CBC CATALYST AWARDS
Executive Summary
Available funding:
- Up to $1,500,000 to be allocated in calendar 2008
- Grants can range up to $200,000 for use over 1-2 years
- Catalysts are one-time awards with no expectation of continuation or renewal by the CBC
Key Dates for 2008:
- March 14, 2008 - Proposal Submission, Spring Round.
- May 16, 2008 - Expected Decision, Spring Round.
- September 5, 2008 - Proposal Submission, Fall Round.
- November 14, 2008 - Expected Decision, Fall Round.
Eligibility:
- Applicants must be tenured or tenure-eligible faculty with research programs at University of Chicago, Northwestern University, or University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) who will jointly engage in collaborative research in Systems Biology with a focus on the technologies of proteomics, informatics, or imaging.
- Proposals must have CoPrincipal Investigators from at least two of the CBC universities.
- There may be multiple applications from each institution, although Principal Investigators are discouraged from applying for more than one Catalyst.
- There is no expectation that Catalyst Awards will be distributed evenly among the CBC institutions.
Catalysts for Research Programs
All Catalyst-funded initiatives must be defined by the theme of Systems Biology and must involve inter-institutional collaboration, please see the CBC’s mission. Additional necessary criteria include scientific merit and exceptional innovation, with special consideration given to high-risk/high-reward projects that may not be fundable by other mechanisms, and programmatic relevance to other aspects of CBC, such as use of CBC-supported facilities or programs. Catalyst applications will be carefully reviewed by the CBC Scientific Review Board. The short Catalyst application should be written in a way that can be appreciated by a multidisciplinary team of reviewers.
Some applications for Catalysts will emerge from the CBC scientific community without prompting; others will be suggested by the CBC Leadership, Scientific Review Board or other CBC-sponsored groups, based on ongoing discussions with colleagues throughout the area. Catalyst funds can be used for myriad costs associated with pilot research studies or exploratory discussions. It is hoped that CBC funding would be used sparingly to support faculty salaries.
Chicago Biomedical Consortium
Catalyst Awards
2008
Application Process:
- Proposal
- The title of the proposal must be used as the title of the pdf
- Maximum length: 3-page statement plus attachments
- Proposal statement must include:
- Description of the proposed research or other activity
- Nature of the inter-institutional collaboration
- Criteria for measuring the success of the project
- Long-term funding plan for continuation beyond Catalyst (as appropriate)
- Attachments
- One-paragraph lay-language summary of project
- Budget
- Direct costs only: CBC universities have waived all indirect cost charges
- Provide budget allocations for each institution
- Budget justification (maximum 1 page)
- Biosketch (NIH format) for each individual considered key personnel for the project
- Submission:
- Deadlines:
- 5:00 pm, March 14, 2008 for Spring.
- 5:00 pm, September 5, 2008 for Fall.
- Only one submission per project group. An individual PI may receive only one Catalyst Award.
- Submit electronically by completing the On-Line Submission Form
Selection Process:
- The CBC Scientific Review Board, composed of three scientists from each of the CBC universities, plus external reviewers as deemed necessary, will review applications and recommend awards.
Selection Criteria:
- Effectiveness of the proposed project for attaining the goals of the CBC.
- Creativity, innovation, and potential for high scientific impact of the proposed research.
- Scientific merit, with special consideration given to high-risk, high-impact and high-reward projects
- Inter-institutional collaboration: The research program or other project must involve, in significant roles, Principal Investigators from at least two of the CBC universities. All PIs must be tenured or tenure-eligible faculty with strong research programs.
- Scientific focus: Systems Biology, with emphasis on either proteomics, informatics, or imaging
- Appropriateness of proposed budget.
Awards:
- Awards will be conditional upon review by the sponsored research office at each of the universities involved in the project. Supplemental information, beyond the original proposal statement may be required at this stage. Formal agreements, addressing as necessary issues such as intellectual property, regulatory compliance approvals or researchers’ effort levels, must be concluded between the participating universities and signed by key researchers and university personnel before funds can be transferred.
- It is anticipated that funds will be transferred directly to accounts at each of the participating universities in the customary manner for subcontracts.
- All publicity regarding a Catalyst Award and publications that result from the funded work must include the following exact acknowledgment: "This work was funded by the Chicago Biomedical Consortium with support from The Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust."
Format for Catalyst PDF
On-Line Submission Form (Note: you must be logged on in order to submit a proposal. If you do not have an account, please create one here.)
Questions?
Please Contact:
Kathryn Stallcup, CBC Executive Director, k-stallcup at northwestern dot edu
Aharon Solomon, Senior Program Manager, aharon_solomon_cbc at northwestern dot edu
Or Contact the CBC Scientific Director on your campus:
| UC: | Jonathan Silverstein | jcs at uchicago dot edu |
| NU: | Richard Morimoto | r-morimoto at northwestern dot edu |
| UIC: | Brenda Russell | Russell at uic dot edu |
CBC Catalyst Awards Schedule for 2008
| Proposal Submission Deadline | Award Decision Announced |
|---|---|
| March 14, 2008 | May 16, 2008 |
| September 5, 2008 | November 14, 2008 |