Vice President for Research & Economic Development
Proposal Services & Faculty Support
December Funding Focus Newsletter #1
What is a Limited Submission?
A limited submission solicitation (RFA, RFP, etc.) places a cap on the number of proposals that Auburn may submit to a sponsor. Auburn coordinates limited submissions by sending out a notification via this newsletter and creating competitions in the Auburn University Competition Space (also known as InfoReady ).To apply to any limited submission posted below, click on the above link and search for your competition reflected on the page. Please refer to the Limited Submission Procedures page for a list of requirements.
Limited Submission Announcements

This solicitation offers two broad tracks for proposals in pursuit of the aforementioned goals:

The Technology Translation (PFI-TT) track  offers the opportunity to translate prior NSF-funded research results in any field of science or engineering into technological innovations with promising commercial potential and societal impact. PFI-TT supports commercial potential demonstration projects for academic research outputs in any NSF-funded science and engineering discipline. This demonstration is achieved through proof-of-concept, prototyping, technology development and/or scale-up work. Concurrently, students and postdoctoral researchers who participate in PFI-TT projects receive education and leadership training in innovation and entrepreneurship. Successful PFI-TT projects generate technology-driven commercialization outcomes that address societal needs. PLEASE NOTE: You DO NOT need to compete in the limited submission if you are applying to the Technology Translation Track only.

The Research Partnerships (PFI-RP) track  seeks to achieve the same goals as the PFI-TT track by supporting instead complex, multi-faceted technology development projects that are typically beyond the scope of a single researcher or institution and require a multi-organizational, interdisciplinary, synergistic collaboration. A PFI-RP project requires the creation of partnerships between academic researchers and third-party organizations such as industry, non-academic research organizations, federal laboratories, public or non-profit technology transfer organizations or other universities. Such partnerships are needed to conduct applied research on a stand-alone larger project toward commercialization and societal impact. In the absence of such synergistic partnership, the project’s likelihood for success would be minimal.

The intended outcomes of both PFI-TT and PFI-RP tracks are: a) the commercialization of new intellectual property derived from NSF-funded research outputs; b) the creation of new or broader collaborations with industry (including increased corporate sponsored research); c) the licensing of NSF-funded research outputs to third party corporations or to start-up companies funded by a PFI team; and d) the training of future innovation and entrepreneurship leaders.

Institutional Limit: 1 Proposal
Internal Deadline: December 13, 2019, 4:45pm

The Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards Program supports the research and teaching careers of talented young faculty in the chemical sciences. Based on institutional nominations, the program provides discretionary funding to faculty at an early stage in their careers. Criteria for selection include an independent body of scholarship attained in the early years of their appointment (see below), and a demonstrated commitment to education, signaling the promise of continuing outstanding contributions to both research and teaching. The Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards Program provides an unrestricted research grant of $100,000.

Eligibility
The Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards Program is open to academic institutions in the States, Districts, and Territories of the United States of America that grant a bachelor’s or higher degree in the chemical sciences, including biochemistry, materials chemistry, and chemical engineering. Nominees must hold a full-time tenure-track academic appointment, and are normally expected to have been appointed no earlier than mid-year 2014. Awardees are from Ph.D. granting departments in which scholarly research is a principal activity. Undergraduate education is an important component. Institutions may submit only one Camille Dreyfus nomination annually. Renominations are accepted.

Selection
The Foundation seeks Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholars who demonstrate leadership in research and education. Nominations must provide compelling evidence of the advance of important knowledge in the chemical sciences by the nominee. Further, the nomination should describe dedication and contributions to education in the chemical sciences, particularly with respect to undergraduates.
The nominee’s scholarly research achievements are assessed by a panel of distinguished faculty in the chemical sciences. The letters of recommendation should address the nominee’s research accomplishments as an independent faculty member. Other considered factors are: awards and honors, publication of research achievements in leading journals, and success in attracting research funding.

Institutional Limit: 1 Proposal
Internal Deadline: December 13, 2019, 4:45pm
IMPORTANT UPDATES & EVENTS

The Office of Proposal Services and Faculty Support and Samuel Ginn College of Engineering are facilitating a 1/2 day workshop for the development of NSF CAREER Proposals.

The National Science Foundation’s CAREER program emphasizes the importance the Foundation places on the early development of academic careers dedicated to stimulating the discovery process in which the excitement of research is enhanced by inspired teaching, enthusiastic learning, and disseminating new knowledge. Effective integration of research and education generates a synergy in which the process of discovery stimulates learning, and assures that the findings and methods of research and education are quickly and effectively communicated in a broader context and to a large audience.

Agenda
8:15-9:00 am: Continental Breakfast
 
9:00-9:50 am: Introduction to NSF CAREER
- Purpose, Success Rates, A Look at What's Been Funded Recently, How to Find and Talk to the Right Program Officer, Proposal Planning and Timeline, and Brief Intro to SciENcv for Biosketches

10:00-11:30 am: Preparing a CAREER Proposal
- Examples of Funded Proposals, Formatting, Typical Outline, Writing for Your Audience, Hypothesis-Driven vs. Hypothesis-Generating Research, Best Practices for Education and Outreach, Workshopping Education and Outreach Ideas

12:30-4:30 pm: One-on-One Meetings with Investigators (limited slots available)
 
When: January 31, 2020
Where: Brown Kopel Engineering Student Achievement Center - Grand Hall 2
Time: 8:15 - 11:30 am (includes continental breakfast)
Presenter: Dr. Bryan DeBusk, Senior Grants Consultant, Hanover Research, Ph.D., Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Mississippi

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

The Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation’s mission is to provide funding for promising technologies, particularly in cutting edge instrumentation and interfaces between disciplines. In support of this mission, the Foundation is requesting proposals for a one-time grant opportunity for the procurement and potential further development of groundbreaking advanced light-sheet instrumentation capabilities, including establishment of robust multidisciplinary science/technology teams involving data scientist collaborations within the research group. The Foundation will provide support of up to $1.2 million per site, which can be used for instrumentation acquisition, development, and maintenance; support for data science collaborations within the research teams; and costs for the proposed research programs.

Proposals should be centered around core biological problems and a research program that is enabled by the dynamic, 3D, and long-term imaging capabilities of advanced light-sheet microscopy. Proposals shall include one-page descriptions of up to 3 distinct research project(s) to which the light-sheet capability will be applied that will represent significant advances within this larger research program. Additional consideration will be given to proposals that include other imaging, sensing, or analysis technologies as an integral part of one or more of the proposed research project(s).

Please note that incomplete applications will not be considered. Multiple Pre-Proposals from a single institution are allowed. An individual investigator may be a co-PI on only one Pre-Proposal, but can be a supporting team member on other submitted Pre-Proposals.

Pre-Proposals Due – March 6, 2020 (7pm Central)

The Campus Cyberinfrastructure (CC*) program invests in coordinated campus-level networking and cyberinfrastructure improvements, innovation, integration, and engineering for science applications and distributed research projects. Learning and workforce development (LWD) in cyberinfrastructure is explicitly addressed in the program. Science-driven requirements are the primary motivation for any proposed activity.

Each program area will support awards pursuant to the following budget and duration:
  1. Data-Driven Networking Infrastructure for the Campus and Researcher awards will be supported at up to $500,000 total for up to 2 years;
  2. Regional Connectivity for Small Institutions of Higher Education awards will be supported at up to $800,000 total for up to 2 years;
  3. Network Integration and Applied Innovation awards will be supported at up to $1,000,000 [in some cases these awards are limited to $500,000 total—see program area (3) in Section II. Program Description];
  4. Campus Computing and the Computing Continuum awards will be supported at up to $400,000 total for up to 2 years;
  5. Cyber Team-Research and Education CI-based Regional Facilitation awards will be supported at up to $1,400,000 total for up to 3 years; and,
  6. Planning Grants and CI-Research Alignment awards will be supported for up to $250,000 total for up to two years [in some cases, these awards are limited to $100,000 total—see program area (6) in Section II. Program Description].


Proposals Due – January 21, 2020 (5pm Central)

The ONR seeks a broad range of applications for augmenting existing or developing innovative solutions that directly maintain, or cultivate a diverse, world-class STEM workforce in order to maintain the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps’ technological superiority. The goal of any proposed effort must provide solutions that will grow a capable and trained workforce with the skills to defend against emergent cyber and electronic warfare threats.
Funding efforts will be targeted primarily toward projects addressing the technical skills taught to university students enrolled in ROTC programs; these ROTC programs are not restricted to any particular Service. While this is effort is targeted primarily toward students enrolled in ROTC programs it can also include civilian students.

The ONR intends for each individual award to be up to a maximum of $250,000 for 1 year. Option years are not available. Applications for larger amounts will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Project scope may range in size and complexity. Projects are especially encouraged to consider the following areas:
  • Expand the technical skills taught to university students, especially those enrolled in ROTC programs
  • Grow the participant’s cyber and electronic warfare skills
  • Develop the research capacity of participants
  • Funds will be earned by participants who will perform research under the guidance of a graduate student mentor and a professor principal investigator (PI).
  • The plan is to pay participants $18 per hour for a maximum of 15 hours per week.
  • Establish meetings of stakeholders that must seek to connect relevant people and organizations to explicitly develop broader projects for affecting entire communities.
Deadline: June 3, 2020 (Proposals may be submitted any time until this date)

The Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development (OVPRED) announces the 2020 call for proposals for the Auburn University Intramural Grants Program (IGP). Proposals undergo a thorough evaluation by a peer-review panel. Funding for all IGP grants is for a two year period.

There are four grant categories:
  • Interdisciplinary Team Research Grant: Provides support for research that will significantly advance multiple research fields. The research project must be conducted by at least two investigators from different disciplines. Up to $25,000 contribution from OVPRED.
  • Good to Great Grant: Provides support to enhance the competitiveness of a research proposal that has been favorably reviewed by an extramural grant review panel but not funded. The likelihood of funding on resubmission would increase with the acquisition of additional data or proof of concept. Up to $25,000 contribution from OVPRED.
  • Early Career Development Grant: provides support for faculty embarking on their research program(s). PI eligibility is limited to faculty that have been at Auburn for five years or less. For this grant, any individual who holds one of the following positions may be identified as a principal investigator for sponsored activities: Tenure track faculty (Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Librarian and Archivist ), Non-tenure-track research faculty (Assistant Research Professor, Associate Research Professor, Principal Research Scientist/Engineer) Clinical Professors (Assistant Clinical Professor, Associate Clinical Professor) · Research Fellow, Research Engineer. The proposer must be employed in one of the above-referenced positions as of the date of proposal submission and be untenured as of October 1 following the proposal submission.Up to $10,000 contribution from OVPRED.
  • *Cyber Research Grant: The University’s Cyber Initiative integrates cutting-edge engineering technology with research to develop innovative methods for protecting our nation's cyber security. This includes work to advance Auburn University’s technical expertise and leadership in cyber education and training; open source intelligence and analysis; and cyber security and forensics to include information assurance, intrusion detection and critical infrastructure protection. Up to $50,000 from funding sources.

*Offered with additional funding in conjunction with the IGP. 

All grant categories require a minimum 1:1 match to your funding request.


For additional assistance, please contact Dr. Bob Holm (programmatic assistance;  rzh0021@auburn.edu , 4-5877).  

Proposals Due – January 10, 2020 (4:45pm Central)


Program Description 
  • The Marshall Aerospace Fellowship program is a residential research experience. Fellows are required to conduct their research, during the ten-week program, on-site at the Marshall Space Flight Center.
  • Participants cannot receive remuneration from other entities or other programs or other university or government sources during the Aerospace Fellowship 10-week period.
  • An oral presentation by the Fellow to the Marshall group with which s/he has been affiliated is required, near the end of the fellowship period.
  • A written final report is required at the end of the Fellowship.
  • A written evaluation of the program by the Fellow is expected at the end of the Fellowship.

Eligibility 
  • US citizen
  • Full time teaching or research appointment, or graduate student appointment at an accredited US university or college.
  • Fellowship is awarded for one summer period, but Fellow may apply again for a second year.
  • Women, under-represented minorities, and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Application Deadline – February 7, 2020
Reserve the Corner today for collaborative meetings, proposal development or to learn more about AU research resources.
The monthly flights on the AU shuttle connect faculty to other researchers or agencies to further their research goals.
AU PI Handbook, agency guides & more to help you write a successful proposal.

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Proposal Services & Faculty Support
844-5929 / c ls0071@auburn.edu