Criteria for Funding of Any Proposal Include: 1) Meeting the Goals of Women S Health; And

Version 1-4-12

BACKGROUND:

The Women’s Health Research Program is a multi-disciplinary effort seeking to translate research findings into better clinical practices and outcomes. We share the IOM’s definition of women’s health: encompassing health conditions that are specific to women; are more common or more serious in women; have distinct causes or manifestations in women; have different outcomes or treatments in women; or have high morbidity or mortality in women (IOM Women’s Health Research Brief Report, September 2010). Successful proposals will address one or more of these categories of women’s health. Two awards will be issued in this cycle,up to $50,000 each.

ELIGIBILITY:

Criteria for funding of any proposal include: 1) meeting the goals of women’s health; and 2) the potential for proposed studies, if successfully completed, to generate extramural funding from NIH, NSF, and/or similar sources.

Principal investigators must be MCW faculty with no current R01 support in women’s health.
All applications must include an OBGYN faculty member, as either PI or co-investigator who will facilitate the development of the research project.It is expected that this collaboration will result in the OBGYN faculty member serving as PI or co-investigator in one or more related applications for extramural funding following this award.

GUIDELINES:

Any Principal Investigator may submit only one application in response to this RFP.
No “indirect costs” may be charged for any WHRP funding.
Funding under this RFP cannot overlap with existing funding or be used as “bridge funding” for lapsed grants from any extramural source, and is intended for new projects.
WHRP funds cannot be used to replace funds or resources that are available from other sources. Use of WHRP funds to supplement other financial resources is permitted with clear justification. Matching funding and opportunities to leverage WHRP funds to obtain other sources of financial support are specifically encouraged.
Investigators are encouraged to consult a statistician/biostatistician during proposal development. Please note that the Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI) offers free biostatistics consulting services.
Investigators are encouraged to submit IRB and/or IACUC applications upon receipt of an Invitation for a Revised Application to the WHRP, to minimize delays in initiating funded applications.
Principal investigators will be expected to comply with reporting requirements as a condition of receipt of funds.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE AND PROPOSAL FORMAT:

Stage 1: Initial Application

Stage 1 includes submission of the coversheet and your proposal (not including a budget). This stage does not require advanced approval through the MCW Grants and Contracts Office.

Projects that meet applicant eligibility and guideline requirements as previously described in this RFP should submit a single PDF filevia email to , publicly copying all Co-Investigators listed on the coversheet. Submissions must be received by 5:00 p.m. Central Standard Time, Tuesday, February 19, 2013. Late submissions will not be accepted and exceptions will not be made. WHRP will confirm receipt via email. Please save this notification for your records.

Version 1-4-12

Format of Submission - Initial Application(please submit a single PDF file containing the following):

Coversheet(please complete the template that follows)

Body of Proposal(instructions follow; please use theWord document template that follows (PDF file contains additional instructions))
Abstract of the proposed research project (not to exceed 500 words). The abstract should include a brief summary of each of the following: project background; specific aims, objectives, or hypotheses; significance of the proposed research; relevance to the mission of the funding agency; unique features; methodology (action steps) to be used; expected results; evaluation methods; and how your results will affect other research areas.
Six page limit Specific Aims and Research Strategy. Use the new NIH (PHS 398) format (using 0.5 inch margins and 11 point Arial font), with application divided into the following sections as per NIH instructions: Specific Aims and Research Strategy (A. Significance, B. Innovation, and C. Approach).
Future directions and career plans. Please describe here how you plan to generate extramural funding from NIH, NSF, and/or similar sources following this project. (One page maximum; not included in six page limit of Specific Aims and Research Strategy)
Literature citations should be cited in the body of the proposal and listed at the end of the proposal. The bibliography page(s) will not be included in the six page limit.

Biographical sketches of the PI and key personnel (limit 4 pages per individual). Follow the new NIH biosketch format (parts A-D). Please complete the Word document template (PDF file contains additional instructions).

Letters of support and collaboration from all co-Investigators.

Stage 2: Revised Application (including budget)

A limited number of applicants whose Initial Applications best align with the WHRP’s objectives and review criteria will be invited to submit Revised Applications including a budget. We call it a “Revised Application” because finalists will be asked to revise their Initial Application based on reviewer/committee feedback. Invitations will be sent to the PI via email. Instructions for submitting in eBridge and to WHRP will be provided with the invitation. A detailed budget and budget justification will be required at this time. Expression of interest in a project at this stage should not be construed as an indication of funding or grant approval. The deadline for Revised ApplicationeBridge submission is 5:00 p.m., Central Standard Time, Friday, May 10, 2013. Late submissions will not be accepted and exceptions will not be made.

Version 1-4-12

THE REVIEW PROCESS:

Scientific merit will be reviewed by at least two peer reviewers (internal scientific investigators). Please suggest 3 reviewers on the Initial Application coversheet.

Criteria used to assess projects include, but are not limited to:

Meeting the goals of women’s health.
Clarity of the health priority to be addressed.
Realistic goals for 1 year of work.
A reasonable plan to sustain program activities through extramural funding after WHRP funding is completed.

In addition to the criteria above, proposals are reviewed at the following levels:

Technical Review

Initial Applications are screened by WHRP staff to determine that all eligibility, content and submission requirements are fulfilled. Ineligible projects will not advance to the WHRP Grant Review Committee.

WHRPGrant Review Committee

Each Initial Application is assigned to multiple peer reviewers who conduct a detailed analysis of each section of the proposal, considering the strengths and limitations of the project. The reviewers present each project to the full committee and a small number of finalists are selected to submit a Revised Application including budget and budget justification. We call it a “Revised Application” because finalists will be asked to revise their Initial Application based on reviewer/committee feedback. Awards will be made to the top 2 finalists based on Revised Application and budget. The full committee approves funding determinations.

BUDGET:

Allowable Expenses

Funds can only be used for direct project‐specific expenses. Examples of eligible expenses include:

Salary and benefits for personnel directly involved in the project.
Direct expenses including, but not limited to: supplies, mileage, travel, training, etc.

Funding Restrictions

Funds may not be used forindirect costs such as ongoing operating expenses of an organization's routine functions and principal programs. For a complete list of unallowable costs please see the following document.

A detailed budget and budget justification will be completed by those invited to submit a Revised Application. Those applications must be submitted to the Grants and Contracts Office (GCO) through eBridge a minimum of 5 business days prior to the WHRP deadline in order to receive institutional approval. Grants & Contracts (eBridge) registration and approval is the responsibility of the MCW Principal Investigator. Completion of an eBridge Funding Proposal is an MCW internal process that is required for all funding requests. Complete instructions will be provided with the invitation to submit a Revised Application.

Version 1-4-12