Application Instructions:

1. Application

Grant applications that do not meet these guidlines will not be reviewed.

Please download our text format version. Grant Application Deadline: Sept. 15, 2008 by 5 p.m. EST. It is interactive. Please fill it out, save it on a CD (preferably in PDF format) and mail it to:

Attention: Research Grant Manager
Scleroderma Foundation
300 Rosewood Drive, Suite 105
Danvers, MA 01923
Phone: 978-463-5843
Fax: 978-463-5809
Email: sfinfo@scleroderma.org

2. Numbers of copies

Please submit one original in PDF format via CD, and five (5) hard copies of the completed application. Five (5) sets of appendices, including figures, photomicrographs, videotapes, submitted manuscripts, etc. should also be sent. Appendices should not be used to subvert the page limitation on the grant. The height of the letters must be 11 point or larger. Type density, including characters and spaces, must be no more than 15 characters per inch (cpi). For proportional spacing, the average for any representative section of text must not exceed 15 cpi. No more than six lines of type within a vertical inch. Margins may not be less than 0.5 inches.

3. Application Deadline

Applications are to be submitted on the Scleroderma Foundation Research Grant Application Form. Applications must be received at the Scleroderma Foundation on September 15 (close of business day, 5 p.m. Eastern Time) of each calendar year. When September 15 falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the application must be received by the following Monday by 5 p.m. Eastern Time. Electronic submissions are not acceptable.

Details of Proposal

Proposals should contain ten (10) parts. Please present them in the following order according to instructions:

1. Face Page (Page 1):

The face page is a separate page and must include the following:

1. Title of research grant application.
2. Name, address, telephone number, fax number and email of Principal Investigator who will be responsible for the scientific conduct of the project (to be used for all future correspondence).
3. Grant type: New Investigator or Established. Is proposal a re-submission?
   Check Yes __ or No __.
   NOTE: No more than 2 resubmissions incorporating critique comments and recommendations from prior submission will be accepted.
4. Will human subjects be used in the proposed research?
   Check Yes __ or No __. If yes, add justification paragraph as well as attach copies of IRB approval, consent forms and statement of "Compliance with government requirements." IRB approval must be obtained by 6/30 or the grant will not be funded.
5. Will vertebrate animals be used in the proposed research?
   Check Yes __ or No __. If yes, attach statements of compliance with American Veterinary Medicine Association and NIH guidelines.
6. Dates of proposed period of support. Grants are funded for January 1 through December 31 for each year of the award.
7. Funds requested for first year grant period: (Direct and Indirect Costs).
8. Funds requested for all years of support (Direct and Indirect Costs).
9. Name, address and telephone number of the applicant organization and/or Performance Site(s) where the research will be conducted.
10. Type of organization (Check appropriate boxes).
11. Name, title, address, telephone number, and email of institution's Financial Officer, who will be responsible for the proposed grant funds, will provide the required reports of expenditures. Indicate how checks should be drawn and to whom checks should be sent.
12. Official signing for the applicant organization.
13. Signature of Proposed Investigator and date.
14. Signature of person named in item 12 and date.

2. Project Abstract, Performance site and Key Personnel (Page 2):

Abstract: On a single page, describe precisely and clearly the nature, objective, methods of procedure, and significance of the proposed research project, and how it relates to the goal of providing a better understanding of scleroderma and/or improving scleroderma treatments (limit 300 words).

Performance Site: Give complete address of site at which the proposed research will take place.

Key Personnel: List all investigators, sponsors and consultants.

Rewrite the abstract in abbreviated form in terms suitable for presentation to lay persons (limit 200 words).

3. Lay Person Summary (Page 3)

Provide a 200 word summary of the project in laymen's language.

4. Budget: Use Scleroderma Foundation Budget Forms for 1st and each subsequent year(s). Pages 4–6.

For the New Investigator Grant, the principal and/or co-investigator salaries are capped at no more than a combined total of $25,000 plus fringe benefits.

On the Established Investigator Grant, the principal and/or co-investigator salaries are capped at no more than a combined total of $50,000 plus fringe benefits. Salaries for support personnel or current research post-doctoral fellows engaged in the project may be requested. Travel costs are limited to $1,500/year for the PI to attend National or International Scientific meetings.

The Scleroderma Foundation Research Funding Program allows eight percent of proposal budgets to be allocated towards overhead including computers. Not allowed are construction or renovation costs; purchase of major capital equipment, including computers; office equipment or furniture; tuition fees; journal subscriptions, dues or memberships; equipment service contracts, salaries for administrative personnel; or salaries for clinical trainees (publication expenses should be added). Up to $5,000 per year may be used to purchase capital equipment for New Investigator Awards only. Under extraordinary circumstances, exceptions may be considered.

a. Include names, titles, time/percentage effort of all participants, requested salaries and fringe benefits, and total amount required.

b. Include a written budget justification for all budget categories on the Budget Justification Page.

5. Resources (Page 7):

Describe laboratory, clinical, animal, computer, office and other resources available and major equipment.

6. Curriculum Vitae of Principal Investigators and Co-investigators:

Use the NIH biographical sketch maximum four (4) pages. Indicate the total number of Publications in each of three (3) categories: Referenced articles, invited works, and abstracts.

The Biographical Sketch provides information used by reviewers in the assessment of each individual's qualifications for a specific role in the proposed project, as well as to evaluate the overall qualifications of the research team. A biographical sketch is required for all key personnel, following the instructions below. No more than four pages may be used for each person.

1. Complete the educational block at the top of the form page.
2. List current position(s) and then previous positions.
3. List publications in three categories described above with full citations.

7. Research Activities the past three years: (one page)

Provide information on research projects ongoing or completed during the last three years by the principal investigator and key personnel. This information will include the specific aims, overall goals and responsibilities and should include Federal and non-Federal support. This information will be used by reviewers in the assessment of each individual's qualifications for a specific role in the proposed project. Limit one page.

8. Other Support:

List other support received by Principal and Co-Investigators for any projects (include yearly and total budget and duration of any grants):

a. Current.

b. Pending.

c. Description (in a paragraph, describe each current or pending grant and whether it has scientific or budgetary overlap with the present proposal).

d. Include in appendix the summary/abstract page and first-year budget page of current and pending grant.

9. Professional references and sponsor's letter (required for New Investigators Awards only) and Letters of Agreement from Co-Investigators:

All New Investigators Award applicants must have a letter of support from a more senior investigator (sponsor) or administrative entity (e.g. Department Chairman) that assures that additional funds will be provided to cover the PI's salary or supplies to conduct the project not covered by the Scleroderma Foundation award.

References should be limited to no more than three per investigator; letters of agreement from co-investigators should be included in appendices.

10. Introduction to Revised Application (Limit two pages).

For revised/resubmitted applications, provide no more than two pages of specific responses to previous revision or critiques.

11. Research Plan (10 pages): Section A–D is limited to 10 pages.

Begin on a separate page; single-spaced, 11 point or larger typeface, one inch or greater margins. Include the following:

a. Specific Aims: List the broad, long-term objectives and what the specific research proposed in this application is intended to accomplish, e.g., to test a stated hypothesis, create a novel design, solve a specific problem, or develop new technology. One-half page is recommended.

b. Background and Significance: Briefly sketch the background leading to the present application, critically evaluate existing knowledge, and specifically identify the gaps that the project is intended to fill. State concisely the importance and health relevance of the research described in this application by relating the specific aims to the broad, long-term objectives. One and a half pages are recommended.

c. Preliminary Studies/Progress Report: For new applications, use this section to provide an account of the principal investigator's preliminary studies pertinent to the application information that will also help to establish the experience and competence of the investigator to pursue the proposed project.

Peer review committees generally view preliminary data as an essential part of a research grant application. Preliminary data often aid the reviewers in assessing the likelihood of the success of the proposed project. One page is recommended.

d. Research Design and Methods: Describe the research design and the procedures to be used to accomplish the specific aims of the project. Include how the data will be collected, analyzed, and interpreted as well as the data sharing plan as appropriate. Describe any new methodology and its advantage over existing methodologies. Discuss the potential difficulties and limitations of the proposed procedures and alternative approaches to achieve the aims. As part of this section, provide a tentative sequence or timetable for the project. Point out any procedures, situation, or materials that may be hazardous to personnel and the precautions to be exercised.

e. Relevance to scleroderma: Describe how the proposed studies are related to scleroderma and whether the applicant plans to pursue a career in scleroderma-related research.

Although no specific number of pages is recommended for the Research Design and Methods section, the total for Items (a)–(d) may not exceed 10 pages, including all tables and figures.

f. Literature Cited: List all references. Each reference must include the title, names of all authors, book or journal, volume number, page numbers, and year of publication. The reference should be limited to relevant and current literature. While there is not a page limitation, it is important to be concise and to select only those literature references pertinent to the proposed research.

g. Consortium/Contractual Arrangements: Explain the programmatic, fiscal, and administrative arrangements to be made between the applicant organization and the consortium organization(s). If consortium/contractual activities represent a significant portion of the overall project, explain why the applicant organization, rather than the ultimate performer of the activities, should be the grantee.

h. Consultants: Attach appropriate letters here from all individuals confirming their roles in the project. Do not place these letters in the Appendix.

i. Appendix: Include five collated sets of all appendix material, in the same package with the application, following all copies of the application. Identify each item with the name of the principal investigator. Do not intermingle appendix materials with the application.

Applications may include the following materials in the appendix:

1) Letters of agreement from co-investigators.

2) Up to three publications, manuscripts (accepted for publication), abstracts, patents, or other printed materials directly relevant to this project. These may be stapled as sets. Manuscripts submitted for publication should not be included.

3) Surveys, questionnaires, data collection instruments, and clinical protocols. These may be stapled as sets.

4) Original glossy photographs or color images of gels, micrographs, etc., provided that a photocopy (may be reduced in size) is also included within the 10 page limit of Items (a)–(d) of the research plan. No photographs or color images may be included in the appendix that are not also represented within the Research Plan.

12. Appendices:

The appendix will not be duplicated with the application and will be sent only to certain members of the Scleroderma Foundation Grant Review Committee who will serve as the primary reviewers of the application.

Include five (5) sets only, clearly marked with proposal title and Principal Investigator's name.