The Chicago Biomedical Consortium

Eligibility:

• Applicants must be tenured or tenure-eligible faculty with strong research programs at University of Chicago, Northwestern University, or University of Illinois at Chicago who will jointly engage in collaborative research addressing questions in Systems Biology with a focus on the technologies of proteomics, informatics, or imaging.
• Applicants must be preparing a large-scale, multi-institutional proposal for submission to an external funding agency which can be strengthened by a commitment for exceptional institutional support.
• Proposals must have Principal Investigators from at least two of the CBC universities.
• There may be multiple applications from each institution.
• There is no expectation that Lever Awards will be distributed evenly among the CBC institutions.

Available funding

• Approximately $10,000,000 available for commitment during 2006-10.
• Maximum is $1,000,000 per year for three years.
• Payment of award is conditional on approval of program proposal by external funding agency and host universities.

Key Dates:

• Ongoing review.
• Application for Lever Awards must be made at least five weeks in advance of submission to an external agency in order to obtain a letter of commitment from the CBC to be enclosed with the proposal.
• There will be no post hoc allocation of CBC funds for Levers.

Funding Opportunity Description

Application Process:

• Scientists interested in applying for Lever funds should discuss their projects with the CBC Scientific Director on their campus before proceeding with an application. See below for contact information.
• Application and review will be ongoing, adaptable to the schedules set by external funding agencies.
• CBC review of proposals must be completed before submission to external agency. Allow a minimum of three weeks for review. There will be no post hoc allocation of Lever funds.
• CBC scientists engaged in a collaborative, multi-institutional application of appropriate scope and focus should consult with the CBC Executive Director or Scientific Director on their campuses to confirm the eligibility of the project.
• Principal Investigators of eligible projects should prepare their proposals according to these guidelines and e-mail the resulting PDF to Kathryn Stallcup (k-stallcup at northwestern dot edu), Executive Director of the Chicago Biomedical Consortium, and also to Aharon Solomon, the CBC's Senior Program Manager (Aharon_Solomon_CBC at northwestern dot edu).
• The agency application or available portions thereof may also be provided as needed.

Selection Criteria:

• Effectiveness of the proposed project for attaining the goals of the CBC.
• Essential elements are:
  • Inter-institutional collaboration: The research program or project must involve Principal Investigators from at least two of the CBC universities. All applicants must be tenured or tenure-eligible faculty with strong research programs.
  • Scientific focus: Systems Biology, with emphasis on either proteomics, informatics, or imaging.
  • Scientific merit.
  • Appropriateness of proposed budget.

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.
• For approved Levers, the CBC will provide a letter of commitment to be submitted as part of the application to the funding agency.
• When the external proposal is approved through that agency’s peer-reviewed process, the CBC will provide payment of the Lever Award to the research group through standard university award mechanisms.

Reporting:

• Each Lever Award will require an annual written report (narrative and financial) on the use of those funds to be submitted to the Executive Director of the CBC.
• In addition, the CBC should receive a copy of all reports submitted to the external funding agency for the full course of that project.
• All publicity regarding a Lever 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 Lever PDF

Questions? Contact the CBC Scientific Director on your campus:

Or contact the Executive Director and the Senior Program Manager of CBC:

Katie Stallcup, k-stallcup at northwestern dot edu
Aharon Solomon, Aharon_Solomon_CBC at northwestern dot edu