SCPAB Research Awards – 2020 Extension RFA
- Application available in pC
- Application Deadline
- Award Notification
- Award Start Date
- Application available in pC
- Application Deadline
- Award Notification
- Award Start Date
- Administrative inquiries:
[email protected] - Scientific inquiries:
[email protected] - Technical assistance:
[email protected]
Mission
The Simons Collaboration on Plasticity and the Aging Brain (SCPAB) aims to discover mechanisms of resilience and maintenance in the aging brain and to establish a baseline for age-related changes in plasticity across many model systems in order to identify potential interventions to minimize cognitive decline and extend healthy lifespan.
More detailed information about SCPAB’s leadership and scientific mission is available on our website.
Objective of the 2020 Extensions
This RFA is by invitation only. We are soliciting progress reports and proposals for two years of further funding to expand and develop previously funded SCPAB Awards. These proposals should build on ideas generated in the first three years of SCPAB award funding.
We expect that the composition of investigators on any extension application will remain largely the same. If there are compelling reasons to add or change principal investigators (PIs), please make this justification clear in the application.
What to Submit:
Spokesperson PI (SPI)
- Two-page progress report: a summary of the collaborative group’s progress towards the originally stated aims of the 2020 collaborative proposal.
- Two-page extension proposal: scientific narrative of the plan for the collaborative group for a two-year project building on the discoveries generated during the first three years of SCPAB funding.
- List of all the PIs who will work on this extension project, along with an NIH biographical sketch of any new PIs.
- Individual contribution: a paragraph outlining your individual contribution to the two-year proposed extension project. If you are part of more than one extension project, please include a paragraph for each of the projects to which you belong.
- Budget: your individual lab’s budget for the two-year extension plan according to the budget guidelines below. If you are part of more than one project, please submit the total combined budget that your lab will use for the projects.
- If you are requesting the addition of a new PI to your collaborative group, the SPI must submit the paragraph outlining that new PI’s individual contribution and the new PI’s individual lab’s budget for the two-year extension plan.
Individual Investigators
- Individual contribution: Each PI, in their own individual pC accounts, must submit a paragraph for each of the two-year proposed extension projects they are part of, outlining their individual lab’s contribution to that two-year extension plan.
- Budget: Each PI must submit a two-year budget according to the budget guidelines outlined below using the provided excel spreadsheet. If you are part of more than one project, please submit the total combined budget that your lab will use for the projects.
How to Submit:
- Once you have completed your budget in the provided excel sheet, please save it along with your project narrative in a single PDF.
- In the deliverables section in your pC account, you will see “Extension Proposals (Two Years)”
- For Individual PIs: Please upload the single pdf of your individual contribution to the two-year extension plan and your budget
- For SPIs: Please upload the single PDF containing the requirements listed above (scientific progress report, two-year project proposal, individual contribution, the list of investigators along with NIH biosketch for any new PIs), and your individual budget for the two-year extension. If you are requesting the addition of a new PI to your collaborative group, the SPI must submit the paragraph outlining that new PI’s individual contribution and the new PI’s individual lab’s budget for the two-year extension plan.
For questions about the scientific scope of the award or investigator composition, please contact Kim Scobie ([email protected]).
Funding
Funding will be distributed per investigator as follows:
- $250,000 including indirect costs per year for an investigator working on one project
- $375,000 including indirect costs for an investigator working on more than one project
- The award amount is capped at $375,000 including indirect costs, regardless of additional projects in which the investigators are participating.
There are no restrictions on the number of projects an investigator may join. If at least one of the projects an investigator joins is funded, they will receive funding at the aforementioned level. Deviations from this budget plan will be considered on a case-by-case basis after proposal review.
Appropriate expenses include salary support for the investigator and postdoctoral and graduate research assistants, travel, equipment, supplies and other research expenses. Allowable indirect costs to the primary institution for subcontracts are not included in the $250,000 budget threshold (see grant policies). A detailed budget justification will be solicited with the full proposal.
Eligibility
The submitting PI must be a current 2020 SCPAB award recipient and hold a Ph.D., M.D. or equivalent degree and have a faculty position or the equivalent at a college, university, medical school or other research facility.
Applications may be submitted by domestic and foreign nonprofit organizations; public and private institutions, such as colleges, universities, hospitals, laboratories and units of state and local government; and eligible agencies of the federal government. There are no citizenship or country requirements.
- Application available in pC
- Application Deadline
- Award Notification
- Award Start Date
- Administrative inquiries:
[email protected] - Scientific inquiries:
[email protected] - Technical assistance:
[email protected]
In the first phase, the spokesperson PI submits a LOI on behalf of all team members via proposalCENTRAL at https://proposalcentral.com/. The submission deadline for LOIs is January 31, 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
proposalCENTRAL Log-In Information
All proposals must be completed electronically and submitted using forms provided at proposalCENTRAL. To submit your proposal, please log in as an applicant, go to the Grant Opportunities tab, scroll to Simons Foundation and click Apply Now for the “Life Sciences-Simons Collaboration on Plasticity and the Aging Brain” program. For assistance, please call 800-875-2562 or email [email protected].
To submit a LOI, the following proposalCENTRAL modules must be completed:
1. Title Page
- Answer all questions in this section.
2. Download Templates & Instructions
- All templates necessary to complete your LOI are available for download in this module.
3. Enable Other Users to Access This Proposal
- This module allows you to give other users access to your grant application. When you give a person access to your grant application, you can give them one of three levels of permissions: View, Edit or Administrator.
4. Applicant/PI
- The spokesperson PI should be listed here. The spokesperson PI, under whose name the LOI is submitted, is responsible for submitting all components of the LOI on behalf of all team members. The spokesperson PI must be affiliated with the institution submitting the application.
- All PIs and key collaborators must hold a Ph.D., M.D. or equivalent degree and have a faculty position or equivalent at a college, university, medical school or other research facility. Applications may be submitted from domestic and foreign nonprofit organizations; public and private institutions, such as colleges, universities, hospitals, laboratories and units of state and local government; and eligible agencies of the federal government. There are no citizenship or country requirements.
- If the grant has multiple PIs, please only list the spokesperson PI in this section.
5. Organization/Institution
- Institution information is preloaded from the institutional profile but may be changed on this screen if necessary.
6. Key Personnel
- Indicate all funded PIs and unfunded collaborators. Please do not list the applicant/spokesperson PI in this section.
7. Abstracts
- Enter your technical abstract as text (250 words) in this section.
8. Attach Letter of Intent Here
- Upload your Research Narrative, which must include:
- Define the scientific goals of the research; 3 pages including figures, references can be on additional pages.
- Statements of the roles and responsibilities of each PI (0.5 pages per PI). This must include a designation of a spokesperson PI. LOI proposals must have a spokesperson PI who is responsible for submitting the LOI on behalf of all team members.
- A brief project leadership plan, including data-sharing plans among investigators, publication and intellectual property policies, and procedures for resolving conflict.
- NIH Biosketches of all PIs and collaborators.
- Proposed budget (both annual and 3-year total amounts) and brief budget justification (2-3 sentences per PI) for each PI and institution.
9. Validate
- You must click the validate button on the bottom of the page to check for any missing information or files that are required to submit the application. All missing information that is required will be listed on the screen. Please correct any missing information before proceeding to the next step.
10. Submit
- You will be unable to submit if you have not provided all the required information. Any missing information will be listed on the screen. If your submission is successful, you will receive a confirmation message on the screen and a confirmation email will be sent to the applicant.
Contacts
| Administrative Inquiries: | [email protected] | ||
| Scientific Inquiries: | [email protected] | ||
| proposalCENTRAL: | [email protected] | | 800-875-2562 |
- Application available in pC
- Application Deadline
- Award Notification
- Award Start Date
- Administrative inquiries:
[email protected] - Scientific inquiries:
[email protected] - Technical assistance:
[email protected]
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My application has multiple principal investigators (PIs). Who submits the LOI?
The spokesperson Principal Investigator (PI). LOIs must have a spokesperson PI who is responsible for submitting the LOI on behalf of all team members.
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Where do I submit the LOI?
New users first need to create a user account on proposalCENTRAL (pC) at https://proposalcentral.com/. (For instructions on how to create an account, see the FAQ How do I create a proposalCENTRAL user account? below.) For all users with a pC account, log in under application login at https://proposalcentral.com/ and select create new proposal or click on the grant opportunities tab. Scroll down to simons foundation and then click apply now for the “Life Sciences-Simons Collaboration on Plasticity and the Aging Brain” program in order to start the LOI (“LOI Section”) and access the templates. After all sections are completed, you will be able to click on the submit button to send your completed proposal to the Simons Foundation.
You will gain access to the full proposal (“Proposal Section”) on proposalCENTRAL if your LOI is accepted. (For more information, see full Proposal FAQ below.)
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How do I create a proposalCENTRAL user account?
Go to https://proposalcentral.com/ (pC) and click create one now under application login. Fill in the required fields, check the boxes to agree to pC’s “Terms of Service” and “Acceptable Use Policy” and then click save.
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Can I email or mail a LOI?
No, the Simons Foundation only accepts LOIs submitted online through https://proposalcentral.com/.
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Do I need an institutional sign-off to submit a LOI?
No, however, investigators on approved LOIs will need an institutional sign-off for their full proposals. Each approved investigator will be asked to submit their own full proposal, with exactly the same scientific narrative to allow awards to be given directly to individual PIs for their contributions to the collaborative project(s).
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Can someone else (assistant, staff member, etc.) submit my application for me?
Yes, you can add users with administrator access to the pC application so that someone other than the Spokesperson PI can edit and submit the application. To add another user, go to section 3, “Enable Other Users to Access This Proposal,” and complete the required fields.
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Can foreign institutions apply for this grant?
Yes, applications may be submitted from scientists in foreign nonprofit organizations; public and private institutions, such as colleges, universities, hospitals, laboratories and units of state and local government; and eligible agencies of the federal government. Please see “Policies and Procedures” https://www.simonsfoundation.org/funding-opportunities/policies-and-procedures/ for information on international award policies.
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Can I change the named Spokesperson PI after a name has been entered in the application?
Yes, linked instructions for how to change the named spokesperson PI can be found in the application.
The person who starts the application will be named as the Spokesperson PI on the Applicant/PI page. If the Applicant/PI page does not show the correct name (e.g., someone else started the online application and you are the Spokesperson PI, or you started the application and someone else is the Spokesperson PI), then you must update this section before submitting.
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Where do I list additional PIs and collaborators?
Enter all principal investigators and key collaborators in the Key Personnel section of the LOI.
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Do I need to submit bio sketches with the LOI?
Yes. A bio sketch is required for all principal investigators and key collaborators.
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What are the font style and size requirements?
Type should be set in 11-point, legible font. All margins should be set at 0.5 inches.
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Do I submit a budget with the LOI?
No. A detailed budget justification will be solicited with the full proposals.
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Where is the submit button?
The submit button is located in the last section of the LOI. You will be unable to submit if you have not provided all the required information. If the submission deadline has not passed, use the validate button to check for missing requirements.
If the deadline has passed, the submission period has closed and you will not be able to submit.
Please contact [email protected] with any issues.
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I get an error message citing a missing section when I try to submit.
The validate button reviews your LOI for missing sections. The submission instructions list the required sections and attachments. You must complete the missing sections listed. If you are still receiving error messages after completing and saving the indicated sections, please contact [email protected].
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Are deadline times adjusted for time zones?
No, please be advised that deadlines are in Eastern Time. We recommend registering early and submitting LOIs with ample time for corrections prior to the deadline hour. Site traffic can slow page-load times. The submit button will not work after the deadline time has passed.
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Is there a confirmation email when I submit?
A confirmation email is sent upon submission of the LOI. Please contact [email protected] if you submitted your LOI and have not received a confirmation email within ten minutes. Make sure that spam filters allow emails from [email protected]. The LOI will be in the submitted tab when you next log in.
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Can I make changes to the LOI once it has been submitted?
Before you can make changes to your submitted LOI, you must first contact the Simons Foundation. Please email [email protected]. LOIs can only be changed prior to the January 30, 2022 deadline.
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Does the Simons Foundation grant extensions for LOIs?
No extensions will be given. If you have any difficulties, please email [email protected]. Please do not contact [email protected] directly.
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How do I submit a full proposal?
Unlike the first-stage proposal, the spokesperson PI does not submit the full proposal on behalf of the other principal investigators. Each PI’s institution will be required to submit the full proposal only on behalf of the individual PI and their institution.
With an approved LOI, each PI will gain access to their own full proposal on proposalCENTRAL. Log in under application login at https://proposalcentral.com/, select the manage proposals tab and then click in progress. Click the edit button for the corresponding full proposal you want to complete. Once all sections are complete and the attachments are uploaded, the submit button will be activated and you can click submit to send your full proposal to the Simons Foundation.
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What are the font style and size requirements for a full proposal?
Type should be set in 11-point, legible font. All margins should be set at 0.5 inches.
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Does the Principal Investigator need to sign the signature page for a full proposal?
No, only the signing official is required to sign the signature page.
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Is there a confirmation email when I submit for a full proposal?
A confirmation email is sent upon submission of the full proposal. Please contact [email protected] if you submitted your full proposal and have not received a confirmation email within ten minutes. Make sure that spam filters allow emails from [email protected]. The full proposal will be in the submitted tab when you next log in.
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I get an error message citing a missing section when I try to submit for a full proposal.
The validate button reviews your full proposal for missing sections. The submission instructions list the required sections and attachments. You must complete the missing sections listed. If you are still receiving error messages after completing and saving the indicated sections, please contact [email protected].
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Can I make changes to the full proposal once it has been submitted?
Before you can make changes to your submitted full proposal, you must first contact the Simons Foundation. Please email [email protected]. Applications can only be changed prior to the May 9, 2022 5:00 PM Eastern Time deadline.
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Is validating my full proposal the same as submitting it?
No. Validating the full proposal checks for errors and omissions and will alert you to missing requirements from your full proposal. If the full proposal is complete, you must then click submit. You will receive an email within ten minutes. Contact [email protected] if you do not receive confirmation and do not see your full proposal in the submitted tab or with the status changed to submitted.
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The deadline for final decision notification has passed. What is the status of my full proposal?
You should receive notification within 24 hours of the deadline. Please check your spam filter settings if you have not received notification by then.