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American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

Fogarty ARRA Administrative Supplement for Support of Information and Communication Technology Initiatives in Research and Research Training Programs

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), the Fogarty International Center (FIC) is soliciting one and (if applicable) two-year administrative supplements to currently active FIC research and research training grants for FY 2009 and FY 2010 to support the development of information and communication technology (ICT) activities to enhance FIC research and research training grants.

• No letter of intent is required. However, we would appreciate email notification by May 1 of your intention to submit an application, with a brief description of the proposed activities, to help in setting up the administrative review of proposals. Please submit to: katzf@mail.nih.gov.
• Supplement applications may request up to $20,000 direct costs per year for one or two years. Only one supplement application may be submitted in support of each FIC grant.
• Eligible FIC programs include:
  
  • International Cooperative Biodiversity Groups
  • AIDS International Training and Research Program
  • Fogarty International Collaborative Trauma and Injury Research Training Program
  • International Clinical, Operational and Health Services Research Training Award for AIDS /TB
  • Global Infectious Disease Research Training Program
  • International Research Ethics Education and Curriculum Development Awards
  • Informatics Training for Global Health
  • R00 grants
  • International Clinical, Operational and Health Services Research Training Award
  • International Training and Research in Environmental and Occupational Health
  • Brain Disorders in the Developing World: Research Across the Lifespan
  • International Tobacco and Health Research and Capacity Building Program
  • Global Research Training in Population Health
  • Ecology of Infectious Diseases
  • Stigma and Global Health Research

Definition of an “active” grant and period of supplement support: Applicants with grants that have less than 12 months left in the project period on the application receipt date (6/1/2009) may request one year of supplement funding, while grants that have greater than 12 months remaining on the application receipt date may request two years of supplement funding. For projects that will end before the end of the proposed supplement period, no-cost extensions should be requested and will be approved on a case-by-case basis contingent on availability of unobligated funds and appropriate plans for using them.

Purpose and Scope

The goal of this supplement is to stimulate the incorporation of information and communication technologies (ICT) into FIC global health research and research training programs in order to enhance the quality, effectiveness, and reach of the programs and facilitate and deepen the collaborative aspects of international teams. The activities proposed may include any aspect of the design, adaptation, or implementation of ICT as a tool to enhance the activities of the FIC research or research training grant. Examples of the types of activities allowed include but are not limited to the following:

• Increased use of video conferencing or web collaboration applications for communication among group members such as group meetings and planning sessions, grant proposal preparation, mentoring students, joint seminars or consultations, creating a virtual global seminar series, and conducting virtual conferences and workshops. FIC provides free access for grantees to one web collaboration tool, Elluminate, and others are available on the internet.
• Creation of new distance learning materials, courses, and formats to increase bilateral exchange of information, foster comparative case studies, and reach larger numbers of students;
• Applications to facilitate data sharing, such as web-based systems for the confidential transfer of large datasets, transfer of images, or access to large databases;
• Application of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) or modeling approaches to research including purchase of software, hardware, and licenses; training; and access to appropriate datasets;
• Access to, training in, and use of publicly available databases for research such as the NIH genomic and proteomics databases, clinical trials registries, and many others;
• Development, adaptation or implementation of ICT for research, such as the introduction of personal digital assistants (PDAs) or cell phones for field data capture and community-based clinical research; integration of databases; creation of new database platforms and content; incorporation of direct data capture, e.g. from bioassays or patient procedures; and others;
• Upgrade of microscopes or other imaging technologies to allow digitization of images to increase analysis, storage, and data sharing;
• Informatics training;
• Creation of a collaborative website is allowable but should not be a major activity unless the website will directly increase capabilities in the program, e.g. by providing resources for data transfer and sharing, provide a web portal to access information on a distant server, or actively increase communication among the network through wikis or other non-synchronous exchange mechanisms.

FIC grantees with independent awards based at the same institution are encouraged to work together to propose common ICT-relevant courses, activities, initiatives, equipment and software that might benefit all groups.

Supplement Application Requirements

Applications should contain the following PHS 398 form pages with the specified information (instructions and downloadable form pages can be found at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html):

• Cover letter including:
  • References to notice NOT-OD-056 and the Recovery Act Administrative Supplements
  • PD/PI name
  • Parent grant number
  • Dollar amount of the request
  • Name and title of the institutional official(s)
  • Contact information for PD/PI and institutional official(s)
  • Signature of institutional official(s)
• Face page- Form page 1
  • Fill in “Title of Project” with the title of the existing FIC grant to which the supplemental funds will be added
  • Check “Yes” for “Response to Specific Request for Application or Program Announcement or Solicitation”, leave “Number” blank and fill in “Title” with “Fogarty ARRA Supplement for Support of ICT Initiatives”
  • Program Director information is for the grantee of the existing FIC award to which supplemental funds will be added
  • “Human Subjects Research” and “Vertebrate Animals” boxes should be filled in with all NIH required information provided in the application
  • Face page must be signed by the appropriate institutional official
• Form page 2 (Supplement Project Summary, Relevance, Performance Sites)
• Form Page 2 continued (Key Personnel)
• Use the Initial Budget Period & Justification- Form Page 4 to list Year 1 and (if applicable) another Form Page 4 to list Year 2 detailed budget costs which may include:
  • Salaries for course development or delivery, ICT coordinators, mentors, extending the term of senior trainees such as postdocs, consultants in informatics, technical support, and others.
  • Travel for research (where tied to an ICT intervention in a research grant), conferences, consultations, and coordination
  • Purchase of equipment, software, licenses, and ICT-related supplies
  • Subcontracts to foreign institutions for up to 10% of the requested supplement budget or up to $25,000 per year (whichever is less).
• Form page 5 Budget for Entire Proposed Project Period & Justification
• Biographical Sketch Format Pages (for new individuals not included in the original application)
• Key personnel report (Form Page 7 of PHS 2509, Progress Report form)
• Targeted/Planned Enrollment Table Format Page (if human subjects involved in proposed research)
• Note any changes to human and/or animal subjects (if applicable)
• IRB and/or IACUC approval documentation, including expiration dates (if applicable)
• Human subjects education confirmation for new personnel (if applicable)
• Checklist Form Page

Applications should contain:

1. One- or two-year time line of all planned activities
2. Description of Activities (5 pages maximum) including:
   • A description of the proposed activities;
   • A justification of how the proposed activities will enhance or transform the research or research training program;
   • A discussion of potential barriers to implementation and how they will be addressed;
   • Where appropriate, a description of any sustainable deliverable or outcome from the supplemental activities;
   • A brief description of how the proposed activities address the intent of the ARRA.

FIC encourages supplement applications that address the goals and strategic priorities of the FIC Strategic Plan, especially to “Bolster the development of expertise and use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in support of research and research training programs.”

Please send an electronic version (pdf) of the signed application to FICict@mail.nih.gov by June 1, 2009 and a paper copy mailed to the following address, postmarked no later than June 1, 2009:

ATTN: DEAS
ARRA ICT Supplement Receipt
Fogarty International Center, NIH
Building 31, Room B2C39
31 Center Drive
Bethesda, MD 20892-2220

Review Criteria

Applications will be reviewed on the basis of Recovery Act criteria that projects will accelerate the tempo of scientific research; allow for U.S. job creation and retention; and stimulate the U.S. economy by:

• enabling hiring of additional staff;
• enabling increased hours of current part-time staff;
• procuring additional needed equipment;
• And/or contracting for additional needed skills.

Applications will also be reviewed for:

• Scientific, technical and educational merit of the proposed project as determined by administrative review
• The potential of the ICT intervention to enhance and transform the quality, productivity, capabilities, and reach of the research or research training project
• Where appropriate, sustainability of the ICT activity/intervention, such as the development of a “deliverable” that will be useful beyond the one- or two-year period of funding for continued collaboration or as adaptable to new research and research training collaborative projects
• Where appropriate, likely impact on the institutional community, such as a proposal involving shared activities among multiple programs
• Likelihood that the proposed activities will contribute to the achievement of the ARRA goal of incorporating "green" technologies into scientific and health activities

Contact:

Please contact Dr. Flora Katz if you have any questions regarding this opportunity:

katzf@mail.nih.gov
301-402-9591

You may also wish to discuss the proposed supplement activities with the FIC Program Officer on your FIC grant.