Surf's up: NSF in Santa Cruz

Hawaiian royalty first taught mainlanders to surf in this town, and the National Science Foundation will teach new scientists how to hang ten with federal funding. NSF Day at the University of California-Santa Cruz is scheduled for Nov. 20, 2009. Click the headline for details.

NIH: The forms, they are a changin'

The paper PHS 398 and the electronic SF 424 (R&R) application packages will be updated in December and must be used with grants submitted on or after Jan 25, 2010. It's related to the new, enhanced review criteria. Click the headline for more information.

NIH AREA grant expiration date extended

The expiration date of PA-06-042 has been extended to Jan. 10, 2010. "Beginning with the October 25, 2009 receipt date, the funding limit for the AREA (R15) will be increased to a total of $300,000 direct costs plus applicable Facilities and Administrative (F&A)/ indirect costs, for up to three years," the NIH states. Click the headline for details.

NEH database of funded projects

Wondering whether the National Endowment for the Humanities has funded anything in your field? Check the database to find out.

NSF policy for responsible conduct of research (RCR)

NSF requires grant proposals to include a plan to train participants in the responsible conduct of research. Click the headline to read the announcement.

NEH grant workshop at Central Arkansas

The University of Central Arkansas Sponsored Programs Office will host a National Endowment for the Humanities Grant Workshop. The workshop, conducted by Dr. Douglas Arnold, a senior program officer with NEH, will be from 9:30 a.m. to noon. Workshop attendees can also have individual appointments with Dr. Arnold from 1:30 to 6 p.m.; these are available on a first come, first served basis. Three networking/discussion sessions will be offered from 1:30 to 3 p.m. for (1) research administrators, (2) public school administrators and faculty and (3) humanities faculty and administrators from universities, four-year colleges and two-year colleges. There is no fee for the workshop, but space is limited and registration is required.

• For more information, contact Beryline Temples at 501.450.3451 or email beryline@uca.edu.

• For registration, contact Kimberly Ashley-Pauley at 501.450.3451 or email kashley@uca.edu.

FederalReporting.gov open for registration

You will need to register here before submitting the quarterly reports required for Recovery Act grants. The link above takes you to NIH information for its grantees. The direct link to the website is https://www.federalreporting.gov/.

NIH Core Facilities (G20) proposal page limits

NIH has clarified language in its Recovery Act limited competition, Core Facility Renovation, Repair, and Improvement (G20) (RFA-RR-09-007) regarding page limits. Applications are limited to 20 pages of text. Click the headline to read the notice.

Grants.gov unavailable Aug. 8 and 9

Grants.gov will be unavailable this weekend (Aug. 8 and 9) while upgrades are installed. You'll have to go to the beach instead of working on your grant submission.

NIH Recovery Act reporting

Those Recovery Act dollars carry special reporting requirements. NIH provides details about those requirements at this website.

NSF Day at U. of Vermont

The National Science Foundation, Vermont Epscor, and the University of Vermont are hosting NSF Day Sept. 15 in Burlington. The session is geared for less-experienced grant seekers, but others can benefit from it. Click the headline for details.

Find Recovery Act funding

Grants.gov is sponsoring a series of four webinars to assist grant seekers in finding funding opportunities supported by the Recovery Act. Session titles are:

Grants.gov and FedBizOpps: Finding Recovery Act Opportunities

Introduction to Grants.gov and the Recovery Act

Finding Recovery Act Opportunities

Registration to Submit Recovery Act Opportunities.

Click on the headline for details.

GAO releases report on Grants.gov

No surprises here for anyone who uses Grants.gov. GAO recommendations include a government-wide definition of what constitutes a timely submission and the formation of an "applicant user group" through which government would get input from grantees. The Maven wonders how relevant this all is, given the current proliferation of alternative grant submission systems. BTW, GAO is on YouTube.

NSF is on Facebook

Lots of interesting information. Click the headline to visit.

NSF is on Twitter

Updates on grant programs as well as announcements of scientific discoveries. Click on the headline.

Search NIH awards

A new, easy-to-use database. Take a look.

Clues on comparative effectiveness funding emerge

The Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality has posted a plan for use of Recovery Act funds slated for comparative effectiveness research. No call for proposals yet, though.

PIs say NCI too conservative in grantmaking

The June 28 issue of the New York Times had a piece in which cancer researchers said scientific progress is impeded by the conservative grant process at NIH.

Are ARRA reports really due July 10?

According to federalreporting.gov, it looks like the first reports will be due Oct. 10 The online reporting tool is not yet available. Click the link for details.

NSF ARI-R2 FAQ

Click the headline for FAQs written with complete words and sentences. :)