Program Summary-New Researcher Award

The Thrasher Research Fund is pleased to announce the second year of its New Researcher Award Program, for 2007. The Fund recognizes that young investigators may find it difficult to remain in pediatric research because of a lack of funding. Therefore, the purpose of this program is to encourage the development of medical research in child health by awarding small grants to new researchers. There are three funding cycles per year for New Researcher Award Program grants. Up to seven grants per cycle will be made.
The Fund is open to a variety of research topics important to children’s health. The Fund’s current focus is on clinical/translational pediatric research. Emphasis is placed on projects with the potential for findings that could be clinically applicable in a relatively short period of time for the prevention, diagnosis and/or treatment of pediatric medical problems.

Eligibility-New Researcher Award

Those eligible to apply include:

  1. Physicians who are in a residency/fellowship training program, or who completed that program no more than one year before the date of submission of the concept paper.
  2. Post-doctoral researchers who received the doctoral level degree no more than three years prior to the date of submission of the concept paper.

A new investigator who holds a National Institutes of Health (NIH) K award is not eligible to apply for the Thrasher award. An investigator with an application pending for a NIH K award may apply to the Thrasher Research Fund New Researcher Award Program, but if both are awarded, the Thrasher award must be relinquished.
There are no restrictions with regard to citizenship. Each project needs to be under the guidance of a mentor. The qualifications and experience of the mentor will be considered in the evaluation of the application. A mentor may have only one Thrasher Research Fund New Researcher grantee at a time.

How to Apply-New Researcher Award

Applicants for the New Researcher Awards are required to submit a concept paper as the initial step in the review process. Applicants whose concept papersare selected for further consideration will be invited to submit a full proposal for review. Potential applicants may discuss the suitability of specific ideas with aResearch Manager prior to submitting a concept paper.

Concept Paper Format-New Researcher Award

New Researcher Award concept papers should be e-mailed as a Microsoft Word attachment to with the words "New Researcher Award" in the subject line.

The concept paper is a three page document that enables the Fund to assess how well the proposed research fits with the organization’s interests. Concept papers that do not follow the guidelines below will not be reviewed.Download a template for the concept paper here.

Page One:Administrative Information

  1. Title of the Study
  2. Principal Investigator(Include email address)
  3. Mentor(Include email address)
  4. Length of Study (Maximum2 years)
  5. Estimated Total Budget (Not to exceed $25,000 direct costs plus no more than 7% of direct costs as overhead. Does not need to be itemized.)
  6. Supervising Institution
  7. Project Site(s)

Page Two: Structured Scientific Summary
The scientific summary should be no longer than one page using no smaller than 11-point font (Arial, Helvetica, Palatino Linotype or Georgia) one-inch margins all around and single line spacing. The following information should be incorporated in the scientific summary:

  1. Background: Describe the significance of the medical problem under study. Include information on incidence or prevalence and severity of the problem in children. Describe what is not known about the problem that the proposal intends to address. Include any preliminary data or additional background information indicating the rationale for the proposed research.
  2. Hypotheses and Specific Aims: State the specific hypotheses to be tested. Describe precisely the specific aims of the proposed research.
  3. Design: Describe the basic design of the study. As applicable, include information about study subjects, sample size, enrollment criteria, or other sample material to be used in the study. Indicate the primary outcomes and how they will be measured.
  4. Potential Impact: Discuss where the research is leading and in what ways and in how many years the findings might potentially influence the prevention, diagnosis and/or treatment of the particular medical problem in children.

Page Three: Structured Lay Summary
The lay summary should be 250 words or less and is intended as a brief, simplified summary for those who may not have scientific training. It should include three sections:

  1. Background: Provide a lay summary of the "Background" Sectionfrom the Structured Scientific Summary.
  2. Hypotheses and Specific Aims: Statethe specific hypotheses in a single sentence (one sentence per hypothesis). Briefly describe the specific aims.
  3. Potential Impact: Provide a lay summary of the "Potential Impact" Sectionfrom the Scientific Summary.

2007 Deadlines-New Researcher Award

The following deadlines apply for the New Researcher Award Program. For information about deadlines for theregular award program, see Applying for a Grant>When to Apply.

Cycle #1
Concept Submission Deadline: / February 16 at noon Mountain Standard Time
Acceptance/Rejection of Concept Paper: / Notification to applicant by March 2
Proposal Submission Deadline: / March 30* at noon Mountain Standard Time
Notification of Awards: / Second week of May
Cycle #2
Concept Submission Deadline: / June 15 at noon Mountain Standard Time
Acceptance/Rejection of Concept Paper: / Notification to applicant by June 29
Proposal Submission Deadline: / July 27* at noon Mountain Standard Time
Notification of Awards: / Second week of September
Cycle #3
Concept Submission Deadline: / October 19 at noon Mountain Standard Time
Acceptance/Rejection of Concept Paper: / Notification to applicant by November 2
Proposal Submission Deadline: / November 30*at noon Mountain Standard Time
Notification of Awards: / Second week of January

*Applicants whose concept papers are accepted may submit their proposal in either the cycle in which the concept was accepted or the subsequent cycle.