2027-2028 Request for Applications

No. A reviewer may come from any academic institution, community-based organization, or industry leader. A general note about conflict of interest: A reviewer would have a conflict of interest if they are the applicant’s mentor, department chair, spouse, or close relative; or if they currently work together on manuscripts, grants, community-based work, or business ventures. Simply being in the same department or division is not, in and of itself, a conflict of interest. 

Award amounts are provided in total costs. The maximum award amount includes both direct and indirect costs (if applicable). Applicants should ensure that their total project budget, including combined direct and indirect costs, does not exceed the maximum award amount.

Applicant institutions must use a rate no higher than the approved, federally recognized indirect cost rate negotiated between the applicant institution and the federal government. ITHS would like to maximize funds to directly support the investigator’s research and encourages investigators to work with their Office of Sponsored Programs to obtain a waiver to reduce indirect costs on the project. Indirect costs are waived for applicants from the University of Washington as this is an internal grant. University of Washington applicants should therefore not include indirect costs in their proposed budgets.

The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center and Seattle Children’s have agreed to consider requests for indirect cost waivers for ITHS pilot awards from their faculty.

• ITHS members whose research program is based at Fred Hutch who wish to apply for ITHS pilot awards are required to go through the Fred Hutch standard institutional procedure for requesting a waiver of facilities and administrative (F&A) costs.
• ITHS members whose research program is based at Seattle Children’s who wish to apply for ITHS pilot awards are required to go through the Seattle Children’s standard institutional procedure for requesting a waiver of F&A costs.

Applications will follow National Institutes of Health (NIH) formatting guidelines, including the following:

Font (size, color, type density) and Line Spacing

Citations

Paper Size and Margins

ITHS requires the applicant to designate one of the PIs as the Contact PI. This person is responsible for communication between the PIs and ITHS but has no special authorities or responsibilities within the project team. In many ways, a Contact PI is analogous to a corresponding author on a publication. The Contact PI must serve as a member of the PI team and must meet all eligibility requirements for PI status. In those projects where there is an identified project coordinator, the coordinator could serve as Contact PI or that role could be assigned to another PI. It will be possible, and may even be desirable, for the grantee institution to periodically designate a change in Contact PI. For example, it may be desirable to rotate the role of Contact PI among the multiple PIs on an annual basis at the time of grant renewal. Note that the Contact PI must be associated with the applicant/awardee institution.

ITHS will follow NIH Policy: Each PI must have a measurable effort (greater than zero), and the level of effort must be adequate to achieve the proposed goals. The PI and other individuals who contribute to the scientific development or execution of a project in a substantive, measurable way, whether or not they receive salaries or compensation under the grant. Typically, these individuals have doctoral or other professional degrees, although individuals at the master’s or baccalaureate level may be considered senior/key personnel if their involvement meets this definition. Consultants and those with a postdoctoral role also may be considered senior/key personnel if they meet this definition. Senior/key personnel must devote measurable effort to the project whether or not salaries or compensation are requested. “Zero percent” effort or “as needed” are not acceptable levels of involvement for those designated as senior/key personnel.

Yes, you may have more than 2 PIs. However, 1 person will be identified as the Contact PI for administrative purposes. Please note that the cover page only allows space for two PIs; any additional PIs should be listed in the budget and budget justification.

Pilot recipients must be a faculty member at an academic institution by July 1, before the period of performance. For example, if the period of performance is April 2027-February 2028, the appointment must be by July 1, 2026.

Investigators may submit more than one letter of intent; however, each investigator will be invited to submit only one full application per funding cycle.

Yes, these funds come from the NIH through the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), so the NIH cap does apply.

No, funds cannot be dispersed until IRB approval is confirmed. Applicants will have the opportunity to provide just-in-time approvals prior to the start date.

ITHS is funded through a CTSA grant from NIH’s National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS). NCATS requires the review and approval of all pilot grants involving human subjects research before funds are released. Therefore, if your proposal is awarded funding and involves human subjects research, additional documentation will be required. NCATS review and IRB review can be concurrent, but final NCATS approval is contingent upon IRB approval.