OPPORTUNITY FUNDING ALERT

COS Workshops

Aeronautics
NASA Aeronautics Scholarships Program
Agriculture
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) - Producer Grants
Book Awards
American Political Science Association
Breast Cancer
Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Computing
Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) - High Performance Computing Grant
Energy
Advanced Research Projects Agency - Seeks Information and Input
Engineering
National Science Foundation (NSF) Nano and Bio Mechanics (NBM) Program
Global Health
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation - $100 Million Grant Challenges Explorations
Open Society
Open Society Institute & Soros Foundation Network - Fellowship
Pancreatic Cancer
American Association for Cancer Research - $2 Million in Grants Available
Population Health
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation - Health & Society Scholars
Violence Intervention and Prevention
American Psychological Foundation - Violence Intervention and Prevention Research
Of Interest
FAU Division of Research Seeks Innovative Research Ideas

Aeronautics

NASA Aeronautics Scholarship Program
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is proud to offer fellowships to students in their undergraduate and graduate careers. The Aeronautics Scholarship Program (ASP) offers our nation's research leaders of tomorrow exceptional funding: Undergraduate Students - $15,000 awarded for each school year to be used for educational related expenses; $10,000 Summer internship at a NASA Research Center, 2 years of support; Graduate Students - $35,000 stipend, $11,000 awarded each year to be used for educational related expenses; $10,000 Summer internship at a NASA Research Center, 2 years of support with an option for 3 years. Deadline: January 11, 2010. Go to: http://nasa.asee.org/

Agriculture

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)- Producer Grants The Rural Business-Cooperative Service invites applications for Value-Added Producer Grants to help independent agricultural producers enter into or expand value-added activities. Grants may be used for planning activities and for working capital for marketing value-added agricultural products and for farm-based renewable energy. Eligible applicants are independent producers, farmer and rancher cooperatives, agricultural producer groups, and majority-controlled producer-based business ventures. Approximately 80 awards will be provided from $18 million in FY09. Matching funds are required. Applications are due November 30, 2009. More information regarding 74 FR 20900 is available at: http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/coops/vadg.htm

Book Awards

American Political Science Association - Book Awards

Publishers and individuals are invited to submit nominations for APSA book awards, presented each year at the Association's Annual Meeting. Detailed information is mailed to publishers each October, including procedures for submission. A copy of each nominated book should be sent to each award committee member, as well as to the APSA national office. Should they meet the named criteria, books may be nominated for more than one prize. Click on the name of the award in the following list to learn more about the award and to find the names of award committee members.

Ralph J. Bunche Award [$1,000] - For the best scholarly work in political science published in the previous calendar year which explores the phenomenon of ethnic and cultural pluralism.

Gladys M. Kammerer Award [$1,000] - For the best political science publication in the previous calendar year in the field of U.S. national policy.

Victoria Schuck Award [$1,000] - For the best book published in the previous calendar year on women and politics.

Woodrow Wilson Foundation Award [$5,000] - For the best book published in the U.S. during the previous calendar year on government, politics, or international affairs (supported by the Woodrow Wilson Foundation).

The deadline for nominations from individuals is January 15 of each year. The deadline for nominations from publishers is February 15, 2010. Go to: http://www.apsanet.org/content_4129.cfm

Breast Cancer Research

Susan G. Komen for the Cure - Fellowship
Susan G. Komen for the Cure seeks applications for its Postdoctoral Fellowship (basic, translational, clinical) Research grants and Post-Baccalaureate Training in Disparities Research for the 2009-2010 Research Program. Deadlines: Pre-Applications; October 1, 2009, 8 pm, Full Applications; November 17, 2009. Go to: www.komen.org/grants or www.komengrantsaccess.org.

Computing

Oak Ridge Associated Universities - 2nd Annual High Performance Computing Grant Program with ORNL
Last year the Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) launched a new high-performance computing grant program with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), which provides ORAU member institutions with a potential of $75K in funding (over three years) for research using ORNL's supercomputing resources in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Information about this competitive grant program as well as guidance on developing and submitting pre-proposals can be found on the ORAU Web site at http://www.orau.org/consortium/programs/hpc/index.htm. Deadline for pre-proposal is September 30, 2009; full proposals are due on November 30, 2009. Only one pre-proposal per institution will be accepted this year due to the overwhelming response to the program last year. If you plan to submit a proposal, please contact Camille Coley at ccoley@fau.edu.

Energy

Advanced Research Projects Agency - Seeks Information and Input
The Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E) announced a formal Request for Information (RFI) for future funding opportunities. The RFI requests public input on potential ARPA-E programmatic areas and opportunities to overcome technological roadblocks to the development of transformational technologies relevant to the ARPA-E mission. The information collected through this process will assist ARPA-E in developing new programs and funding opportunities. ARPA-E's first Funding Opportunity Announcement solicited a broad range of ideas for transformational energy technology development. With this RFI, ARPA-E is now reaching out to the public for input on specific programmatic energy technology areas that may be well-suited to provide transformational impacts on ARPA-E's mission areas of reducing foreign energy imports; decreasing energy related emissions, including those of greenhouse gases; increasing energy efficiency across the U.S. economy, and ensuring that the U.S. maintains a technological lead in developing and deploying advanced energy technologies. Responses to the RFI are due to ARPA-E by September 25, 2009. To review the RFI, please visit http://arpa-e.energy.gov/PI.html. For more information about ARPA-E, please visit http://arpa-e.energy.gov/

Engineering

National Science Foundation Nano & Bio Mechanics Program (NBM)
The NSF's Directorate of Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation Nano and Bio Mechanics (NBM) Program (PD 08-7479) supports fundamental research in biomechanics and nanomechanics. Research on biomechanics focuses on the mechanical properties and behavior of biological materials and structures, including cells, tissue, muscles, bones, and prosthetic implants. Research on nanomechanics focuses on the unique properties of nano-scale particles and microstructural features and their effects on the macroscopic mechanics and properties of materials, surfaces, and structures that contain them. Deadlines: October 1, 2009; February 15, 2010. Go to: http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=13523&WT.mc_id=USNSF_39

Global Health

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation - $100 Million Grand Challenges Explorations
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is now accepting grant proposals for Round 4 of Grand Challenges Explorations, a US $100 million initiative to encourage unconventional global health solutions. Anyone can apply, regardless of education or experience level. Proposals should address one of the following topics: Create New Technologies for Contraception; Create New Ways to Protect Against Infectious Disease; Create New Ways to Induce and Measure Mucosal Immunity; or, Create Low-Cost Diagnostics for Priority Global Health Conditions. Initial grants will be $100,000 each, and projects showing promise will have the opportunity to receive additional funding of $1 million or more. Deadline: November 2, 2009. For full descriptions of the new topics and application instructions, go to: http://www.grandchallenges.org/explorations.

Open Society

Open Society Institute & Soros Foundations Network - Fellowship
The Open Society Fellowship supports individuals seeking innovative and unconventional approaches to fundamental open society challenges. The fellowship funds work that will enrich public understanding of those challenges and stimulate far-reaching and probing conversations within the Open Society Institute and in the world. A fellowship project might identify a problem that has not previously been recognized, develop new policy ideas to address familiar problems, or offer a new advocacy strategy. Fellows should take advantage of the considerable intellectual and logistical resources of the Open Society Institute and expect to contribute meaningfully to OSI's thinking in return. In evaluating each proposal, the selection committee weighs three factors: the applicant, the topic of the project, and the work product. Proposals are accepted year round, but those received by September 15, 2009, will be evaluated by November 30, 2009. Go to: http://www.soros.org/grants/application/

Pancreatic Cancer

American Association for Cancer Research
$2 million in Grants Available The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) offers a number of grant opportunities:

1. Pancreatic Cancer Action Network-AACR Pathway to Leadership - This is an exciting new grant opportunity offering $600,000 over five years for an outstanding postdoctoral or clinical research fellow. Designed to ensure the future leadership of pancreatic cancer research, this grant will begin during the grantee's fellowship and continue through his/her successful transition to independence. One grant will be awarded. Deadline: October 28, 2009. Go to: www.aacr.org/page17688.aspx

2. Pancreatic Cancer Action Network-AACR Fellowship - Designed to attract young scientists to careers in pancreatic cancer research, this one-year fellowship of $45,000 is open to Postdoctoral or Clinical Research Fellows in the first, second, or third year of postdoctoral training. The grant will support the salary and benefits of the fellow. One fellowship will be awarded. Deadline: October 28, 2009. Go to: www.aacr.org/page17688.aspx for complete information.

3. Pancreatic Cancer Action Network-AACR Career Development Awards - This is a two-year grant of $200,000 to encourage and support early career scientists to conduct pancreatic cancer research and to establish successful career paths in this field. Open to researchers who are in the first four years of their first, full-time faculty appointment. Three grants will be awarded. Deadline: October 28, 2009. Go to: www.aacr.org/page17679.aspx.

4. Pancreatic Cancer Action Network-AACR Innovative Grants - This is a two-year grant totaling $200,000 for independent junior and senior investigators to develop and study new ideas and approaches that have direct application and relevance to pancreatic cancer. Applications are invited from pancreatic cancer researchers as well as from investigators with experience in other areas of cancer research who have promising ideas or research approaches that can be applied to pancreatic cancer. Four grants will be awarded. Letter of Intent deadline: October 5, 2009. Go to: www.aacr.org/page17680.aspx.

Population Health

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health & Society Scholars
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health & Society Scholars program provides two years of support to postdoctoral scholars at all stages of their careers to build the nation's capacity for research and leadership to address the multiple determinants of population health and contribute to policy change. The program is based on the principle that progress in the field of population health depends upon multidisciplinary collaboration and exchange. Its goal is to improve health by training scholars to: (1) investigate the connections among biological, genetic, behavioral, environmental, economic and social determinants of health; and, (2) develop, evaluate and disseminate knowledge and interventions that integrate and act on these determinants to improve health. The program is intended to produce leaders who will change the questions asked, the methods employed to analyze problems and the range of solutions to reduce population health disparities and improve the health of all Americans. Deadline: October 2, 2009. Go to: http://www.rwjf.org/applications/solicited/cfp.jsp?ID=20741

Violence Intervention and Prevention

APF visionary and Weiss grants support innovative programs that apply psychology to violence intervention and prevention, eradication of stigma and prejudice, the connection between mental and physical health, and disaster relief by funding research, education, and intervention projects and programs that use psychology to solve social problems in the following priority areas: (1). Understanding and fostering the connection between mental and physical health to ensure well-being; (2) Reducing stigma and prejudice to promote unity and harmony; (3) Understanding and preventing violence to create a safer, more humane world; and, (4) Supporting programs that address the long-term psychological needs of individuals and communities in the aftermath of disaster. One-year grants are available in amounts ranging from $5,000 to $20,000. Multi-year grants are no longer available. Additionally, a $10,000 Raymond A. and Rosalee G. Weiss Innovative Research and Programs Grant is also available for any program that falls within APF's priority areas. Deadline: March 15, 2010. Go to: http://www.apa.org/apf/grants.html

Of Interest

FAU Division of Research Seeks Innovative Research Ideas The Florida Atlantic University (FAU) Division of Research is seeking projects to put forward for consideration for Congressionally-directed spending, commonly known as earmarks, during the coming fiscal year (FY) 2011. Earmarks provide an opportunity to not only secure funding for meritorious projects, but to increase visibility on a federal level. However, the recent scrutiny surrounding earmarks and current federal budget situation dictate that FAU only submit the most developed and explained projects for consideration. Total funding for earmarks is down considerably from its high-water mark in 2005, and indications are that Congress will continue to be selective in what it funds during the coming years. Congress has also put a new emphasis on increasing the openness and transparency of the process, and now requires that Members post information about all of the projects that they are supporting online and that lists of earmarks and their sponsors are published in each appropriations bill. Therefore, it is important that all submissions provide the most detailed information possible and illustrate how the project would contribute to a state and/or national need. In addition, earmark proposals should be projects for which competitive funding is not available. Specifically, FAU is looking for proposals which answer these key questions:

• Does the project "push" knowledge or technology beyond existing boundaries?
• Can we do it - does the University have the talent and resources - and does FAU have unique expertise which can be leveraged? * Does the project meet or expand government priorities within a federal agency, within the state, or within the nation?
• If successful, will the idea take the University in a new direction and establish it as a significant player (i.e., FAU has yet to succeed in competitive funding despite its best efforts, but with this initial earmark, could become very competitive)? FAU researchers are encouraged to submit innovative ideas from all areas of study. In addition, projects that are interdisciplinary in nature or involve partnerships with other research institutions are often attractive to Members of Congress.

Researchers should leverage all available resources to put forward the strongest possible proposals given the competitive earmark environment. Similar to last year, we are requiring two (2) pieces of information for all proposals:
1) Please submit a one page description, which should contain details of the project, its merits, and its benefits to the state or nation.
2) Each project should be accompanied by a completed appropriations form, which is available by e-mailing Camille Coley at ccoley@fau.edu or calling her at (561) 297-3461.

Please note that this form is slightly different from last year's. Following our receipt of all proposals, we will review the projects with our representatives in Washington, D.C. and advise on the list that the University will submit to our Congressional delegation for consideration. University leadership will set the final priorities for the year. We will follow up with everyone who submits a proposal to discuss possible competitive funding opportunities for their projects. All proposals should be submitted electronically to Camille Coley at ccoley@fau.edu by Friday, October 23, 2009.

Send comments to Camille Coley, Executive Assistant Vice President or Penny Ashwanden, Content Editor.

Prior Opportunity Alerts

September 2009