NIH with sea lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

The National Institutes of Health will offer a regional seminar Oct. 14-16 in San Diego, home of Sea World and the San Diego Zoo. Details are available here.

Education grant webinar for new investigators

The U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Educational Sciences will offer webinars June 8 and 15 on how to write proposals for its education research and special education research grant programs. Details on registering are available here. These programs support work on literacy outcomes for students, including English language learners, students with disabilities and students at risk for academic failure.

NSF Day at Texas Tech May 20

Texas Tech in Lubbock will host an NSF Day May 20. It's an opportunity to learn what the agency wants to fund, how to write a competitive proposal and learn budgeting basics. Registration information is available here.

NIH Grant Seminar May 6-8 in Baltimore

NIH's next Seminar on Program Funding and Grants Administration will take place May 6-8 in Baltimore. The Orioles' schedule indicates that, alas, they will be out of town, playing the dreaded Yankees. However, faculty who have attended the seminar say it is quite helpful, with or without baseball.

Federal award database

It's getting easier to find information on federal grant awards. The Star Metrics website contains information on awards by NIH, NSF, USDA and EPA.

Weird Al on grammar

Weird Al has released a music video on grammar. Just a reminder that basics like good grammar are important when writing proposals.

NSF grants conference Oct. 6-7 in VA

The National Science Foundation will present a grants conference Oct. 6-7 in Arlington, VA, sponsored by George Washington University. Watch the website for registration details.

Cartoon on NIH public access policy

 Grants Maven goes animated. Watch this Wideo about NIH's public access policy.

More tales of the NSF OIG

A former professor in Indiana was sentenced to probation and home confinement after pleading guilty to criminal conversion, according to NSF's latest  Semiannual Report to Congress. According to the report, he had used NSF funds to purchase items for personal use. The report also discusses nine allegations of plagiarism and two of data fabrication.

NIH wants to know who you really are

Enough with the standard bioskecth. NIH is preparing a new biosketch format that will allow you to discuss your accomplishments, not just list your publication. NIH will conduct pilot test and expects to roll out the new biosketch in 2016.

NSF award rates for 2013

The success rate for research proposals to the National Science Foundation in 2013 was 19 percent, according to a newly released report from the National Science Board. Check out the full report for details.

NSF Day June 4 on Long Island, NY

The National Science Foundation will present a one-day proposal workshop for researchers June 4 at
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory on Long Island, NY. Registration is required.

This year's one and only NIH grant seminar

The National Institutes of Health will present a grant seminar June 25-27 in Baltimore. The session will cover the application and review process as well as federal policies. It's the only seminar NIH will give all year.

COFAR: It will affect you

The Council on Financial Assistance Reform (COFAR) is a federal task force that has combined more than a dozen sets of grant rules into a single document called Uniform Guidance. Some provisions will make the life of grant writers easier. For example, funding announcement will have to be released 60 days before the deadline in most cases. The grant administration community is less pleased with some other provisions, though.

No surprises: NIH award rates down

The National Institutes of Health has released  award data for 2013. It won't come as a surprise to investigators that the success rate for proposals inched down from 17.6 percent in 2012 to 16.8 percent in 2013. The size of awards also decreased.

NSF plans June grants conference in Mile High City

Colorado State University will host the NSF Grants Conference scheduled for June 23-24. Visit the site to sign up to receive email when registration opens.

NIH regional seminar possible in spring 2014

The National Institutes of Health says it will have just one regional seminar on grants next year. It is scheduled for spring 2014 in a location to be announced -- possibly Baltimore. Stay tuned.

More tales of the NSF OIG

 The latest Semiannual Report to Congress from the Office of the Inspector General at the National Science Foundation contains discussion of a variety of research misconduct investigations. They include falsification of data and instances of plagiarism. In two instances, investigators allowed their collaborators to prepare the bulk of the proposal and didn't review it before submission. Moral of the story: Be sure to carefully review anything that's got your name on it.

Feds reopen; what's next

The National Institutes of Health has posted guidance for grantees and grant seekers now that the federal government has reopened. New deadlines have been established.

The National Science Foundation also has posted some brief information on what to expect now that it is once again open for business.

Stay tuned for details.

Shutdown central

The Office of Management and Budget has posted federal agency contingency plans for the shutdown in a single list.

Specific information for grantees of the National Institutes of Health.  It states, "The safest course is to wait to submit any application to NIH until after operations resume and a Notice in the NIH Guide concerning adjusted submission dates is posted."

The National Science Foundation says FastLane will be unavailable, and proposals submitted through Grants.gov will not be downloaded. "Awardees may continue performance under their NSF awards during the shutdown, to the extent funds are available, and the term of the grant or cooperative agreement has not expired," the agency states on this website.