IHSI | Interdisciplinary Health Sciences Institute

Request for Proposals: Brain Health Center Planning Grants

To support the development, preparation, and submission of applications for center and program-level grants focused on Brain Health, IHSI will provide funding to buy out time (including teaching, administrative, or service commitments) for interdisciplinary researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign wishing to coordinate efforts to design an application for submission. Proposers should be tackling scientific challenges that are larger in scale than can be accomplished by a single investigator or a single discipline and support an ambitious research agenda to address a significant challenge related to brain health that requires multi-stakeholder engagement. Centers may involve collaboration with other research partners beyond internal collaborators. The Center must have a clearly defined research focus and demonstrate how interdisciplinary collaboration will produce innovative outcomes in research and education.  

Centers must plan to integrate current IHSI activities into the scientific research plan, which could include Illinois REDCap, the Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Research Design team, clinical partnerships including through the Mayo Clinic & Illinois Alliance for Technology-based Healthcare, community and industry engagement, and IHSI staff for program/project management, human research coordination, and biospecimen and biodata collection.  

The planning proposal should address the requirements of the proposed center RFA, describe the expected results that are associated with project milestones and expected/projected growth of the center based on an explicit implementation strategy. Each application should identify who are the relevant internal (Illinois) and external stakeholders and how the center will engage them in a manner that will help drive the research priorities. External stakeholders may be local communities, government (local, state, and/or federal) agencies, nonprofit organizations, private sector businesses, academic and/or clinical institutions (especially existing partnerships with Mayo Clinic, UIC, Carle, OSF, and WashU), and other entities. The Center should have a vision and strategy for potential growth, scaling up, and building a relevant community able to carry out the work. Researchers should also describe the type of assistance that they need from IHSI to prepare the center grant proposal, including connections and collaborations with external partners. 

IHSI investment over 6–12 months 

  • Up to $75,000 towards development of center or program grant/contract proposals (see budget section for more details).
  • In-kind IHSI support for proposal application:
    • Research Development Manager – up to 25% to coordinate proposal preparation, review proposal and help gather necessary documents for submission
    • Senior Graphic Designer – up to 40 hours to conceptualize and design proposal visuals
    • Research Biostatistician – up to 80 hours to develop statistical analysis plans, data management support and power/sample size calculation
    • Director of Administration and Finance – up to 5% to provide budget prep and finalization, build staffing plan, assemble proposal package, including internal budget and budget justification, and submit proposal to SPA
    • Director of Partnerships and Translation – up to 10% to facilitate interactions between faculty and external academic, community, industry, and clinical partners
    • Director of Research and Innovation – up to 15% to address challenges in conducting research and offer consultative support in using resources and services 

Evaluation 

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until two awards are made. A committee of IHSI staff and research affiliates will review the applications as they are received. Applications will be evaluated based on the following criteria: 

  1. Alignment with campus priorities: The extent to which the identified RFA addresses brain health needs and strategic priorities within the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign landscape.
  2. Research team strength: The qualifications, composition, and collaborative capacity of the proposed interdisciplinary team, including internal and external partners and stakeholders, and the degree of alignment between the application’s aims and the RFA.
  3. IHSI leverage and support: The extent to which IHSI resources, expertise, and infrastructure can enhance the development and submission of a competitive center proposal.
  4. Probability of success: The likelihood that the proposed effort will result in a strong, fundable center application with long-term impact (innovative with strong scientific/technical merit). 

Guidelines 

Applications should include the components described below. 

  1. COVER SHEET: Identify the proposed Principal Investigator for both the planning grant and the targeted center/program application. List team members as PI or co-PIs and list their affiliations. Include details of the RFA for the proposed center/program grant, including the agency deadlines. 
  2. CENTER SUMMARY (1 page maximum):
    • The Center Summary must consist of an overview, a statement on the intellectual merit of the proposed center/program like grant, and a statement on the integration of the proposed activity with IHSI programs and activities. Provide a clear and concise description of the project, including the research vision and goals. List the units involved and indicate the unique opportunities that the partners bring to the project.
    • The Center Summary should also include details on the preparation of the submission to the RFA, including projected timeline, milestones, and support needed from IHSI.
  3. CENTER/PROGRAM DESCRIPTION (4 pages maximum):
    • Applicants should align their proposals with the Center/Program Objectives outlined in the RFA guidelines for which their team intends to apply.
    • Provide a concise summary of the priorities and objectives identified by the funding agency in the RFA. Present a detailed explanation of how your proposed center/program will address these priorities, demonstrating alignment with the agency’s goals and identified needs.
  4. BUDGET: Budget and Budget Justification should be provided. A careful and realistic budget that is consistent with the proposed activities will add to the overall strength of the proposal. Allowable costs include the following:
    • Buy out time. The application must include a letter of support from the department head(s) of the investigators who will be requesting release time from teaching, administration, or service commitments, approving the budget/costs for the time/effort requested.
    • Participant support costs (<$5,000). Travel costs associated with participation in center grant planning meetings with institutional/clinical/industry partners.
  5. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES: Only include the biographical sketches of PIs, co-PIs, and other Senior Personnel.
  6. REQUEST FOR APPLICATION: RFA details for the planned target submission. The full RFA document should be attached or provide the link to the online call.
  7. LETTERS OF SUPPORT: Application must include letters from the department head(s) indicating their approvals for release time (and dates/semesters) and the cost for this, and for what percent effort. Additional letters of support and collaboration from directors of internal centers or interdisciplinary research units may be included, as well as letters of support from external partners who will be involved in the proposed center/program. 

Apply for a Brain Health Center Proposal Planning Grant