Grant Purpose:

The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), through the Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS) and the O'Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, is pleased to offer a $20,000 funding opportunity for collaborative teams of UAB faculty members and community members/organizations.

Through this collaborative effort between the CCTS, the O'Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, and local communities, the funded grants will aim to provide preliminary data that may:

• Foster research that addresses major health challenges in Alabama, with an emphasis on diseases (e.g., cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity) and lifestyle behaviors (e.g., diet, physical activity, and sleep) linked to higher risk of cancer.
• Strengthen partnerships with communities, ensuring that research is both community-driven and scientifically rigorous.
• Provide seed funding to initiate impactful, collaborative research that can be expanded upon through additional funding sources in the future.

Funding Details: 

• Download RFA here (PDF).
• Amount: Up to $20,000 per project. Up to two projects will be funded.
• Application Deadline: Submit all components compiled as a single PDF to CCTS@uab.edu by the deadline of May 15, 2025; 11:59pm. Deadline for submissions has been extended to May 22, 2025, 11:59pm.
• Duration: One year (July 1, 2025 –June 30, 2026).
• Allowable Expenses: Funds can be used for community partner, graduate, undergraduate, and administrative effort; materials and supplies; research related expenses (analysis costs, participant stipends, lab expenses, etc); and project-related local and scientific travel.
• Disallowed Expenses: Funds cannot be used for faculty effort or fringe.

Application Process:

• Eligibility: UAB faculty are eligible to apply as principal investigator and application must include a community partner, who is part of an organization with 501c3 status, as a multi-PI or co-investigator. Proposals must focus on health challenges that are pertinent to Alabama, especially those related to diseases with high mortality rates and modifiable lifestyle behaviors. This collaboration ensures that the research is not only academically rigorous but also grounded in the needs and priorities of the community.
• Proposal Components & Instructions and Formatting Guidelines: Applications must conform to formatting instructions and include all required components or they will not be reviewed. There will not be an opportunity to edit submitted applications after the submission deadline.
  • General Application formatting:
    1. All four margins ≥ 0.5”. Arial 11 pt. or Times New Roman 12 pt. with > 8 pt. font for tables and figure legends.
    2. Submit your application as a single document in PDF format with the sections compiled in the order below.
    3. Cover sheet: Please use the cover sheet provided and obtain the signature of your Division Director.
  •  Proposal Sections (assembly order):
    1. Lay abstract: (30 lines) Please provide a brief description of your project in lay terms. This is to inform non-scientists at potential funding sources of the importance of the proposed work.
    2. Scientific Abstract: (30 lines) State your hypothesis and its relevance, significance and innovation in scientific terms. State why the work is critical to providing a strong premise for your hypothesis. Do not include figures or diagrams.
    3. Relevance to catchment area: (30 lines) Please identify how your project will address specific needs of our catchment area (within the State of Alabama). For example, provide information on specific cancer burdens and outcomes in the catchment area that your work may impact.
    4. Complementary expertise and strengths of the Co-investigative team: (30 lines) Provide a description of the unique strengths and complementary expertise of the research team that makes it clear why the investigators are best suited to complete the proposed research. A listing of any prior evidence of collaboration, such as grants and co-authored publications, should be included and are not a part of the page limit.
    5. Significance: (1 page) State background to support your proposal and its potential to impact a catchment-relevant priority.
    6. Approach and Preliminary Data: (3 pages) Provide specific aims, study design and any key data needed to support your hypothesis. Describe the approach you will use to carry out the specific aims. Discuss your expected results and at least one alternate result, and how you may alter your approach if this result is achieved. Discuss at least one potential technical challenge and how you would approach it.
    7. Readiness: (30 lines) List key elements (equipment, staff, approaches, animal models etc.) for the proposed work that are already in place that will allow you to initiate the proposed studies without delay.
    8. Next Steps: (30 lines) Explain what you plan to do after completing this seed grant, including aims and potential funding mechanisms for next grant application.
    9. Bibliography: (No page limit) Use a format that includes article titles and all authors.
    10. Biosketch: Include NIH biosketches for PIs and Multi-PIs only (including the community member Multi-PIs).
    11. Other and Pending Support: For PI and Multi-PIs only. Include all (extramural and intramural) current active other support with name of PI, your role on project, project title, funding agency, grant number, total amount of funding, funding duration. Also list any pending extramural support.
    12. Budget with Budget Justification: Please indicate a budget and justify how funds will be allocated. List all personnel with % effort. List budgets for supplies, animal costs, etc. that are needed to complete the project. Not allowed: PI or other faculty salaries; travel costs to meetings; publication charges; costs for work done at other institutions or private companies (Southern Research excluded) unless approved prior to submitting the proposal. 
           
• Submission Details

• Deadlines:
  • Application Open: April 15, 2025
  • Application Deadline: May 15, 2025, Extended to May 22, 2025 at 11:59pm
  • Notification to Applicants: June 30, 2025
  • Grant Period: July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026

Evaluation Criteria

• Significance & Relevance to catchment area (25%)
• Approach (50%)
• Team Structure & Collaboration (15%)
• Readiness to execute (5%)
• Next Steps (5)%

Post-Award Expectations:

• Deliverable: Awardees must submit a final report summarizing their findings and the outcomes of their projects. The report is due 30 days after the project end date or by August 31, 2026, whichever occurs first.
• Dissemination: Awardees are expected to submit a proposal to present their findings at (1) an upcoming CCTS Community Engagement Institute OR O’Neal Community Dissemination Institute, and (2) a regional or national scientific meeting.

For questions, please contact: