VPDoR Large Propel Grant - 2023 Spring Cycle

The Stanford Research Development Office (RDO) is a unit under VPDoR that aims to strengthen collaborative or strategic research, scholarship, and creative activities by helping to set PIs up for sponsored research funding success through project-opportunity alignment, early preparation, and proposal development support.

RDO invites applications from Stanford faculty for Large Propel Grants. The objectives of the program are to support collaborative research efforts in their pursuit of external funding and maximize competitiveness of external funding applications.

RDO anticipates awarding up to ten Large Propel grants per year (four to five per cycle*), with awards of up to $50,000 per team.  Awards up to $100,000 may be considered based on demonstrated need.

*Award cycles are detailed in the timeline below.

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION IS 11:59 PM ON APRIL 26, 2023

Propel Grant Purpose

Propel Grants are designed to help Stanford-led research teams clear those final hurdles to submitting a competitive proposal for external funding.

Funded activities should support the development of key characteristics for grant success, which include:

• a vetted vision, concept, and/or approach that fares well in review,
• a demonstrated collaborative and cohesive team,
• necessary preliminary data, proof of concept, and/or other elements to convince reviewers of feasibility,
• alignment with and responsiveness to all sponsor and program goals, and
• a well-written and beautifully illustrated proposal.

Two levels of funding are available.

• $5,000: Small Propel Grants support administrative activities within the next six months.
• Up to $50,000: Large Propel Grants support research activities within the next year.

$50,000 Grant Supported Activities

Funding from the Large Propel Grants is intended to help Stanford researchers position themselves well for larger, externally sponsored research funding. Activities should focus on establishing feasibility or generating additional preliminary data, as needed for the externally funded sponsored research application. Activities should be specific and well-defined. Examples include, but are not limited to, specific research experiments, establishing access to archives, consultations with experts on evaluation or data management, and/or other elements to enhance chances of funding success.     

Large Propel Grants are not intended to fund nascent projects that are still defining the research question or forming the initial team; such proposers are encouraged to apply to other programs that may be better suited to serve such needs.

Priorities

Applications are particularly encouraged for, but not limited to, projects that do one or more of the following:

• involve collaborative research across two or more departments
• include team members from backgrounds underrepresented in the academy (e.g., ethnic, cultural or socioeconomic backgrounds, research expertise, career stage, institution/sector, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, etc.)
• strengthen collaboration between Stanford and SLAC

Who should apply?

This is not a traditional seed grant. The program is intended to support projects which are:

• already defined, with teams preparing to apply for external sponsored research funding
• collaborative in nature and “beyond the usual” in scale* for their disciplines in terms of research scope, award budget, and team size.

*It is up to the applicants to explain how their team, project and proposal go “beyond the usual” in scale for their discipline.

RDO will award a portfolio of projects that represent the diversity and breadth of scholarly areas at Stanford. Preference will be given to disciplines or fields that have limited internal grant program support.

We are committed to creating an environment that values and embraces diversity: Applications from those persons who are typically underrepresented in their field are particularly encouraged.

Eligibility

All Stanford faculty with principal investigator (PI) eligibility may apply (i.e., members of the University's Academic Council or UML faculty). Projects from the School of Medicine must include a meaningful faculty partnership with other Stanford school(s) to be eligible for funding.

The ideal applicants for a Large Propel Grant are collaborative teams pursuing projects “beyond the usual” in scale, who are positioned to submit an extramural funding application in the next year (up to 24 months with strong justification) but need to strengthen the key characteristics for grant success.

Priority is given to projects with Stanford as the lead institution, but project teams where Stanford is a substantially funded subawardee are also eligible to apply.

The lead PI must apply through Stanford Seed Funding. Applications submitted by other personnel (grad students, postdocs, etc.) may not be reviewed.

Timeline

Award Amount and Term

For most applications, the budget should be limited to $50,000 to support efforts over the next 12 months. Requests up to $100,000 and/or up to 24 months may be considered based on demonstrated need.

Application Instructions

Applications are accepted through the Stanford Seed Funding website. Please submit a PDF file for each of the following sections, single spaced with a minimum of an 11-point font and 1-inch margins on all sides.

1. Overarching research idea (maximum one page). This should be a high-level overview of the research idea/vision that forms the basis of your external funding application. Specify how the project is collaborative in nature and “beyond the usual” in scale for your discipline.
2. Team composition (0.5 page).  Include the members’ names, titles, and departments or institutions if external to Stanford, indicating which are confirmed or proposed. Include a paragraph describing the status/readiness level of the collaboration. If applicable, describe the diversity within the team.
3. External funding plan (0.5 page). Describe the plan to pursue external funding. A minimum of one potential external grant must be identified. Include the following details on the targeted external grant(s). Proposing an alternative or back-up funding plan is encouraged.
   1. sponsor name
   2. program name or identifier
   3. submission date
   4. expected budget request to Stanford, and
   5. URL to the funding solicitation if available.
4. Proposed activities (maximum 3 pages, not including references). Describe the research activities the Propel Grant funds will support, the timeline, the anticipated outcomes, and how the funded activities will enhance the competitiveness of an external grant application. Please provide enough details on the specific experimental design, approach, or activity to allow peer reviewers to assess likely impact.
5. Budget and justification (1-2 pages). Provide a detailed table of estimated expenses and explain the need for this grant. If your budget exceeds $50,000, please justify.

We strongly advise the application to be written in clear, concise language accessible to a non-specialist audience.

Review Process and Criteria

Applications are initially screened against program alignment and compliance by RDO staff, then competitively reviewed by at least two faculty reviewers with topical expertise for suitability of the proposed plan, likely impact on future external funding, and alignment with the program purpose and priorities.

Successful Large Propel Grant applications should result in the submission of at least one proposal to an external funding agency and address the following criteria:

• Significance & Impact: Will the overarching research idea be compelling to the external sponsor(s)?
• Feasibility: Does the application convey a well-reasoned research design with specific outcomes? Can the project be successfully implemented within the proposed timeline and budget?
• Proposed activities: Are the proposed activities suitable and enhance the competitiveness of an external application?
• Potential for external funding: Is the plan to pursue external funding reasonable, with a high chance of submitting a well-aligned proposal?
• Appropriate Budget: Does the budget reflect the actual needs of the project to accomplish the specific aim(s)?
• Team Composition: Does the application demonstrate a strong and/or established collaboration and a cohesive team with sufficient expertise to carry out the research?

RDO will award a portfolio of projects that represent the diversity and breadth of scholarly areas. Preference will be given to disciplines or fields that have limited internal grant program support.

Award Reporting

Grant recipients will (1) submit a brief end-of-grant report at the end of the grant period describing what was accomplished and/or lessons learned, and (2) complete a brief survey one year after the award period describing the impact and outcomes of the project in the longer term.

In addition, teams should notify RDO if the Propel Grants contributed to a noteworthy outcome, or if any external funds were received, for up to two years after award.

Contact

We welcome the opportunity to answer questions from potential applicants. Please contact the program manager, Jessica Boydston, at rdo_seedgrants@stanford.edu.

Answers to frequently asked questions will be posted on our webpage. Please visit FAQs for more information.