Grant Funding Opportunities: 12/30/11

Update on Startup America Initiative:  Earlier this year, President Obama launched the Startup America Initiative to promote entrepreneurship in key areas like energy and to make it easier for America’s innovators to turn a great idea into a great business.  America’s entrepreneurs are on the front lines of the global clean energy race, and the Department of Energy and the Administration want to hear from individuals about the barriers that are standing in their way and what the Administration can do to help remove them.  Through Quora, an idea-sharing platform, you can share your thoughts and ideas directly with senior Administration officials specifically to the below questions:

• What do you see as the primary barriers to moving clean energy technologies and innovations into the market place?
• What policy tools do you recommend to dismantle these barriers in order to grow the U.S. clean energy sector?

SBIR/STTR Reauthorization News:  After 14 short-term continuing resolutions and years of negotiations, the federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs have been reauthorized through 2017. The legislation changes a number of features of SBIR/STTR, including making it possible for companies that are majority-owned by venture capital firms to receive awards. President Obama is expected to sign the bill in the near future.

Deadline: 2/1/12
Agency: Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation
Program: Small Grants OR Strategic Grants

Description:  The Foundation has two grant processes: one for small grants (requests of up to $35,000 for up to 2 years) and another for strategic grants (requests for more than $35,000 per year).  For each grant application process, the Foundation offers two types of applications:  a general operating support application requests unrestricted funds for the organization’s overall budget; a project support application requests funds earmarked for a particular activity or project within the organization. To accomplish its purpose, the Foundation currently gives special attention to certain areas of focus:

• Community Economic Development
• Strengthening Democracy
• Environment
• Social Justice and Equity
• Pre-Collegiate Education

Award Amount: Small Grants (up to $35,000 up to 2 years); Strategic Grants ($35,000+ per year) 
Website: http://www.zsr.org/onlineapp.htm
Eligibility: Tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) organizations and government entities for programs and projects that serve the people of North Carolina.

Deadline: 2/16/12
Agency: National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Program: Nanoscience and Nanotechnology in Biology and Medicine (R21)

Description: The purpose of this FOA is to provide support for cutting-edge nanoscience and nanotechnology research that can lead to biomedical breakthroughs and new investigations into the diagnosis, treatment and management of an array of diseases and traumatic injuries.  Nanoscience and nanotechnology have the capacity to drive a new wave of medical innovation through the engineering of bioactive nanoscale structures, processes and systems based on the advancement of our understanding of biology at the nanoscale.  Therefore, this FOA will also support research projects that develop new or improved nanotechnology and nanoscience-based tools, methods, concepts, and devices that lead to a better understanding of basic biology in addition to conducting translational biomedical studies. 

Award Amount: The total project period for an application submitted in response to this funding opportunity may not exceed two years. Direct costs are limited to $275,000 over an R21 two-year period, with no more than $200,000 in direct costs allowed in any single year.
Website: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-11-149.html
Eligibility: Higher Education Institutions, Non-Profits, For-Profits, Governments, Other

Deadline: 3/5/12; 9/5/12
Agency: Burroughs Wellcome Fund (BWF)
Program: Promoting Innovation in Science and Mathematics (PRISM)

Description: The Burroughs Wellcome Fund recognizes the important role that K-12 teachers play in the lives of students by stimulating a passion for science and mathematics innovations. In this time of tight budgets, BWF wants to support teaching professionals in their efforts to provide quality hands-on, inquiry-based activities for their students. The program supports North Carolina K-12 teachers in their efforts to promote excitement for science and mathematics in the classroom by providing grants for materials, equipment, and supplies related to the implementation of high quality curriculum and activities in the classroom.

Award Amount: This award provides up to $3,000 for one year to cover the cost of equipment, materials, and supplies.  An additional $1,500 may be requested for professional development related to the implementation of new equipment or use of materials in the classroom. 
Website: https://www.bwfund.org/funding-opportunities/science-education/promoting-innovation-in-science-and-mathematics/
Eligibility: Awards are made to teaching professionals that hold a professional educator's license to teach in a North Carolina K-12 public school.

Deadline: 4/24/12 (LOI Due—optional but suggested); 5/24/12 (Proposal Due)
Agency: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)/National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Program: Partnerships for Development of Therapeutics and Diagnostics for Biodefense (R01)Description:  This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) invites research applications for projects that support preclinical development of lead candidate therapeutics or diagnostics against NIAID Category A, B, or C priority agents. Applications must include a Product Development Strategy attachment and demonstrate substantive investment by at least one industrial participant. As part of the Research Strategy section, each application must propose a research and development project whose goal is to advance an already identified lead candidate therapeutic and/or diagnostic focused on one or more NIAID Category A, B or C agents. Research projects are not required to result in a "final" product.  Moreover, it is not necessary to propose to complete the product development process up to the point of readiness for clinical trials or validation within the time frame of the project. Applications that would significantly advance a candidate product toward clinical or field usefulness are responsive.  Scope of the proposed project should determine the project period. The maximum period is 5 years.   

Award Amount: Budgets for direct costs of up to $750,000 per year may be requested. In addition, applicants may request up to a total of $300,000 for major equipment in the first year of the award to ensure that research aims can be met and biohazards can be contained.
Website: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-AI-12-017.html
Eligibility:  Higher Education Institutions, Non-Profits, For-Profits, Governments, Other. All applications submitted to this FOA must demonstrate substantive investment in the project by at least one industry participant.

Deadline: Continuous
Agency: General Motors Foundation (GMF)
Program: Applicant Driven Grants

Description:  The foundation supports a variety of activities in four major areas: education, health and human services, environment and energy, and community development.  For Education: Realizing the importance of education, GM is consistently a leader among contributors to education, both in terms of financial support and the quality of the programs receiving support. They support a strong and diverse base of education programs for students of all ages, including donations to colleges and universities, hands-on experiential education activities, and mentoring programs.

Award Amount: Varies (Grant requests grouped to those <$20,000 and >=$20,000)
Website: http://www.gm.com/company/aboutGM/gm_foundation.html
Eligibility:  Made to organizations with verifiable IRS 501(c)(3) status