In recent years scientific research has become increasingly interdisciplinary. As a result, funding agencies are now investing more of their research dollars in programs that facilitate multi-investigator, interdisciplinary, large budget projects. However, competition in these programs is intense. Proposals that demonstrate an integrated collaboration from a team of PIs with a history of working together are generally much more competitive for these hard-to-get research dollars. The purpose of the Research Seed Fund awards is to help Brown faculty prepare for these large-scale efforts. Research Seed Funds are intended to support activities necessary to advance large-scale, interdisciplinary, multi-investigator proposals, such as collecting preliminary data and facilitating collaboration. It is expected that a competitive proposal will be submitted within a year of the completion of the Seed Fund period. Seed Fund proposals should identify the program and agency to which a future interdisciplinary proposal will be submitted, describe the research project in language understandable to faculty reviewers, describe how the Seed Fund activity will result in a more competitive proposal and include a budget and a timeline for submission.

In consultation with an ad hoc committee of faculty advisors, awards of up to $100,000 will be made by the Vice President for Research. Approximately $400,000 will be awarded in fiscal year 2007. All expenditures under this program must be in accordance with University policies and procedures. The guidelines for submitting proposals and for selecting recipients are outlined below.

Eligibility

Any professor at any rank or any senior lecturer active in research is eligible. Faculty members who hold named chairs are eligible to receive these funds, but emeritus faculty are not.

Amount and Duration of Awards

Awards can be up to $100,000.

Awards are normally for one year, but extensions may be granted with appropriate justification. Requests for extensions must be submitted to the Vice President for Research before the end of the one-year award period.

Criteria for Selection

The overall merit of the research project will be considered and evaluated by the Vice President for Research and an ad hoc committee of faculty advisors. The final selection will be made based on the following criteria:

• the potential for the award to provide a basis for further research support from external sponsors
• the intrinsic merit of the work
• the potential impact of the research on the academic field of study
• the likelihood that the proposed work will be completed during the award period

Award Conditions

Award funds may be used to support reasonable and necessary costs for the collection of pilot research data or for proposal development. Support for postdoctoral candidates, full or partial stipends and tuition for advanced graduate students who have completed their course work, research stipends for undergraduate RAs, and secretarial services may be supported by award funds. Expenditures for faculty salaries (either summer or academic year) are not permitted. Within 60 days of the end of the approved award period, the recipient must provide to the Vice President for Research a final report. The report should outline the work that was accomplished and describe the proposal(s) submitted to external sponsor(s) as a result of this award. The report should also describe any significant deviations from or extensions to the project described in the original proposal.

Brown University shall own, on a worldwide basis, all rights in any discovery or invention resulting from research carried out by a recipient of an award. All such discoveries or inventions must be disclosed in writing (a “Disclosure”) to the Office of Brown Technology Partnerships as soon as practicable.

Procedure for Submitting Proposals

Proposals for funding should be submitted electronically to Anne Windham in the Office of the Vice President for Research at Anne_Windham@brown.edu as one single attachment (word or pdf document), no later than December 3, 2007 . Selections will be announced by January 16, 2008 . Funds will become available to faculty on or after January 31, 2008. The funds would be available for use until the end of June, 2009,* unless an extension was requested and approved.

*Please note that supplies/equipment/services purchased using these funds must be received by the end of the fiscal year (June 30, 2009) in order for them to be charged against the account. Travel must also have been completed by that date. 

The body of the proposal, including footnotes, should not exceed 2,500 words (excluding bibliography/references, figures, budget, budget justification, and supporting documents). The document should include:

1. A cover sheet that lists: a. PI and CO-PI names (specifying contact information for the PI), titles, departments; b. proposal title; and c. an abstract describing the proposed research project, the research group or enterprise that will ultimately result from this initial effort, and an assessment of how Brown's position in the field will be advanced. The abstract should be no more than 250 words.
2. A summary of the relevant background literature in the field of research that puts the proposed project into the appropriate context and explains how it will significantly extend or contribute to the field.
3. A description of the proposed research project, or proposal development activity, in terms that do not require reviewers to be experts in the sub area of the proposed research, including the goals of the research, the activities to be carried out to achieve those goals, a timetable for completing these activities, and an assessment of the potential for subsequent external funding.
4. A description of how the proposed activity will result in a collaborative team working synergistically on a project that is truly interdisciplinary.

Each proposal must be accompanied by the following supporting documents:

1. A budget that itemizes general categories of expenses for which award funds will be used and a brief justification for these expenses.
2. A description of the strategy for seeking subsequent external support. The description should include a statement of intent to submit a proposal as one of the outcomes of the project. The sponsor(s) to which the proposal will be submitted should be identified along with the intended date(s) of submission and the amount(s) that will be requested.
3. A list of the proposer's current and pending awards for external research support.
4. A current curriculum vitae for each collaborator.
5. Endorsements from the proposer’s department chair(s) discussing the proposal’s importance in terms of the selection criteria. In the event of multiple proposals from the same department, the chair may be asked to rank the proposals.
6. The names of at least two scholars qualified to review and comment upon the proposal. At least one reviewer should be a tenured faculty member at Brown University who is familiar with the proposer’s research field. The proposer should include the name, address, telephone number, email address (if available), and a short biographical sketch of any outside reviewer.