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Spark Grants

2024 Hub Spark Grants Program Announcement

 
The Translational Research Hubs are foundational to the goals of the BIDMC Institutional Strategic Plan for Innovation, Research, and Education (InSPIRE) to create interactive research communities within BIDMC. The mission of the Hubs is to prevent, cure, and eradicate human disease through the accelerated translation of research from bench to bedside enabled by the inter-departmental collaboration between investigators and physician-scientists with complementary scientific priorities.

 

Goal:

The Hub Spark Grants will provide a pilot grant mechanism for innovative collaborative projects within the unique scope of the Translational Research Hubs by utilizing the advanced technologies offered by the BIDMC Institutional Research Cores.
 

Eligibility:

  • Members of Translational Research Hubs and/or the BIDMC Cancer Research Institute who are BIDMC faculty at the level of Instructor and up are eligible to apply for a Hub Spark Grant.
  • Grant applications should include a BIDMC basic/translational and a BIDMC clinical PI (multiple PIs or PI and Co-PI). Collaborations between different departments/divisions/ centers/programs and across disciplines are strongly encouraged.
  • Preference will be given to novel collaborative projects between clinical and basic science investigators for projects with the potential for translational implementation.
  • Investigators (PIs or Co-investigators) of SPARK Grants awarded in 2022 or 2023 are not eligible.
  • PIs must be members of the BIDMC/HMFP faculty; collaborators may be from BILH or HMS member institutions.
  • Junior faculty are strongly encouraged to apply.
  • 2023 recipients of the Early Career Stage Investigator Awards are not eligible.

 

Award Project Period:

  • The Hub Spark Grant is a $50,000 award that may be spent over two years.
  • Letter of Intent (LOI) deadline is January 19, 2024.
  • Full Applications will be invited by February 2, 2024.
  • Full Application submission deadline is March 15, 2024.
  • Award recipients will be announced by May 15, 2024.
  • We anticipate awarding up to eight Hub Spark Grants.

 

Application Process:

1) Letter of Intent (LOI): No more than 2 pages (excluding NIH bio and other support)

  • Specific Aims
  • Significance, innovation, feasibility, potential for new intellectual property, and external funding
  • Relevance to translational research
  • NIH Biosketches and PHS other support of all investigators

 

2) Full Application: No more than a total of 5 pages research proposal (references, biosketches, and budget pages excluded)

    a) Included in the allotted 5 pages:

  • Specific Aims
  • Significance, innovation, and feasibility,
  • Research Plan by aim (including preliminary data)
  • Timeline and description of plans on how this award will lead to an RO1 and/or other extramural funding


    b) Not included in the allotted 5 pages:

  • Cover sheet with signatures of both the Department Chair and the Research Administrator
  • Budget and budget justification (include a total of 1% salary support for PI or across several PIs)
  • References (up to 2 pages)
  • NIH Biosketches and PHS other support of all investigators describing relevant expertise, roles, and responsibilities pertinent to the project

 

Award Budget:

Budget requests should not exceed $50,000 direct cost (no indirect cost) and include a total of 1% salary support for PI (either one PI or for distribution among more than one PI). Intended use of the BIDMC Core Research and Therapeutic Platforms is highly encouraged. Subawards are not allowed.

 

Criteria for Evaluating Proposals:  

  • Magnitude of impact and clinical relevance
  • Innovation
  • Collaboration between clinical and basic/translational researchers
  • Potential for extramural funding and sustained collaborations
  • Use of BIDMC Core Facilities
  • Potential for translation to clinical use
  • Time to impact (preference given to projects with well-defined timelines and with early and clear go/no-go points)
  • Should we limit the scope of project to match budget? Can we use these in sync with other grant projects at BI? Will other grant awards affect eligibility, revoke award if awarded an additional grant?  
    • These are tailored to for projects that would have difficult time getting funded elsewhere to produce for example, pilot data. It might be helpful to frame your submission with that lens in mind. 
  • Is there a plan to proportionally distribute the awards based on each of the hub disciplines?  
    • It depends on applicant pool. If there is more interest or better science in other disciplines those will be awarded. Our goal is to fund the best science 
  • Is there a specific template to use?  
    • Use the application template on the portal, we will also provide a budget template 
  • Is it relevant to the application to have a cross-departmental team?  
    •  It is highly encouraged to work across departments.   
  • Any restriction of former funding does this affect eligibility funding?  
    • If you’ve previously received either the CAO Office 2023 Early-Stage Investigator or previous rounds of Spark Grants you are ineligible for this round of Spark Grants. Any other funding sources do not affect eligibility.  
  • Can we have multiple PI’s outside BI collaborators? 
    • Yes, multiple PI’s and outside BI collaborators are encouraged especially collaborations with other BILH entities, however money has to stay at BIDMC 
  • Does is matter if PI is involved in CORE activities?  
    • No, this is fine as these grants are meant to be used with CORE facilities.  
  • Can former winners be CO-PI?  
    • No, former awardees cannot be CO-PI’s but they may be collaborators. 
  • Can residents be PI’s / Collaborators?  
    • Depending on the resident’s capability  

1. Sign on a more senior faculty member as a PI mentor and sign the resident as a 3rd PI  

2. Sign on a more senior faculty member as PI and the resident as a collaborator  

  • Is there a difference between the Division or Department leader signature?  
    • Whoever you can get sooner, it’s more of an FYI for the Division/Department Leader 
  • What is the review process?   
    • We are building an expert pool, reviewers chosen relevant to topic.   
  • How do I sign up for membership in a Translational Research Hub?  
  • How do we define a “clinical PI”  
    • Clinical PI is defined as “Someone who has direct patient contact and understanding of the clinical aspects of the disease under investigation AND the capacity/access to recruiting patients for clinical research studies.  
  • What percentage of the 50k can be used to support a tech or postdoc that would be doing the work?  
    • The funds may be used to partially support a technician or a postdoctoral fellow (for example, to cover the time for sample collection for the CORE facilities assays/processing), to pay for the supplies and to use the BIDMC CORE facilities. The grant cannot be used as a fellowship to fully support a postdoc. Remember to also include 1% salary support for the Principal Investigator (or spread over several PIs if applicable) in your budget.