IMPROVING TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH THROUGH COMMUNITY-ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIPS
The CCTSI’s Partnership of Academicians and Communities for Translation (PACT) Council supports pilot projects proposed by established community-academic partnerships or projects that propose to develop new community-academic partnerships, with preference given to partnerships that address translational research in clinical and community settings. Applications should target Colorado communities that are disproportionately and negatively affected by access, social, economic, or cultural factors. At the end of the grant period, funded community-academic partnerships are expected to be prepared to submit competitive grant proposals to governmental sources (e.g., National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment), university sources (e.g., CCTSI), and/or private funding sources (e.g., philanthropic foundations that focus on Colorado projects).
The PACT will award $200,000 per year over the next five years (total of $1 M for Cycles 1-5). Grants will be awarded through a yearly grant cycle. The RFA for Year 2 will be released in mid-2009 (Cycle 2); applicants receiving funding for 2008-2009 (Cycle 1) pilot grants are eligible to submit applications in future grant cycles.
Eligibility and Grant Description: Both communities and academic researchers are eligible to apply. The PACT Council will fund two categories of applications targeting health disparities. Applications will be accepted for one of two funding categories (not both):
- A – Joint Pilot Projects: Applicants who already have a community-academic partnership in place and seek funds for a joint project that results in pilot data and submission of a proposal to an external agency (with either the community or academic researcher serving as the primary applicant). Awards will range from $10,000 to $30,000 (total budget for community and academic partners combined), depending on the number of projects selected. Funding amounts above $30,000 will not be reviewed favorably unless there is compelling rationale for a higher amount. No applications exceeding $50,000 will be considered.
- B – Partnership Development: Applicants who seek funds for developing a new community-academic partnership that results in submission of a pilot project proposal either to the CCTSI as a Category A (Joint Pilot Projects) application and/or an external funding agency (with either the community or academic researcher serving as the primary applicant). Awards range from $5000 up to $10,000 for partnership development (total budget for community and academic partners combined). No applications exceeding $10,000 will be considered.
Applications for joint projects can request funding for a variety of activities, such as data collection and/or analysis of community-specific information or other quantitative and qualitative data; evaluating an existing community-based program; studies of the community translation process, including dissemination methods; and other innovative ideas, programs and methods that fit with our funding preferences. Applicants must propose work conducted within a partnership between researchers and community organizations or individuals.
Awardee Responsibilities: Funded community partners and academic researchers must attend a mandatory 8-hour Community Engagement training session at the beginning of the funding cycle. Grantees conducting research involving human subjects must submit their projects to an accredited Institutional Review Board (IRB) and must comply with IRB training requirements. All grantees are expected to submit a brief final report to the PACT Council that includes evaluation of the community-academic partnership, the community engagement process, project implementation, project results, and lessons learned.
Review Criteria: The PACT Pilot Grants Committee (led by Drs. David Magid and Debbi Main) and additional PACT Council members will review all grant applications and are responsible for award decisions. The review places specific emphasis on the proposal’s potential to improve community translation and decrease health disparities. All decisions will be final, with brief, written feedback provided to applicants. Criteria used in scoring applications include: project focus and outcomes, partners and partnership, and the community engagement process.
For more information contact: Dee Smyth, PACT Pilots Grants Coordinator, 303.724.2400.