Community-Academic Collaborative Pilot Research Award

• The duration of this pilot funding is one year, and the budget should not exceed $15,000. 
• The proposal must be co-led by a member of IUSCCC (Full, Associate, or Affiliate) and a community partner.
• All members of the research team and the community partner(s) should be actively engaged in developing and executing the proposed research goals and activities.    

1. Applicants should submit a letter of intent (LOI) briefly describing the proposed project, including the study aims and hypotheses/research questions and how the community partner will be involved which will be reviewed by the executive committee of the COE. Upon evaluation of the LOIs, selected applicants will be asked to submit a full application. Consultation with the associate director of Community Outreach and Engagement is encouraged.
2. All applications and any supporting documentation must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. on the advertised deadline date. The application must be submitted via email. No paper applications or portions of applications will be accepted. 

We are particularly interested in, and priority will be given to, applications from investigators who, with this additional support, are likely to obtain extramural peer-reviewed funding. Applicants may have received prior or current extramural research funding, but the proposed project should clearly be separate from previous/current funded project. 

1. Abstract (30 lines)
2. Specific Aims (one page)
3. Significance (Up to one page)
   1. Why is the problem important to lowering the cancer burden in Indiana?
   2. How will the project support a community partner in controlling the cancer burden in Indiana?
   3. Is the proposed project evidence based?
4. Innovation
5. Approach (2-4 pages)
   1. Describe the proposed program including the evidence supporting this approach.
   2. Preliminary work: -Have you implemented a project before that is similar to the proposed project? Explain what was done and the outcomes. Were there lessons that were learned and if so, how will they be used in the current work?
   3. What is the population the program will serve?
   4. Describe the process for developing and implementing the program along with the timeline.
   5. What are the indicators of success? How will you evaluate the program (be specific)?
   6. How does the project support a bidirectional partnership between cancer researchers and community partners?
6. Plans for application to external funding
   1. How will this project enable future programs? What are the plans to continue the program beyond the period of grant funding?
7. Investigators: Have the lead investigators worked together before?
   1. Resume or biosketch of community partner and all investigators involved in the project must be included
8. Budget: A detailed budget and justification must be Proposals should not include percent effort (salary) for the Principal Investigator.

Expenditures Allowed:

• Supplies directly related to development or execution of the grant
• Funds can be used to support research assistants or community workers with direct responsibility for some aspect of the grant.
• Limited travel costs
• Biostatistics or evaluation costs 

Expenditures Not Allowed:

• Funds cannot be used to support the salary of principal investigators (faculty or community partner salary)

1. Is this program/research focused on an area with the potential to reduce cancer mortality and morbidity?
2. Are the aims clear?
3. Do the methods support the aims?
4. Are the deliverables clearly defined and will they provide data to support the purpose of the proposal?
5. Is the evaluation plan clear?
6. Will the approach support the aims?
7. Are the investigators appropriate and do they have the ability to complete the project?
8. Will the proposal lead to new information that will lead to or is related to decreasing the cancer burden?
9. Is the community relevance clear?

Note: If the applicant has received previous pilot funding, outcomes from that project will be evaluated and considered in this review. It is expected that all pilot funding will lead to submission of externally reviewed research grants. New investigators are strongly encouraged to apply. 

Applications will be reviewed by a select panel of cancer center members, university content experts, and external reviewers as needed.

• Pilot research awardees are expected to provide public presentations to venues identified by the community partner.
• Progress reports will be requested at six-month intervals with an expectation that a final report will be submitted not later than three months after the grant is complete
• Awardees are also required to report any publications and grants submitted and/or funded as a result of this pilot award to IUSCCC.

The timetable is:   

Letter of Intent: Rolling submission
Completed application: Following LOI approval

An electronic copy of the completed submission in .PDF format should be submitted to Crystal Baker, project manager specialist, at crybanks@iu.edu.