Full Text HL-95-018

NHLBI SHORT-TERM RESEARCH TRAINING FOR MINORITY STUDENTS PROGRAM

NIH GUIDE, Volume 24, Number 2, June 16, 1995

RFA:  HL-95-018

P.T. 44, FF

Keywords: 
  Blood Diseases 
  Cardiovascular Diseases 
  Pulmonary Diseases 


National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Application Receipt Date:  August 23, 1995

PURPOSE

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) invites grant
applications for the Short-Term Research Training for Minority
Students Program.  The purpose of the award is to encourage
institutions to provide opportunities for underrepresented minority
students at the undergraduate and graduate level to become exposed to
biomedical research in areas relevant to cardiovascular, pulmonary,
and hematologic diseases through a short-term research experience.

HEALTHY PEOPLE 2000

The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving the health
promotion and disease prevention objectives of "Healthy People 2000,"
a PHS-led national activity for setting priority areas.  This RFA,
NHLBI Short-Term Research Training for Minority Students Program, is
related to the priority areas of heart disease and stroke, maternal
and infant health, environmental health, and educational and
community-based programs.  Potential applicants may obtain a copy of
"Healthy People 2000" (Full Report:  Stock No. 017-001-00474-0 or
Summary Report:  Stock No. 017-001-00473-1) through the
Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington,
DC 20402-9325 (telephone 202-783-3238).

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Applications may be submitted by domestic, for-profit and non-profit
organizations, public and private, such as universities, colleges,
medical schools, and units of state and local government.
Racial/ethnic minority individuals, women, and persons with
disabilities are encouraged to apply as program directors.
Applications from foreign institutions will not be accepted.  These
grants will support short-term research training experiences of two
to three months duration for minority undergraduate students,
minority students in health professional schools, and minority
graduate students.  The grantee institution will be responsible for
the selection and appointment of trainees.  Special attention should
be given to the recruitment of individuals from minority groups that
are underrepresented nationally in the biomedical and behavioral
sciences, i.e., Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, Alaska Natives,
and Pacific Islanders.

Trainees must have successfully completed at least one undergraduate
year at an accredited school or university or have successfully
completed one semester at a school of medicine, optometry,
osteopathy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, pharmacy or public
health, or an institution with an accredited graduate program, prior
to participating in the program.  Trainees appointed to the program
need not be from the grantee institution, but may include a number of
minority students from other institutions, schools, colleges, or
universities.  These grants are intended to introduce students to
research that would not otherwise be available through their regular
course of studies.  For graduate students, this may include graduate
students in programs, such as mathematics, where they would not
normally be exposed to biomedical research or minority graduate
students who may need a specialized research experience to supplement
their normal graduate education.

Students appointed to this program must be citizens or noncitizen
nationals of the United States, or have been lawfully admitted to the
United States for permanent residence.  Noncitizen nationals are
generally persons born in outlying possessions of the United States
(i.e., American Samoa and Swains Island).  Individuals on temporary
or student visas and individuals holding Ph.D., M.D., D.V.M., or
equivalent doctoral degrees in the health sciences are not eligible.

MECHANISM OF SUPPORT

This RFA will use the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Short-Term
Research Training grant (T35).  Responsibility for the planning,
direction, and execution of the proposed training program will be
solely that of the applicant.  The total project period for an
application submitted in response to this RFA may not exceed five
years.  Funding beyond the first year of the grant is contingent upon
satisfactory progress during the preceding year and the availability
of funds.  Indirect costs will be awarded based on eight percent of
total direct costs exclusive of equipment and tuition and fees.  The
anticipated award date is May 1, 1996.

Institutions may request support for at least four but not more than
24, short-term trainees per year.  The requested number of short-term
trainees must be justified in the application.  Trainees may be
minority undergraduate, graduate, or health professional students.
The stipend level for trainees is $834 per month.  Stipends may be
supplemented from non-federal funds.  Training-related expenses up to
$125 per month per trainee may be requested.  In addition, up to $500
per trainee may be requested to cover domestic travel to and from the
training site and up to $250 per month per trainee may be requested
to cover the cost of housing at the training site.  Trainee tuition
and fees, where necessary to the research training, must be covered
by the Training Related Expenses.

FUNDS AVAILABLE

The estimated funds (total costs) available for the first year of
support for the entire program is expected to be $300,000 in fiscal
year 1996.  The actual amount may vary, depending on the response to
the RFA and availability of funds, but the anticipated number of
awards for the Short-Term Training Program for Minority Students is
anticipated to be 10 new awards.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

Background

Many studies have emphasized the need for minority individuals to
participate in modern research activities to develop their
investigative talents.  Whereas approximately 12 percent of the U.S.
population is Black, less than 0.25 percent of individuals holding a
Ph.D. degree in biomedical science are Black.  There are existing
programs at the National Institutes of Health that are designed to
answer this need.  These include the Minority Biomedical Research
Support Program, the Minority Access to Research Careers Program, and
the Research Supplements for Underrepresented Minorities Program.
Even though these programs appear successful in meeting their
specific objectives and career development goals, minority graduate
students, health professional students, and postdoctoral students in
minority schools need additional opportunities to develop biomedical
and behavioral research skills and become productive investigators.

While there is strong interest in the scientific community in
attracting minority students into research careers, few minority
students opt for science degrees and research careers, and few
minority graduates of health professional schools go on to
investigative careers.  The shortage of qualified minority
investigators in academic research positions may even exacerbate the
situation due to a lack of visible role models for students.  One
method of addressing this problem is by attracting minority students
to research opportunities and by providing them with research
training to develop their research capabilities in cardiovascular,
pulmonary, and hematologic disease areas.

Other

The present RFA is designed to offer research training opportunities
for minority students in an effort to encourage their participation
in cardiovascular, pulmonary, and hematologic research.

The Short-Term Research Training for Minority Students program is
intended to:

o Provide minority undergraduate students, graduate students, and
students in health professional schools exposure to opportunities
inherent in research careers in areas relevant to cardiovascular,
pulmonary, and hematologic diseases.

o Attract highly qualified minority students into biomedical and
behavioral research careers and increase the supply of minority
investigators.

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

Applications are to be submitted on the grant application form PHS
398 (rev. 9/91).  Application kits are available at most
institutional offices of sponsored research and may be obtained from
the Office of Grants Information, Division of Research Grants,
National Institutes of Health, 6701 Rockledge Drive, Room 3032, MSC
7762, Bethesda, MD 20892-7762, telephone 301-710-0267.

Guidelines and supplemental instructions for the Short-Term Training
for Minority Students program may be obtained from NHLBI staff listed
under INQUIRIES.

The RFA label available in the PHS 398 (rev. 9/91) application form
must be affixed to the bottom of the face page of the application.
Failure to use this label could result in delayed processing of the
application such that it may not reach the review committee in time
for review.  In addition, the RFA title (NHLBI Short-Term Training
for Minority Students Program) and number (HL-95-018) must be typed
on line 2a of the face page of the application form and the YES box
must be marked.

Submit a signed, typewritten original of the application, including
the Checklist, and three signed, photocopies, in one package to:

DIVISION OF RESEARCH GRANTS
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
6701 ROCKLEDGE DRIVE, ROOM 1040 - MSC 7710
BETHESDA, MD  20892-7710
BETHESDA, MD  20817 (for courier service)

One additional copy of the application must also be sent to:

Scientific Review Administrator
Division of Extramural Affairs
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
6701 Rockledge Drive MSC 7924
Bethesda, MD  20892-7924
Telephone:  (301) 435-0288

Applications must be received by August 23, 1995.  If an application
is received after that date, it will be returned to the applicant
without review.  The Division of Research Grants (DRG) will not
accept any application to this RFA that is essentially the same as
one currently pending initial review, unless the applicant withdraws
the pending application.  The DRG will not accept any application
that is essentially the same as one already reviewed.  This does not
preclude the submission of substantial revisions of applications
already reviewed, but such applications must include an introduction
addressing the previous critique.

REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS

Upon receipt, applications will be reviewed for completeness by DRG
and responsiveness by NHLBI.  Incomplete and/or non-responsive
applications will be returned to the applicant without further
consideration.  Applications that are complete and responsive to the
RFA will be evaluated for scientific and technical merit by the
Research Training Review Committee of the Division of Extramural
Affairs, NHLBI, in accordance with the review criteria stated below.
Following scientific-technical review, applications will receive a
second level review by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Advisory
Council.

As part of the initial merit review, a process (triage) may be used
by the initial review group in which applications will be determined
to be competitive or non-competitive based on their scientific merit
relative to other applications received in response to the RFA.
Applications judged to be competitive will be discussed and assigned
a priority score.  Application determined to be non-competitive will
be withdrawn from further consideration and the applicant and the
official signing for the applicant organization will be notified.

The following criteria will be considered when assessing the merits
of a research training grant application, including the Short-Term
Training for Minority Students program.

o  Design of the proposed training program;

o  Qualifications and previous training record of the program
director and participating faculty, particularly with regard to prior
experience with similar programs;

o  Adequacy of facilities, environment, and resources for the
proposed research training;

o  Methods of recruiting, selecting and assigning minority students;

o  Methods for retaining promising students in the program and
methods for tracking students.

o  Commitment of the institution and participating faculty to the
goals of the training program;

o  Procedures for evaluation of the effectiveness of the program and
the impact of the program on the students involved.

AWARD CRITERIA

The following will be considered in making funding decisions:

o  Technical merit of the application as determined by peer review

o  Availability of funds

o  Program balance among the research areas of the announcement

INQUIRIES

Written and telephone inquiries concerning this RFA are encouraged.
The opportunity to clarify any issues or questions from potential
applicants is welcome.

Direct inquiries regarding program guidelines, supplemental
instructions, or programmatic issues to:

Mary Reilly
Division of Lung Diseases
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
6701 Rockledge Drive MSC 7952
Bethesda, MD  20892-7952
Telephone:  (301) 435-0222
FAX:  (301) 480-3557
Email:  mary_reilly@nih.gov

Direct inquiries regarding fiscal matters to:

Jane Davis
Division of Extramural Affairs
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
6701 Rockledge Drive MSC 7926
Bethesda, MD  20892-7926
Telephone:  (301) 435-0166
FAX:  (301) 480-3310
Email:  jane_davis@nih.gov

AUTHORITY AND REGULATION

This program is described in the Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance numbers 93.837, 93.838, and 93.839.  Awards are made under
the authority of the Public Health Service Act, Title IV, Part A
(Public Law 78-410, as amended by Public Law 99-158, 42 USC 241 and
285) and administered under PHS grant policies and Federal
Regulations at 42 CFR 52 and 45 CFR Part 74.  This program is not
subject to the intergovernmental review requirements of Executive
Order 12372 or Health Systems Agency review.

The PHS strongly encourages all grant and contract recipients to
provide a smoke-free workplace and promote the non-use of all tobacco
products.  In addition, Public Law 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of
1994, prohibits smoking in certain facilities (or in some cases, any
portion of a facility) in which regular or routing education,
library, day care, health care or early childhood development
services are provided to children.  This is consistent with the PHS
mission to protect and advance the physical and mental health of the
american people.

.

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