Clarification of Parameters and Scope of PAR-11-233, NICHD Continuing Education Training Programs (T15)

Notice Number:  NOT-HD-11-021

Release Date:  August 24, 2011

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

Purpose of the T15 program

The T15 funding opportunity announcement  (FOA) encourages applications to develop, implement and evaluate innovative and interactive short-term training courses for scientists interested in learning state-of-the-art procedures used for conducting research on topics relevant to NICHD's mission.  These topics include reproductive, developmental, behavioral, social, and rehabilitative processes that relate to the health and well-being of newborns, infants, children, adults, families, and populations.  The research interests of NICHD are described in more detail at: http://www.nichd.nih.gov/research/org/supported_by.cfm.

Clarification of Program Scope

The T15 program is intended to expose students, postdoctoral fellows, or active research scientists to state-of-the-art methodologies or concepts in research fields relevant to the NICHD mission.    Grants issued under the program are not intended for continuing education or certification of physicians, nurses, therapists, or other staff engaged in clinical care, unless the objective of the course is to enhance research-related activities of those individuals or to enhance research on treatment methodologies.   Applicants for T15 awards must demonstrate how the proposed short courses will improve the research skills and capabilities of specific groups of participants.   The theoretical and methodological topics included in the curriculum must be clearly related to the NICHD research mission.

Examples of T15 courses that are research-related and consistent with the mission of NICHD include:

• 4-week summer course to provide specialized training in demographic techniques for analyzing longitudinal data.
• Cold Spring Harbor course on cell and developmental biology of Xenopus, one of the leading models for the study of molecular control of embryo patterning, morphogenesis, and organogenesis.
• 6-week courses in reproductive sciences and embryology at the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole; the courses include lectures, laboratory experiences, technical workshops, and informal seminars.
• 2-week course at the Jackson Laboratory to foster the fields of genetics, genomics, and human disease; a key objective of the course is to provide interactions between the mouse and human genetics research communities.
• Intensive 5-day workshop for rehabilitation researchers who are interested in developing new NIH grant proposals, involving didactic sessions on clinical trial design, outcomes measures, biostatistics, informatics, collaboration, grantsmanship, budgeting, and career development.

Time Frame of Short Courses

Depending on the goals of the proposed training programs, the duration of the short courses can vary from one week or less to a maximum of 12 weeks (see Part 2. Section I of the FOA).   In Section II of the FOA, the table entry for Award Budget mistakenly reads, “Course duration can vary from a minimum of three weeks to a maximum of twelve weeks.”

All other aspects of this FOA remain unchanged.

Individuals interested in the T15 program are strongly encouraged to contact NICHD staff to determine whether the proposed courses fit the objectives of the program and are consistent with the mission of NICHD.  Direct all inquiries to:

Dennis A. Twombly, Ph.D.
Deputy Director, Office of Extramural Policy
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
National Institutes of Health
6100 Executive Boulevard, Room 2C01
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Rockville, MD 20852 (for express/courier service; non-USPS service)
Telephone:  (301) 451-3371
Email:  dtwombly@mail.nih.gov