Funding Your Research: Strategies to Find & Secure Funding for Research & Education

Transcription

1 Funding Your Research: Strategies to Find & Secure Funding for Research & Education Sponsored Programs Lunch & Learn, November 2, 2010 Presenters: Kristin-Ann Beck, Sponsored Programs Priscilla Khoury, Foundation Partnerships Peter Larsen, Sponsored Programs Enhancement Jodi Lehman, Sponsored Programs Enhancement

2 Contact Information Kristin-Ann Beck Lakeshore Center, 3 rd Floor kgbeck@mtu.edu Priscilla Khoury 308 Citizens Bank Building pjkhoury@mtu.edu Peter Larsen 323 Lakeshore Center pete@mtu.edu or palarsen@mtu.edu Jodi Lehman Lakeshore Center, 3 rd Floor jglehman@mtu.edu

3 Presentation Overview Part 1: Planning Your Strategy Overview of sources, timelines, diversification strategies General search options COS: Uncover Funding Opportunities Part 2: Specific Funding & Search Options Internal Funding Opportunities External Funding Opportunities Foundation & Corporate Government (Federal & State) Graduate Student Funding Part 3: Putting it all together-executing your plan Questions

4 Part 1: Planning Consider ALL potential sources Internal, corporate, foundation, government, etc. Who funds others in your field? What are your greatest areas of opportunity? Timing-when to apply? Think ahead Good timing can vary by discipline, sponsor, etc. Ask questions of program officers, foundation staff, your colleagues

5 Part 1: Planning, continued Begin initial writing Develop a 2-3 page concept for a research project Develop a strategic plan for your research Develop a problem statement, overall goal, and objectives for your first individual project Sketch out a three year timeline for research, package themes together Try to become a proposal reviewer

6 Part 1: Finding Funding-General Resources Search techniques COS is our primary University-sponsored funding search engine. It is detailed in upcoming slides. Other techniques work best in specific situations and are described by type of funding throughout presentation. When to look for funding One year lag time in most cases Note the cycle of federal programs many repeat annually but are not posted until 90 days prior to deadline.

7 COS: What is it? COS: a global resource for information critical to scientific research and projects across all disciplines Find funding with COS Funding Opportunities: 22,000+ records, 400,000 opportunities Identify collaborators with COS Expertise: search 500,000 profiles of researchers (1,600 institutions) More information (including a tutorial) available at:

8 COS: Sign up

9 COS: Searching

10 COS: Expertise

11 COS: Tips & Tricks Save searches for easy use later on Weekly funding alerts Tips Use geographic location to limit search to US funding Can be a good source of searching for graduate student fellowship funding Be as general as possible with search terms while still resulting in a reasonable number of search results

12 Limited Submission The VPR Office posts limited submission opportunities on the following web site and tracks all submissions. This is a VERY IMPORTANT internal process for external support.

13 Limited Submission Current opportunities are obtained from various sources and posted on the web site and notification is ed to deans, chairs, and directors. Internal deadlines are set and any proposals submitted after the deadline will not be eligible for submission. Internal competition occurs when submission of more than the maximum number allowed has been reached for a particular sponsor

14 Limited Submission Last-minute opportunities: new unlisted Immediately notify the VPR office, Laurie Stark at with information to announce on the web site.

15 Limited Submission Less than ten (10) business days prior to the deadline: all proposals received in the VPR office will be submitted on a "first come first serve" basis. More than ten (10) business days prior to the deadline: an announcement will be ed to the deans, chairs, directors and normal instructions will apply.

16 Part 2: Specific Funding Options This section will include: Internal Research Funding at Michigan Tech External Funding Foundation Corporate Government Graduate student funding

17 Internal Funding Opportunities Internal Awards: Century II Campaign Endowed Equipment Fund (C2E2) Research Excellence Fund (REF) Infrastructure Enhancement (IE) Research Seed (RS) Mentoring Grants (MG) NEW Commercialization & Technology Grant Announced via: Tech Today & Research Website Newsblog Sent electronically to Deans & Department Chairs Available on the Research website

18 Century II Campaign Endowed Equipment Fund (C 2 E 2 ) - Total Awards $15-20,000 Purpose: Provide equipment funds to assist the research efforts of faculty, staff and students. Primary factor is the broadness of the impact the equipment will have on the campus community. All faculty and staff are eligible to apply. October deadline was

19 Research Excellence Fund (REF) Total Awards $400,000 Types of REF Grants with a February 24, 2011 Deadline: (There is a limit of one submission per Principal Investigator per category.) Infrastructure Enhancement (IE) ($150,000 distributed) Research Seed (RS) ($220,000 distributed) Mentoring (MG) ($30,000 distributed) Scholarship & Creativity Grant ($40,000 distributed) NEW Technology & Commercialization Grant (TC) ($40,000 distibuted)

20 REF Infrastructure Enhancement (IE) Purpose: Provide resources to develop the infrastructure necessary to support sponsored research and graduate student education. Chair, Dean, Center/Institute Directors must be PI, other faculty are eligible to be Co-PI. Each year $150,000 is awarded

21 REF Research Seed (RS) Provide untenured tenure-track faculty with resources to develop externally supported research. All untenured tenure-track faculty in any academic unit are eligible. Tenured faculty, research faculty or research staff can be co-investigators. Each year $220,000 is awarded

22 REF Mentoring Grants (MG) Provide newly-hired untenured tenure-track faculty in their first two-year appointment with resources to collaborate with established nationally known researchers. Mentor cannot be affiliated with Michigan Tech Mentor should not be someone with whom a mentoring relationship already exists such as a previous advisor or senior research collaborator. Each year $30,000 is awarded

23 Scholarship & Creativity Grant The REF Scholarship & Creativity Grant (SCG) provides support to encourage faculty to engage in scholarly research, learning, and creative activities to enhance professional development. The SCG program differs from other elements of the REF program in these ways: 1. SCG awards primarily support scholarly projects undertaken by faculty in disciplines identified by NSF as non-science and engineering fields. These are primarily within the humanities, social sciences, arts, education, and business, with fewer opportunities to secure external support.

24 Scholarship & Creativity Grant Con t 2. Grants will range up to $15,000, with an expected average of less than $10, Scholarly & Creativity Grants are meant to stand alone; they are not supplements to or replacements for, departmental general fund expenditures or other existing funding programs (e.g., start-up, grants and contract costshares, C2E2, student support, etc.)

25 NEW Technology & Commercialization Grants Provides faculty, staff, and students with resources to support the initial steps toward commercialization of technologies developed at the University. Intended to fund activities that are outside of the scope of existing academic research funding programs but that are too early in the development process for commercialization funding programs such as SBIR.

26 NEW Technology & Commercialization Grants Con t Funded projects typically focus on early stage commercial development, such as, for example, proof-of-concept, or otherwise developing a technology to a point where it can be the focus of a competitive federal SBIR Phase I proposal. Activities related to testing and validation of the market need or interest in the technology may also be supported, as well as other activities that are designed to lead to successful commercialization, licensing, or creation of a startup company.

27 REF Tips Reviewers will be your peers at Michigan Tech, but not necessarily experts in your field. Interdepartmental collaboration is encouraged. Impact on subsequent external funding is a key point of review. Graduate student support is an unallowable expenditure. As with other programs, follow the guidelines exactly. You still need a transmittal and an approved budget. Questions? Call or Cathy Banfield , cmanfie@mtu.edu.

28 Foundation Funding Yes! Some foundations do fund research. Private foundations are generally driven by the interests of an individual or family. Many private foundations do not have websites and can be difficult to find. How Michigan Tech can help: Foundation Center FoundationSearch.com Michigan Tech contact: Priscilla Khoury, Director of Foundation Relations ( , When to contact Priscilla

29 Foundation Funding Timeline: Many foundations meet quarterly for funding decisions (board meetings) Preliminary contact with foundation staff is essential Look at what the foundation funds, not what they say they fund Consider your overall plan for funding your research-where does foundation funding fit?

30 Foundation Funding Many private & corporate foundations have a limited submission policy even though it may not be published. Assume all foundation proposals are limited submission, if not otherwise stated. To be sure that your proposal does not conflict with another, use the Foundations Internal Notification Form: rnal_notification.html

31 Corporate Funding Corporations do fund research Again, assume a limited submission situation, if not otherwise stated. Most corporate research is not funded through a formal call for proposals. Coordinate with the corporate development staff of the office of Institutional Partnerships.

32 Business Sectors for Corporate Partnerships Colleagues: Todd Stewart, Ph.D. (Defense related companies, energy) Director for Institutional Partnerships Office: Brian Hannon (manufacturing, chemical, medical devices, advanced engines) Assistant Director Corporate Partnerships Office:

33 Corporate Partnerships Colleagues Con t Pete Cattelino (automotive and suppliers, manufacturing, engineering, defense) Assistant Director Corporate Partnerships Office: pjcattel@mtu.edu Adam Johnson (technology, transportation, medical devices, automotive) Assistant Director Corporate Partnerships Office: adam@mtu.edu Priscilla Khoury (health sciences, life sciences, healthcare systems) Office: pjkhoury@mtu.edu

34 Government Funding Searching Tools Grants.gov MyNSF (daily ) NSF search by division/directorate/program COS Google Most agencies offer customized funding alerts Program officers in charge of one interesting opportunity can direct you to other related programs Talk to a program officer at NSF Network at conferences find out who is funding research in your area of interest

35 NSF Funding

36 Government Funding In addition to funding within disciplines, look for programs specifically for certain situations Examples: NSF CAREER Awards, other early career faculty awards Equipment programs Course and curriculum programs Fellowship programs Education/outreach programs (REUs, RETs) Research centers

37 Funding for Graduate Students Write students into your proposal budgets! Encourage students to seek independent funding even if they are internally funded. Why? Nearly all Federal agencies that sponsor research also sponsor individual graduate fellowship competitions: NSF, NIH, EPA, NASA, Homeland Security, etc. Michigan Tech s Resources Grad School website/funding blog Proposal Incentive Award Program Also, consider funding undergraduates Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs); supplements

38 Part 3: Executing your plan Start early Find a research/grant writing mentor Use every resource you have available Plan to have others people review drafts (someone in your field, someone outside of your field, education person, final editor for grammar, spelling, etc.) Be willing to accept feedback even if you don t agree REVISE, RESUBMIT, address reviewer comments

39 How can we help? Finding funding (initial searches) Navigating the internal process Collaborating on campus Information about Michigan Tech Management, outreach, evaluation plans Proofreading, editing Connecting with foundations, helping to determine a good fit Feedback from a first-time reader Learning fastlane, grants.gov, etc.

40 Questions?