PIKO Year 2 (2022-2023) Pilot Projects Program

2022-2023 PIKO Pilot Projects Program Call for Abstracts applications will be available Tuesday, December 7, 2021.

Call for Abstracts (PDF)

Center for Pacific Innovations, Knowledge, and Opportunities
Pilot Projects Program
Call for Abstracts – Year 2 (2022-2023)
NIH/NIGMS U54GM138062

PURPOSE: Indigenous Pacific People (IPP)—defined as Native Hawaiians, Other Pacific Islanders, and Filipinos—make up 40% of Hawai‘i’s population and have disproportionately high rates of physical and mental health conditions compared to other major ethnic groups. The goal of the Pacific Innovations, Knowledge, and Opportunities (PIKO) Center is to build a statewide clinical and translational research (CTR) infrastructure to improve the health of IPP and the medically underserved and disadvantaged populations in Hawai‘i. To achieve this goal, PIKO seeks to fund, on a competitive basis, small grants to the faculty of Hawai‘i Pacific University (HPU), Chaminade University of Honolulu (CUH), and the University of Hawai‘i System for collaborative CTR research projects. The grant funding is intended to support promising pilot or preliminary research ideas that are likely to mature into larger federally-funded, independent research in the future. Pilot research teams will be led by new and/or early-stage investigators, or established investigators who are transitioning their programs of research to CTR (transitioning investigators). Under-represented minorities, particularly those of IPP descent, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply. The purpose of this announcement is to provide guidelines and criteria for abstract submission.

Key Dates
ABSTRACT DUE DATE: Thursday, January 6, 2022 @ 5:00pm
INVITATION TO SUBMIT FULL PROPOSAL: Thursday, January 20, 2022

RESEARCH SCOPE: Proposals that focus on the science of CTR with IPP (i.e., Native Hawaiians, Other Pacific Islanders, and/or Filipinos) and the medically underserved and disadvantaged populations in Hawai‘i will be considered responsive to this call for abstracts. While proposals across the translational research spectrum are welcomed, proposals focused on T3 (efficacy studies), T4 (effectiveness studies), and T5 (adoption and institutionalization) domains are of particular interest to this call.

Per NIH, “Clinical research is defined as research conducted with human subjects (or on material of human origin such as tissues, specimens and cognitive phenomena) for which an investigator directly interacts with human subjects. Translational research is defined as the process of turning observations in the laboratory, clinic and community into interventions that improve the health of individuals and the public”.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

Eligibility: New, early-stage, and/or transitioning investigators at HPU, CUH, or the University of Hawai‘i System are eligible for this call. New investigators are defined as not having ever been a PI/PD of an NIH independent research award, while early-stage investigators are within 10 years of having received their terminal degree or ending of post graduate clinical training. Applicants must hold a doctoral degree in their respective academic field of study (e.g., M.D., Ph.D., Pharm.D., Dr.P.H., D.S.W., Ed.D., Sc.D., D.N.P., etc.), possess the skills, knowledge and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research, and not be excluded by the ineligibility criteria described below. An applicant may submit only one abstract as Principal Investigator. Applicants who have not had pilot funds during the last three years, and who are from under-represented racial and ethnic groups (particularly IPP groups), marginalized groups, such as sexual and gender minorities, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Priority for funding will be given to new, early-stage, and/or transitioning investigators who have never received any prior pilot funds from other NIH-funded infrastructure programs (e.g., INBRE, COBRE, RMATRIX, Ola HAWAII).

Ineligibility: Individuals who currently serve as the principal investigator of an active NIH R01, R35, R37, R56, P01, P20, P30, P50, P60, U01, U19, U54, DP1, DP2 (or similar) and/or K99/R00 grants are ineligible to apply. Individuals who currently have research funding from other IDeA Program award mechanisms (e.g., INBRE, COBRE) are ineligible.

Similarly, those with R01-equivalent awards from the National Science Foundation, Department of Defense and national societies and foundations, such as the American Heart Association, are ineligible, as are graduate students and full professors who are not transitioning their programs of research to CTR. Also ineligible are individuals who have received JABSOM pilot funding within the past three years. However, these individuals may serve as a co-investigator (but not multiple PI), or as a mentor for the applicant.

Academic Mentor and Community-Based Collaborator: All applicants must designate at least one mid to senior level academic mentor and one community-based collaborator as part of the core research team. Additional collaborators, mentors and co-investigators can be included as part of the overall research team. Ideally, the proposed research should involve a transdisciplinary team of investigators or collaborators comprising clinician scientists (e.g., physician, psychologist, social worker, nurse, etc.), basic scientists from disparate disciplines, and/or community partners. Additional collaborators may be included from the lay community.

Available Support: Applicants invited to submit a full application will need to submit a detailed budget and budget justification at the time. Applicants may request an annual budget with direct costs up to $50,000/year with no indirect costs. Leveraging funds from other grants or institutional funds to support the research project is encouraged. Cost sharing of time is discouraged and would need to be preapproved prior to submittal of final budget by the PIKO Administrative Core.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: Your submission must include the following sections: Cover Page, Pilot Project Summary, Biosketch, and a Letter of Support. Please use the following link to submit your documents:

https://redcap.jabsom.hawaii.edu/redcap/surveys/?s=NHEK89D3P4LLJN7Y

1. Cover Page (1 page) Include project title, principal investigator(s), mentor(s), community collaborator(s).
2. Pilot Project Summary (1 page) Include brief statements about the study background, objectives/specific aims, hypothesis, significance, unique features and innovation, methodology, expected results, and relevance to PIKO.
3. NIH Biographical Sketch (5-page limit, principal investigator only): The Personal Statement Section of the NIH Biosketch should briefly describe your academic and/or non-academic qualifications, background and life experiences, include your interest in research, your research career goals, and how this program will advance your goals.
4. Letter of Support from Chair, Dean or Director (1-2 pages): Letters should include overall assessment of applicants’ academic and research qualifications, their potential for success in research, and their value to the research and academic priorities of the respective Department or Unit.

Pilot Project funding opportunities are offered annually, and are based on availability of funds. Faculty members submitting abstracts deemed most responsive to this funding announcement will be invited to submit a full application. Applicants who submit abstracts that are not invited to submit a full proposal are encouraged to seek assistance from the PIKO Professional Development Core to properly respond to reviewer critiques prior to resubmission.

Notification of request to submit a full application will be sent by Thursday, January 20, 2022. Detailed instructions for the full application will accompany the letter of invitation.

INQUIRIES

We encourage inquiries concerning this funding announcement. Interested applicants may contact the following PIKO Pilot Project Core Leaders:

Scott K. Okamoto, PhD (Overall Inquiries and inquiries from Hawai‘i Pacific University Faculty)

Email: sokamoto@hpu.edu

Claire Kendal-Wright, PhD (Inquiries from Chaminade University of Honolulu Faculty)

Email: claire.wright@chaminade.edu

Pallav Pokhrel, PhD (Inquiries from University of Hawai‘i Faculty)

Email:  ppokhrel@cc.hawaii.edu