funding for a project duration of 12 months, as well as access to resources at SIRC to support the development and execution of their research.

The priorities for the SIRC Pilot Projects integrate the scientific and community-based perspectives of SIRC researchers and SIRC’s Community Advisory Board. The Pilot Project Program will support early career investigators to conduct rigorous scientific research that investigates how biological, sociocultural and other contextual factors exert protection and/or increase risk for the development of chronic diseases, as well as efforts to prevent and treat them. The pilot research projects can address any population impacted by health disparities, including ethnic, sexual and gender minority communities, socioeconomically disadvantaged, and rural populations.

The Southwest Interdisciplinary Research Center’s (SIRC) Pilot Project Program is funded through an NIH/NIMHD Specialized Center of Excellence on Minority Health and Health Disparities grant entitled, “Leveraging Bio-Cultural Mechanisms to Maximize the Impact of Multi-Level Preventable Disease Interventions with Southwest Populations” (2U54MD002316; PI: Flavio F. Marsiglia). The Pilot Project Program is administered under the auspices of SIRC’s Investigator Development Core (IDC).

Letter of Intent deadline (optional): 5:00 PM on Wednesday, October 12, 2022

Submission Due Date: 5:00 PM on Monday, December 19, 2022

Apply today

Background

As stated in NIH/NIMHD RFA-MD-17-005, the funding mechanism for the SIRC Specialized Center of Excellence:

Although scientific and technological advances have improved the health of the U.S. population overall, racial/ethnic minority populations, socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, underserved rural populations, and sexual and gender minority populations continue to experience a disproportionate share of many chronic diseases and adverse health conditions. As the Nation’s steward of biomedical and behavioral research, NIH has devoted considerable resources to characterize the root causes of health disparities, uncovering complex webs of interconnected factors (e.g., biological, behavioral, social and environmental factors) acting at multiple levels across the life course.….[Research] should address the intersection of domains of influence (biological, behavioral, physical environment, sociocultural environment, healthcare system) and levels of influence (individual, interpersonal, community, societal).

NIH/NIMHD defines Minority Health Disparity Populations as:

Blacks/African Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, American Indians/Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, underserved rural populations, and sexual and gender minorities. https:/www.nimhd.nih.gov/about/overview/

Applicable Research Themes

Proposed projects should have a health equity research focus that is multi-level (individual, interpersonal, community, societal) or multi-domain (biological, behavioral, physical environment, sociocultural environment, healthcare system) minority health disparities focus and have an intent to show a demonstrable impact on reducing minority health disparities. Health disparities topics addressing at least one of the following themes are especially encouraged:

Ecodevelopmental pathways (e.g., family functioning, parenting styles, and household environment) leading to health disparities;
Community-level mechanisms (e.g., neighborhood norms, trust, and cohesion) influencing health outcomes;
The role of cultural mechanisms and processes (e.g., acculturation, acculturation stress, and parent-child acculturation gaps) in health promotion and disease prevention;
Dissemination science research that examines ways to engage community stakeholders and policymakers in addressing minority health and health disparities.

Eligibility Requirements

This initiative is open to all that meet the eligibility requirements. Priority will be given to projects addressing these themes, to proposals from eligible SIRC Faculty Research Affiliates, and to projects most likely to lead to successful extramural funding.

Principal Investigator must have a full-time appointment as a non-tenured faculty member (tenure or non- tenure track) or postdoctoral fellow by the application deadline.
Principal Investigator must have a full-time appointment as a non-tenured faculty member (tenure track or non- tenure track) or postdoctoral fellow by the application deadline.
Principal Investigator must be within 10 years of completing a doctoral research degree.
Principal Investigator has not previously competed successfully as a PD/PI for a substantial NIH independent research award.
Principal Investigator must maintain a full-time appointment at ASU for the duration of the pilot project.

Key Dates

Letter of Intent (optional): Wednesday, October 12, 2022
Submission Due Date: Monday, December 19, 2022, 5 pm
Scientific Merit and Committee Review: January, 2023
NIH Approval of Selected Pilots: Spring - Summer, 2023
Expected Start Date: Summer, 2023

If an application does not meet the deadline, eligibility, application content, or format requirements, the application will not be reviewed and will be returned to the investigator.

Informational Video

This informational video provides detailed information about the application process, the review process, and the funding experience, as well as, the SIRC resources available to support research efforts in both the pre- and post-award phases. Please refer to “Resources Available for Assistance with Proposal Development” if individual feedback is requested.

Informational Video: https://vimeo.com/359172659/96ebe7edcb

Letter of Intent

Although a letter of intent is not required, is not binding, and does not enter into the review of a subsequent application, the information that it contains allows SIRC staff to estimate the potential review workload and plan the review process.

Letter of Intent deadline (optional): 5:00 PM on Wednesday, October 12, 2022

The letter of intent should include the following information:

Name, Department/School, and email address of the Principal Investigator
Descriptive title of proposed research
2-3 sentences providing a brief overview of proposed research

Please email letters of intent to Dr. Stephanie Ayers, Stephanie.L.Ayers@asu.edu.

Application Content

The application will mirror many of the aspects of the NIH R03 small grants and R21 mechanisms, including essential information to assess the proposed project’s scientific significance, innovation and rigor. A detailed and comprehensive description of the following required sections can be found in the PDF document: sirc_application_guide_y5.pdf

Required Section	Page Limit
Title page	1
Abstract	30 lines
Specific Aims	1
Research Strategy and Quarterly Timeline: Significance, Innovation, Approach, Sex as a biological variable, The quarterly timeline should include all key phases and activities over the requested one years, and benchmarks for progress toward the aims should be specified.	6
Bibliography & References Cited	---
Biographical Sketch	5
Human subjects protections narrative*	---
Budget: A detailed budget up to $50,000 for the entirety of the pilot project^∆	---
Budget Justifications	---

Please refer to the PDF document: sirc_application_guide_y5.pdf for a detailed and comprehensive description of the required sections.

* Human Subject’s approval will be required through ASU IRB if the pilot is funded. In the proposal, the plan for Human Subjects’ protections should be detailed.

^∆ We strongly recommend budgets be developed with input from your department. Due to the expected start date, we do not recommend budgeting for course buyouts in Fall 2023. Carryover costs are not expected in the pilot projects. Under rare circumstances, funds that may be considered for carryover must first obtain approval from the PI of the Investigator Development Core.

Key Personnel

Key personnel are defined as all individuals who contribute in a substantive way to the scientific development or execution of the project, whether or not salaries are requested.

The eligible early career investigator will be the Principal Investigator (PI) on the pilot proposal submission. The PI is expected to lead the scientific development and execution of the project. The PI is responsible and accountable for the proper conduct of the project.

A senior Co-Investigator may be included as Key Personnel on the application. This person is expected to contribute to the scientific development or execution of the project. This senior Co-Investigator should have clearly defined roles outlined in the budget justifications.

Multiple-PIs are not allowed.

All Key Personnel dedicating effort to the project should be listed on the budget.

Biosketches must be included for all Key Personnel.

Other personnel can be listed by project role (e.g., graduate students, lab technicians), but are not considered Key Personnel and do not require a biosketch.

Resources Available for Assistance with Proposal Development

Intensive guidance for the development of the pilot project applications is available through SIRC. This support can include:

Mentorship from senior SIRC Faculty Research Affiliates;
Advice from the SIRC weekly Methodological and Statistical Clinic;
Feedback from SIRC’s Community Advisory Board;
One-on-one consultations with members of SIRC’s Investigator Development Core;
Technical assistance on preparing budgets, budget justifications, and protecting human subjects;
Professional development and career enhancement activities.

To inquire about support available for the development of your pilot project application, please contact Dr. Stephanie Ayers at Stephanie.L.Ayers@asu.edu.

Format of Pilot Proposals

Font (type and size): We recommend using Arial 11 point font. Smaller text in figures, graphs, diagrams and charts is acceptable, as long as it is legible when the page is viewed at 100%.

Margins: We recommend one-half inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right) for all pages.

Citations: Use any generally recognized style you would like: APA, AMA, Chicago, MLA, or IEEE. Use one single, consistent citation and reference style.

Line Spacing: We recommend spacing between 1.0 (i.e., single space) to 1.10.

Combining Information into a Single Attachment: All documents must be combined into a single PDF file. Avoid scanning text documents to produce the required PDFs. It is best to produce documents using your word-processing software and then convert the documents to PDF.

Headers and Footers: Do not use headers. Add page numbers as a footer. No other footers are allowed.

Page Limits: Please refer to Application Content regarding the page limits of the required sections.

Submission Instructions

Electronic Application Submission Required

All documents must be combined into a single PDF file. Please allow yourself time to combine the documents. This single PDF file will be submitted online. The system will not accept applications after the deadline. You will receive a submission confirmation email.

If an application does not meet the deadline, eligibility, application content, or format requirements, the application will not be reviewed and will be returned to the investigator.

Apply today

Review Criteria and Process

The Selection Committee will be a multidisciplinary panel comprised of academics, researchers and community members. Keep this in mind when writing your narrative so committee members can understand why your research is important. Avoid unnecessary jargon. Preliminary studies are not a requirement for the proposal and will not be used as review criteria.

Applications will be reviewed by the Selection Committee and rated on 10 criteria:

How well the pilot project fits the previously described applicable research themes;
Significance and potential to impact health disparities;
Clearly articulated health disparities theoretical or conceptual framework linked to the research aims;
Potential contribution to health disparities knowledge;
Investigator(s) expertise to complete the project;
Appropriate methodology to achieve the aims;
Discrete, well-defined, and realistic timelines, project goals, and budgets;
Potential and planned external grant submissions expected to emerge from the pilot study;
Involvement of community partners collaborating in the study; and
Adequate human subjects protections.

Pilot proposals will be reviewed by a minimum of two committee members who are assigned based upon content of the proposal and their expertise. After an individual review and rating of all pilot applications and compilation of ratings, the Selection Committee will make a final determination of three or more pilots to be funded. All applicants will be provided written feedback from the Selection Committee.

Post Award Obligations

While the pilot project is active, SIRC will make available intensive and ongoing support and dissemination mechanisms that ensure successful completion of the pilot projects, notable publications of results, dissemination of results, and competitive submissions of subsequent grant applications. Mechanisms as outlined above in the “Resources Available for Assistance” will continue.

Post-award support will include:

Mentorship from senior Faculty Research Affiliates;
Advice from the SIRC weekly Methodological and Statistical Clinic;
Feedback from SIRC’s Community Advisory Board;
One-on-one consultations with members of SIRC’s Investigator Development Core;
Technical assistance on preparing budgets, budget justifications, and protecting human subjects;
Professional development and career enhancement activities;
Technical assistance on manuscript preparation;
Comprehensive support for the research needs of the pilot studies, where budgeted;
Technical assistance and support for the development of new externally-funded grant applications; and
Dissemination mechanisms for pilot project findings.

Quarterly progress reports are required while the grant is active. At each quarter, the pilot PIs will be evaluated by the SIRC IDC personnel on accomplishments, products, impact, challenges, and budgetary information.

These details will be outlined in the Notice of Award terms and conditions.

Funding

Funding for the SIRC Research Pilot Projects comes from the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD/NIH), award 2U54MD002316 (F. Marsiglia, P.I.). The content is solely the responsibility of SIRC and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIMHD/NIH.

Proposal Editing

Provides ASU faculty with a talented team of editors who carefully proofread your proposal to help you craft a well-written, persuasive narrative. The proposal editing service will help clarify your writing, ensuring your research is both readable and persuasive for the varying levels of expertise and the interests of your reviewers. As well, they review the funding request to help align your narrative with the funder’s request, saving you valuable time and effort.

This free editing service is available to help make your grant proposals clear, concise and correct.

Portal to submit: asu.edu/proposal editing

Questions: Proposalediting@asu.edu

Comments and Recommendations: The team ensures confidentiality, it is asked to please provide a 5 day window, it is recommended to submit 15-30 days before the due date, ALL proposals should be submitted through the portal, the team will review the proposal as many times as you need and it helps to highlight the section(s) you need help with.

Questions

Questions should be referred to Dr. Stephanie Ayers at Stephanie.L.Ayers@asu.edu or 602-496-0255.