SC INBRE Cycle V Competitive Renewal Application 

Call for Proposals for Network Membership

 

SC INBRE is a statewide network of 14 colleges and universities, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS), with the goal of increasing biomedical research capacity within South Carolina. This goal is achieved by providing research project funding to faculty as they build independent research programs and to primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs) to increase research training opportunities available to students. SC INBRE IV is funded through August 2025 and we are planning a renewal application to be submitted May 2024. This call for proposals invites applications from institutions of higher education across South Carolina that would like to be considered for membership in SC INBRE V.

Institutions eligible to apply for inclusion in the SC INBRE V network include PUIs, defined as four-year colleges/universities, two-year colleges, and minority-serving institutions that award Bachelor’s and/or Master’s degrees in biomedical sciences and have awarded fewer than 20 Ph.D./D.Sc. in the previous two academic years.


Institutional Commitment to SC INBRE V: To build and enhance research capacity at network institutions, faculty who receive funding from SC INBRE V's Developmental Research Project (DRP) Program must have sufficient time to devote to research activities. The DRP program will offer two types of awards, research project (RP) and pilot project (PP), both of which require release time for funded investigators. Applicant institutions must clearly indicate their commitment to providing release time through a “Memorandum of Understanding” (MOU). The MOU must indicate that faculty receiving a RP award are guaranteed six person months effort to devote to their research program while faculty receiving a PP award must be granted three months effort. Release time can include summer months and faculty can request salary on their project (up to 50% salary on RP). Applications not explicitly guaranteeing this support will not be considered.


Proposal are due as a single pdf document by 5 pm ET on Monday, October 2, 2023, and should be emailed to Edie Goldsmith and John Clarkson


A virtual meeting will be held at 11 am ET on Tuesday, May 30 to answer questions about the application process. Individuals interested in submitting a network membership proposal should contact Cyndy Buckhaults so they can be sent the virtual meeting link. 


Application review will be conducted by SC INBRE’s External Advisory Committee with final selection expected before the end of the year.

Required elements of a Network Membership Proposal

Proposals may be submitted by Deans, Department Chairs or Senior Faculty members (Tenured Professors or equivalent) and must contain a letter of support from the institution’s administration (Dean, Provost, President) indicating their commitment to enhancing biomedical research on their campus. Each PUI may only submit one network membership proposal.


FAQs

Our Office has received some questions regarding the application process. 


Can you explain the new roles in this Cycle?
The Executive Committee (EC) is new this cycle and the membership on the Steering Committee (SC) is also different. 

The SC member is to be a high-level administrator on your campus who knows the research environment and can make decisions about allocating resources to enhance research (i.e., a Vice President for Research or Provost level if that is the person you your campus who handles research). 

The Institutional lead on the EC would be the person who is the campus PI. This should be the person responsible for implementing what is proposed in the application.


How much can we request for our budget?
A typical request is up to $100,000. You can request more than $100,000 in the budget as long as the request is justified. Once the External Advisory Committee (EAC) selects institutions, we'll look at the budgets and determine if they will be funded as requested or if any cuts are needed.


How do I get an eRA Commons or check to see if I have one?
Visit this website for more information on NIH’s Electronic Research Administration (eRA) Commons.

Download PDF of this Call for Membership