Discovery Awards - Call for Proposals - Deadline: September 17

Discovery is a women’s collaborative philanthropic group established to support projects and programs at Ball State University. Discovery members are volunteers who pool annual contributions and work with university administrators to select the projects they support.

Discovery invites the submission of project proposals for funding in 2013. The due date for project nominations is September 17, 2012. Proposals must be turned into the Sponsored Programs Office by September 17. It is highly recommended to contact SPO well in advance of the submission deadline.

Discovery members are interested in projects that significantly impact Ball State students, offer immersive learning opportunities, and have potential for other external funding in the future. We ask that you submit proposals that match your priorities as well as the selection criteria identified by Discovery. Discovery funds projects that further the mission of the university as expressed in the 2007- 2012 Strategic Plan.

Please click here for full guidelines

From the proposals received, the committee will invite six project directors to make oral presentations in November 2012. Decisions will be announced in February.

Extramural Nexus: What you're missing!

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Extramural Research (OER) has a monthly newsletter called "Extramural Nexus".  This newsletter provides many helpful articles and tips to prepare your NIH proposal!

A quick FAQ of sorts is the "You Ask, We Answer" portion. Here is a sample of the questions:

• Is There a Time Limit for Resubmission?
• How Do I Fill Out the Budget Form for an AREA App?
• For a Resubmission, May I Request a Different Study Section or IC?

Read: http://nexus.od.nih.gov/all/category/you-ask-we-answer/

OER also provides an extensive archive of podcasts specifically designed for investigators by those that know the information best! Topics include:

• Prepare a Successful Grant Application?
• Be an NIH Investigator?
• Understand How Your Grant is Reviewed?

Listen: http://grants.nih.gov/podcasts/All_About_Grants/

New resources are posted on a regular basis on a variety of new regulations and policies. Examples include:

• Tutorial on new regulations regarding Financial Conflict of Interest (FCOI)
• Sample funded R-21 applications with summaries
• Peer review news and advicee

Learn: http://nexus.od.nih.gov/all/category/new-resources/

Dr. Sally Rockey is NIH's Deputy Director for Extramural Research. Her blog "Rock Talk" is updated frequently with new information straight from the NIH.

• Postdoctoral Researchers—Facts, Trends, and Gaps
• What We’ve Learned About Graduate Students

Rock: http://nexus.od.nih.gov/all/rock-talk/

From Inside Higher Ed: How To Ask

This article was originally published by Inside Higher Ed June 6, 2012, written by Elizabeth H. Simmons.

Suppose you have a great idea for improving a course, starting a research project, undertaking public outreach, or helping students explore alternative career paths. To launch this idea, you need some key resource: a research assistant, working space, a teaching fellow, supplies, a website, or support to attend a workshop. Perhaps you’ve even recently seen an invitation from a foundation, a federal agency, an on-campus institute, or your department chair to apply for support.

How can you acquire what you need to start the project? That depends what you need and from whom you need it.

Formal calls for proposals from external funding agencies are straightforward to pursue. They usually come with specific directions about what kinds of activities are supported, how much to request and what documentation to submit.

Seeking funds within your institution can seem more murky. If you are contacting your department chair in response to a brief announcement at a faculty meeting, it may be hard to know where to start. This article discusses how to ask for resources effectively, whether or not an official call for proposals has been issued.

From {Centered}: Aim for clarity in your proposals

Before submitting a grant request, you must thoroughly research and understand the needs of the grantmaker, and you must plan the program for which you will seek funds. Then comes the crucial final step--producing a convincing proposal. In "Clear Writing Helps Make the Case for Funding" (Local/State Funding Report, April 30, 2012), Jodi Pearl explains how to achieve the necessary clarity:

1. Do the obvious--follow the grantmaker's guidelines! Read them through twice. Highlight directions on formatting requirements, length restrictions, allowable and non-allowable costs, etc. 
2. Use the conventions of standard English. Put sentences in the active voice. Try to avoid using boldface type, ALL CAPS, underlining, or italics unless the guidelines request them. 
3. Organize the ideas in the proposal appropriately. 
4. Express those ideas so that even a reviewer who is not expert in your field can understand them. If possible, test how well you've done this by having someone outside your organization read the proposal. 
5. Make your argument persuasive enough to stand up against competing proposals. 

Source: {Centered} June 2012 - Volume 5, Issue 6 © 2012 The Grantsmanship Center. All rights reserved. www.tgci.com

Ball State Research - Summer 2012 Update!

The Sponsored Programs Office (SPO) is pleased to publish an update to the annual online “magazine,” Ball State Research. The publication features scholarly and creative activity of representative faculty members who have been funded by external sponsors.

The Summer 2012 Update explores two projects that are 2,000 miles apart but closely aligned in their commitment to understand and preserve cultural heritage.

• Preserving Indigenous Languages in Mexico 
• We Dig, Dig, Dig: The Applied Archaeology Laboratories of Ball State

Welcome the new Director of the Sponsored Programs Office!

It is our pleasure to announce the appointment of Justin M. Miller as the Director of the Sponsored Programs Office (SPO) effective July 1, 2012. Justin joined the SPO staff in 2007 and is well known to many on campus as an energetic and capable Proposal Manager. In his new role as Director, he will be responsible for all pre-award services related to sponsored program activity, including guiding SPO staff in information dissemination, proposal development and submission, campus education, incentive and internal grant programs, and alignment of data and procedures with the University ERP system.

Prior to his service in sponsored programs, Justin was Program Coordinator for the Arizona Humanities Council. His undergraduate degree from Ball State was in Environmental Ethics (within the Religious Studies major), and he received the Master of Public Administration degree from Arizona State University in 2007. His completion of the Ed.D. in Higher Education from Ball State University is anticipated in December 2012.

Please join us in welcoming Justin Miller to his new post as the Director of the Sponsored Programs Office!

NCURA's YouTube Tuesday - America Invents Act

Cathy Innes of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, gives an overview of what is changing with the new Leahy-Smith America Invents Act of 2011.



Summary of the Bill:
On September 16, 2011, President Obama signed into law the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (H.R. 1249), a bill that updates the United States patent system to encourage innovation, job creation and economic growth. Much-needed reforms to the patent system are long overdue. The last major patent re¬form was nearly 60 years ago. The Act implements a first-inventor-to-file standard for patent approval, creates a post-grant review system to weed out bad patents, and helps the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) address the backlog of patent applications. 

For those interested, the full text of the Act can be found at the United States Government Printing Office as a PDF.

From GRC: NIH Launches New Tool for PIs to Evaluate Prospects

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has recently introduced LikeThis, a new search tool to help principal investigators identify other research projects that have similar goals and objectives as their own. By entering specific search terms or clicking on the “LikeThis” link on their own application or award pages in the Commons, investigators will gain access to awards, publications, and potential partners to help them develop more successful future proposals.

LikeThis is expected to be used in several ways: to identify the likely institute or center to contact as the application progresses and to list as a preference in the cover letter; to formulate new ideas for research based on what NIH has awarded in the past; and to determine whether a research idea really is innovative. The tool is currently available only to principal investigators. Following eRA’s July 19-20, 2012 software release, LikeThis will be made available to signing officials and others with eRA roles such as trainees, postdoctoral researchers, and assistants. In the meantime, see the user guide and frequently-asked questions for more information.

From Arts:92: Teaching Artists to be Eligible for Arts IN Education Grants

The Indiana Arts Commission (IAC) announced earlier this month that for the first time teaching artists will be eligible to apply for the IAC's Arts IN Education grants. Eligible teaching artists must be 18 years of age or older. They must have been an Indiana resident for one year prior to the date of application, and must remain an Indiana resident during the grant period.

Eligible teaching artists may not be enrolled in any degree-granting program (undergraduate, graduate and doctorate) as of October 11th, 2012. Teaching artists may not apply as part of a collaboration for which another artist is also applying in the same year, and may not apply on behalf of an organization. Organizations, other than schools, may not apply.

As in years past, applicants may request up to $3,000 for their project. Grant awards must be matched, dollar for dollar with the IAC grant awarded with school funds, contributed funds, in-kind donations, or services. Funding may not replace or supplant existing resources.

Funded projects must take place during the scheduled school day and may not fund after-school or summer activities. Projects must also meet a minimum of five (5) Indiana academic standards (from three required last year).

Applications will open in mid August with an application deadline of October 11, 2012. 

Arts IN Education grant information and guidelines will be available online in mid-August. Interested applicants should then refer to the IAC website Arts IN Education page.

If there are additional questions, please email Susan Britsch or call 317-232-1281.

Keep yourself informed with SPO Info Sessions!

The Sponsored Programs Office conducts many workshops and information sessions throughout the year for students, faculty, and staff. Please visit our website for more information and updates!  

April 11, 2012
Grantsmanship Information Session (GIS) ~ Click here for video - 1:17:54
Need grant funding to carry out your work? In a quandary about how to get started? Hear first-hand experiences from funded colleagues who have successfully navigated the path to a grant award. This hour-long discussion will include topics such as, how to identify funding opportunities, and how to position yourself as a scholar.

May 2, 2012
Core Fulbright Information Session ~ Click here for video - 1:18:05

The Sponsored Programs Office, in conjuction with the Rinker Center for International Programs and the Contracts and Grants Office, present an information session on the Core Fulbright Scholar Program for University faculty and professional personnel. Former Ball State Fulbright awardees present their perspectives and experiences with Fulbright.