Improving Your Relationship with Federal Research Agencies

Improving Your Relationship with Federal Research Agencies Today’s Talk • Introductions • Guidance for Interacting with Federal Agencies – National Science Foundation (NSF) – National Institutes of Health (NIH) – Department of Defense (DOD) – Department of Energy (DOE) – National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) – National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) – Department of Education: Institute for Education Sciences (IES) • Questions General Advice for Interacting with Federal Agencies • • • • • • • • Build relationship – be courteous Make initial contact via email and be specific Ensure follow up Prepare concise one-page summaries (or other appropriate formats) of your research Attend relevant workshops / conferences Offer to serve as reviewer where appropriate Get feedback on your proposal from more experienced colleagues Do your homework: – Read solicitation / FOA / program home page – Research other awards supported through program – Read relevant community / workshop reports Advice for Meeting with Program Officers • • • • • • • • Research Program officer and their program Provide tailored one-page description of your research Prepare questions and LISTEN to answers Dress appropriately – business attire Talk succinctly and clearly during meeting Allow Program Officer to talk about their program and issues of concern Take notes Send thank you emails following meeting and highlight any agreed next steps or follow up actions NSF Overview • FY 2016 budget ~ $7.5 billion • Six Research Directorates organized by science and engineering disciplines: – Biological Sciences (BIO) – Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) – Engineering (ENG) – Geosciences (GEO) – Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS) – Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences (SBE) • Education and Human Resources (EHR) directorate focuses on STEM teaching, learning, and workforce development • Priorities include clean energy, neuroscience, resilience, sustainability, and broadening participation PLUS new 10 big Ideas • Director remains in place, NSF so far under radar of Trump Administration • Potential threats to SBE, EHR, and GEO remain • Number of vacant staff positions How NSF Supports Researchers • • • • • • • • Investigator driven bottom up proposals to core discipline programs Dear Colleague Letters Focused Solicitations – often interdisciplinary, sometimes in collaboration with other agencies Workshops and Coordination Networks People EAGER / RAPID awards – respond quickly to new and emerging opportunities Supplemental awards CAREER Awards to early career faculty How to Engage with NSF? • Research the program/solicitation • Engage with your sponsored research office on campus – they know NSF rules • Contacting NSF: – Email first rather than phone and be specific – Provide details of the program/solicitation/award number that you want to discuss – Any attachments summarizing your research should be no more than 1-2 pages and should be tailored to that program officer – It’s OK to follow up with program officers, but don’t overdo it – Always be courteous – get feedback if their response is disappointing Recommendations for NSF CAREER • Strategy and expectations vary by division. Important to speak to program director before applying • Expectations related to education components also differ by division. –Some divisions like to see more focused education projects –Others want to see efforts that check a number of boxes, the education component has to be integrated with the research proposed and for some divisions (broadening participation, undergraduate research, etc.) –Department chair’s letter of support is helpful to show how education efforts would be of value to the department and its students. • Think carefully about when to apply as you only get a few chances. – Don’t submit at the very beginning of your career – Don’t wait so long that you can’t use your second and third tries. – The odds of obtaining a CAREER go up on the second try, so it’s important not to get discouraged. The research proposed for CAREER should be expansive enough to build a career on – very narrow research aims will not be competitive. First CAREER proposals often rejected because of presentation. Pay attention to details. NSF vs. NIH • Concerned with health of disciplines it supports and advancing fundamental science • Heavily focused on teaching, student mentoring, broadening participation, and broader impacts – every proposal must address broader impacts • Peer review is organized by program directors on an ad hoc basis – no standing panels • NSF program directors have more flexibility in determining program directions and funding decisions – proposal pressure and peer review are still main drivers NIH Overview • Enjoys strong bipartisan support—Senate appropriators included a $2 billion increase in FY 2017 budget over FY 2016 levels – FY 2017 CR provided $352 million for targeted initiatives through the 21st Century Cures Act – FY 2018 budget proposes 18 percent cut to NIH to pay for defense and national security increases • No leadership changes (for now) – Francis Collins held over as Director; Secretary Price has stated his support for NIH and increased funding for biomedical research • 21st Century Cures Act—signed into law December 2016 – Innovation Projects: Precision Medicine Initiative, BRAIN Initiative, Cancer Moonshot, Regenerative Medicine – $4.8 billion over 10 years; $352 million in FY 2017 – NIH policy changes: reduce administrative burden; Next Generation Researchers Initiative; EUREKA prize competitions; mandate agency-wide strategic plans; strengthen privacy protections for agencyfunded research; working group on rigor and reproducibility NIH Overview, con’t • Award trends: – NIGMS’ MIRA (R35) program will support people rather than projects to allow flexibility in pursuing research avenues; NCI, NINDS, NHLBI, NIDCR launched their versions and other ICs exploring – Collaborative funding mechanisms enhance program officers’ input on projects (U awards) – Special consideration for first-time applicants continues; new concerns over achieving second grants – Select pay across ICs enables program leaders to fund proposals above payline that meet priorities and unmet needs or to support new investigators – NIH leadership exploring ideas to maximize funding, including limiting funding, awards, or efforts per PI • NIH structure and policies: – Internal review of peer review process to increase innovative projects and improve diversity of grantees – Ongoing efforts to enhance rigor reproducibility of pre-clinical research – Advisory Committee to the Director Working Group launched recently How to Engage with NIH • Identify the program officer associated with the solicitation/program • Engage with your sponsored research office on campus for insight on NIH processes • Contacting NIH: – Email first rather than phone: summarize your research aims and how it fits into program officer’s portfolio or solicitation – Any attachments summarizing your research should be no more than 1-2 pages –Always be courteous and seek specific feedback –Contact sponsored research or Lewis-Burke if getting no response from program officer • Review the list of peer review panels and members on the Center for Scientific Review website • Seek insight from program officer on peer review panels most appropriate to review proposal • Suggest preferred panel on cover letter accompanying proposal DOD Overview • FY 2016 budget: RDTE: $69.7 billion; S&T Total: $12.99 billion • Office of basic research includes: – Army Research Office (ARO) – Office of Naval research (ONR) – Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) • Other DOD branches include: – Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) – Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) – DOD Health • Trump’s budget Blueprint would: – Provide an additional $52 billion for DOD in FY 2018 – Request also included additional $33 billion for FY 2017 – 2017 NDAA included language directing DOD to establish a Manufacturing Engineering Education Grant Program DOD Organization! Approximately $2 billion basic researc h! across research offices! DOD Funding Mechanisms • Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs) are competitive solicitations for basic and applied research proposals • Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) program supports research conducted by teams of investigators that intersect more than one traditional science and engineering discipline in order to accelerate research progress • Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship (formerly NSSEFF) provides extensive, longterm financial support to distinguished university faculty and staff scientists and engineers to conduct unclassified, basic research on topics of interest to DoD • Minerva Research Initiative initiated by former Secretary Gates in 2008, “seeks to build deeper understanding of the social, cultural, and political dynamics that shape regions of strategic interest around the world.” • Young Investigator Programs (YIP) or DARPA Young Faculty Award – awards range in size from $50k - $170k per year