CALL FOR APPLICATIONS – PILOT PROJECTS: Texas Resource Center for Minority Aging Research
Texas Resource Center for Minority Aging Research CALL FOR APPLICATIONS – PILOT PROJECTS
University of Texas Medical Branch & University of Texas San Antonio Resource Center for Minority Aging Research (RCMAR) Supported by Grant Number P30 AG059301 from the National Institute on Aging/National Institutes of Health
Request for Letter of Intent and Research Proposal
Funding will support 1-year Pilot Projects
$40,000 direct costs for the period 07/01/2024 to 06/30/2025
The Texas RCMAR is a partnership between the University of Texas Medical Branch and the University of Texas San Antonio (K. Markides and F. Riosmena, Multiple PIs), in close collaboration with the University of Texas at Austin. The purpose of the Texas RCMAR is to provide infrastructure that facilitates the development of researchers and research on the health and aging of under-represented populations. While our Center has a special focus on the Hispanic population in the United States as well as in Mexico, we also aim to provide support for research on other racial/ethnic, gender/sex, or other minorities in Texas (or the United States more broadly).
Special emphasis will be given to providing research opportunities to faculty from under-represented populations and/or in Hispanic-Serving Institutions in Texas or Universities with large numbers of underserved students and faculty.
WHO SHOULD APPLY
We encourage applications from faculty who are interested in conducting research on health and aging (broadly defined) and particularly of under-represented populations. We provide support for junior faculty, but we will consider applications from mid-career faculty moving their research toward the study of aging in minority populations.
Pilot funds are to be used to jumpstart or further support the applicant’s research. Funded applicants will be part of a small cohort of scientists receiving mentorship and training on aging research, including the development of a subsequent grant application to the National Institute on Aging (NIA) or other relevant funding agencies based on the pilot project.
Four investigators called ‘RCMAR Scientists’ will be selected based on:
- Quality of proposed research
- Relatedness of proposed research to the Texas RCMAR mission
- Likelihood that proposed research would lead to subsequent National Institute on Aging (NIA) funded projects
- Investigator’s experience, training, and record of accomplishments
Two Information Sessions are scheduled for potential applicants to ask questions and present their ideas:
- Information Session #1: Thursday, February 8, 2024, from 11:00 – 12:00 PM via Zoom
- Information Session #2: Tuesday, February 13, 2024, from 2:00 – 3:00 PM via Zoom
If interested in attending the Information Session please email Kelley Sitgreaves at kaprevou@utmb.edu for the meeting notice with Zoom link.
APPLICATION PROCESS
A 3-page Letter of Intent is due by February 12, 2024 and should be uploaded here.
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- Investigators with promising applications will be notified by February 19, 2024 to submit a full
- Full proposals are due by March 4, 2024. Proposal will be uploaded into RedCap. Invited investigators will be sent a RedCap link via email to upload their
- Applications will be reviewed by March 15,
- Decisions will be made by March 26,
- The start and end dates for pilot projects are July 1, 2024, through June 30,
The Letter of Intent materials will include:
Title of project
- Description of proposed pilot project, including brief justification for the research and brief description of the design and data to be collected or used in the pilot project
- Statement about how the proposed pilot project is related to the Texas RCMAR
- Statement about how this pilot project will inform the applicant’s future research and how it will lead to larger funding by the National Institutes of Aging/NIH or another
- Brief timeline that documents the feasibility of completing the pilot project in the pilot period
- Description of the applicant scientist and their role on the project
- Proposed mentor(s) and a statement about their involvement and the role they will play in conducting the pilot project
Also include:
Applicant’s NIH Biosketch in the current format
- Mentors’ and/or senior key personnel’s NIH Biosketches in the current format
- Institutional Letter of Support
- This is a letter of support from the applicant’s department chair or division chief confirming that the applicant has a junior- or mid-level faculty appointment between 07/01/2024 and 06/30/2025 and adequate ‘protected time’ during that period to conduct the proposed pilot
The full proposals and supporting documents will be forwarded to the NIA/NIH for final approval.
The Full Proposal should include:
Project Summary (3 pages)
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- Specific aims
- Significance
- Innovation
- Investigators
- Data and methods
- Plans for future funding
- Budget and budget justification
- Biosketches for key personnel
Each awarded Pilot Principal Investigator must ensure compliance with NIH Financial Conflict of Interest requirement and secure IRB institutional approval prior to the NIA/NIH approval.
PROPOSAL FORMAT
Font and Line Spacing:
Must be 12 points or larger, with lines singled spaced
- Recommended fonts:
- Arial
- Georgia
- Helvetica
- Palatino Linotype
- Times New Roman
Paper Size and Margins:
Use paper (page) size no larger than standard letter paper size (8 ½” x 11”).
- Provide at least one-half inch margins (½”) — top, bottom, left, and right — for all pages. No applicant- supplied information can appear in the
PROPOSAL COMPONENTS
Budget and justification must be included as separate pages, preferably following the formats provided in the links below:
- NIH-style biosketches for the key personnel:
For questions regarding pilot applications, please contact: Soham Al Snih, MD, PhD (soalsnih@utmb.edu) or Fernando Riosmena (fernando.riosmena@utsa.edu).