SCCAHS
The Southeastern Coastal Center for Agricultural Health and Safety(SCCAHS) is part of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) / National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Agricultural Health and Safety Initiative. SCCAHS explores and addresses the occupational safety and health needs of people working in agriculture, fishing, and forestry in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.
Pilot/Feasibility Program Description
The Pilot/Feasibility Program is a key component of the SCCAHS. This program will provide seed funds to stimulate original projects relevant to health and safety in the agricultural, forestry, and fishery (AFF) industries. Projects may include basic/etiologic research, translational research, intervention studies, and/or surveillance. Our goal is to provide seed funding to projects that explore novel areas and show promise to lay the groundwork for subsequent research grant submissions. Some of the projects we select will be “high risk, high reward” approaches, with limited preliminary data, but with the potential for having a major impact on AFF health and safety. While in some instances funding will be sufficient to fully answer a question or address an issue, we anticipate that most projects will provide preliminary/feasibility data for subsequent, larger proposals and projects.
Priority Research Areas
Applications that prepare plans for new high impact activities, not feasible with existing resources, are invited in the priority areas of air quality and respiratory health, application of electronic health records for public health surveillance, and exploring mortality rates and the mental health status of migrant and seasonal farmworkers and/or fishers. Investigators from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Hispanic-serving Institutions are encouraged to apply, as are “early-stage” investigators without a prior history of extramural grant or contract support. Applications must propose efforts to advance one of the listed high priority research areas in AFF health and safety.
Eligibility
Applications will be accepted from faculty members at Higher Education Institutions within the seven state/territory area covered by SCCAHS (Florida, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), as well as from governmental, non-profit, and other entities within the region.
Project Duration/Funding
Funding may be requested for periods ranging up to 18 months. We anticipate that project budgets (direct costs) will be in the range of $10,000-$20,000. These projects should not be used to supplement ongoing research or to support previously funded research that no longer has funding support. The intent of this program is to foster new and creative research and interventions, while also increasing the breadth and depth of the overall SCCASH program through interaction and support of other interested researchers and stakeholders from the Center’s region.
Application and Submission Information
Letter of Intent
A non-binding letter of intent is recommended to allow advance selection of appropriate peer reviewers. The letter of intent should contain the names, addresses, and institutional affiliations of the Principal Investigator and project co-investigators; the title of the proposed project; a short (2-3 sentence) description of the work being proposed; and a rough estimate of the total project budget (direct costs).
Letters of Intent should be submitted to: ag-seedfunding@ufl.eduno later than July 1, 2019.
Proposal Preparation/Content
Proposals should contain the following items,
- Specific Aims (no more than 1 page);
- Proposal Narrative, with the following sections:
- Background and Significance: Why is this an important question/project? (no more than 1½ pages)
- Innovation: What is new and innovative about the proposed work?
(no more than ½ page)
- Approach: How are you proposing to accomplish the Specific Aims?
(no more than 4 pages)
- Budget – The SF424 budget templatewill be provided on the application web page (url to be provided upon receipt of the letter of intent);
- Biosketch – The NIH biographical Sketch format page will be utilized, https://grants.nih.gov/grants/forms/biosketch.htm
(Note that while page limits are included, the actual text can be shorter, if appropriate. Figures, tables, flowcharts, etc. are encouraged, to highlight key elements of the proposal).
Submission
Proposals can be submitted through the SCCAHS.orgwebsite no later than September 2, 2019. Details regarding submission will follow, and will be provided to all persons submitting a letter of intent.
Grant Awards
At the time that grants are awarded, the Pilot Project Research Committee will meet briefly with each awardee (teleconference) to assure that appropriate mentorship is available, and that chances of success for the project is optimized. Awardees will meet again with the Committee at the mid-point of the grant period (9 months after the grant award for an 18 month project) to generate a mid-term report that assesses progress and provides assistance as needed to facilitate successful project completion. A final meeting will take place at the end of the grant period, to evaluate results, and discuss next steps for the investigator and project.
Key Dates
Posted Date: June 3, 2019
Letter of Intent
Due Date: July 1, 2019
Application Due Date: September 2, 2019
Earliest Anticipated
Start Date: October 31, 2019
For questions, please contact ag-seedfunding@ufl.edu.
[button color=”#FFFFFF” background=”#ff8f00″ size=”large” src=”https://www.sccahs.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/SCCAHS20RFA20MAY202019.docx” target=”_blank”]Download the Call for Proposals[/button]
