PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENT
TO:
Neurosurgery Faculty, Fellows and Residents, Medical Students
DATE:
December 15, 2010
FROM:
C. Edward Dixon, Ph.D.
Professor Neurological Surgery
Department of Neurological Surgery
RE:
THE WALTER L. COPELAND FUND
OF THE PITTSBURGH FOUNDATION
Funding for Cranial Research
Proposal Deadline
February 15, 2011
Program Description
The Walter L. Copeland Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation will have available
funds to support cranial research performed in the Department of Neurological
Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh, with funding anticipated for one year
beginning in August, 2011. Grants to individual investigators in the amount of
$10,000-$25,000 for one year projects will be considered.
Starting in 2011, medical students are eligible to apply for either a one-year
fellowship (one stipend available) or summer fellowships (two stipends available).
These students would be named Walter L. Copeland Medical Student Scholar and
Walter L. Copeland Medical Student Summer Scholars, respectively. The Scholars
will work with Mentors who are Department faculty conducting Copeland Fundrelevant research. The term of the one-year Scholar is anticipated to be August 1,
2011-July 31, 2012. The Summer Scholars term will be June 1-August 15, 2011
Selection of Scholars would be through a competitive process using the Copeland
Fund peer review process outlined in this announcement.
Eligibility
Full-time faculty, residents, and fellows who are members of the Department of
Neurological Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh are eligible for these grants.
Preference will be given to residents and junior faculty who have novel research
proposals related to neurosurgical or neurologic diseases of the brain. Resident,
fellow, and medical student applications must designate a faculty mentor.
Investigators with ongoing Copeland projects may not be eligible for funding
through the Pittsburgh Foundation Copeland Fund for the Year 2011 if their current
The Walter L. Copeland Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation
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project has not been completed by August 1, 2011. Medical Students applying to
the Walter L. Copeland Medical Student Scholars program must be enrolled in
medical school.
Content of Proposals
The research applications should focus on diseases of the brain. Focus on
neurosurgical diseases is encouraged and may include research in the following
specific areas:
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Cerebral vascular diseases
Cerebral ischemia
Traumatic brain injury
Neoplastic disease
Infectious diseases
Seizure disorders
Cranial base surgery
Radiosurgery
Minimally invasive surgery
Pediatric neurosurgical disorders
Neurodegeneration
Functional neurosurgery
Basic science, as well as clinical research proposals, is encouraged. For basic
science proposals, clinical relevance should be strongly emphasized.
Evaluation Criteria
The general review criteria to be used in evaluating research submissions are:
1.
2.
3.
Soundness of methodology
Relevance and potential impact on our understanding of the disease,
improved neurosurgical treatment of the disease, and prevention or cure
of the disease
Originality of approach
Collaborative research and multidisciplinary approaches are encouraged. Women
and minority investigators as well as new researchers are encouraged to submit
proposals. Approval from the appropriate Institutional Review Board/IACUC must
be obtained prior to July 2011 for all proposals involving animal or human research
that are recommended for funding to the Foundation.
Awards
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The number of awards will depend upon the quality and responsiveness of the
proposals, but each individual award will not, except in extremely unusual
circumstances, exceed $25,000 per year.
Awards are permitted for direct costs only. No overhead or indirect costs will be
provided. The awards should be used primarily for expendable research supplies,
although a small amount not to exceed $1,200 per year may be used for travel to
scientific meetings for presentation of results. In order for travel to be approved it
must be included in your initial budget. These awards may not be used for the
purchase of major equipment such as microscopes, HPLC machines, etc. The
budget should include 1% university based salary and applicable fringe benefits of
the PI. Stipends for the one-year Walter L. Copeland Medical Student Scholar and
Walter L. Copeland Medical Student Summer Scholars are $24,000 and $3,000,
respectively.
Application Process
Forms for application for the one-year Walter L. Copeland Medical Student
Scholar accompany this memorandum and are available in Dr. Dixon’s office. The
application deadline is February 15, 2011. The grant proposal must follow the
directions on the application kit and should not exceed page limits. The completed
application and checklist must be received in Patricia Quirin’s office via electronic
mail no later than 5:00 PM on February 15, 2011. Please send all electronic
applications as a PDF file to quirinpt@upmc.edu.
All applications will be reviewed by an Internal Review Committee chaired by
Dr. C. Edward Dixon and made up of faculty in the Department of Neurological
Surgery as well as representatives from the Pittsburgh Foundation. During the
Internal Review Committee meeting, the applications will be critically reviewed
according to the evaluation criteria previously described. They will be given a
priority score using the NIH system and those applications with the highest priority
scores will be recommended for funding up to the total amount of Foundation
money available. However, no application considered to have inadequate
methodology, relevance, impact or originality will be approved. If sufficient high
quality applications are not received, all of the funds available may not be
distributed.
Recommendations for funding will then be sent to Dr. Robert Friedlander,
Chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery, for his review. Dr.
Friedlander will have the authority to disapprove or reduce funding for
recommended applications, but may not approve applications not recommended by
the Internal Review Committee. In the beginning of April, 2011, Dr. Friedlander
will submit the approved applications with the recommended funding for each to
the Pittsburgh Foundation with a copy to Mr. Clyde Jones at the University of
Pittsburgh, before their June, 2011 meeting. Formal receipt of Notice of Award
from the Pittsburgh Foundation for those applications judged eligible by the
Pittsburgh Foundation is expected by July 15, 2011, and monies for initiation of the
The Walter L. Copeland Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation
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approved grants are anticipated to be available at that time. This timeline is subject
to change by the Pittsburgh Foundation.
Project Guidelines
The project start date is determined by when the award is received from the
Pittsburgh Foundation by the University of Pittsburgh and shall run 1 year from
that date. No project is to begin until the award has been received by the
University of Pittsburgh.
Any money remaining at the end of the project must be returned to the Pittsburgh
Foundation unless a no cost extension is submitted and approved by the
Foundation.
Funds may not be transferred between investigators/projects.
If any manuscripts, abstracts, book chapters, etc. are produced as a result of your
funded research by the Pittsburgh Foundation, Walter A. Copeland Fund, then the
Pittsburgh Foundation requests that they be cited in your written work and a copy
forwarded to them for presentation to the Board of the Copeland Fund.
Progress Reports
All investigators who have been awarded funds throughout the Walter A. Copeland
Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation are required to submit progress reports to Dr.
Dixon’s office to then be forwarded to the Pittsburgh Foundation at the end of the
year of research for which they had been funded. It is emphasized that no
investigator will be eligible to receive subsequent funding from the Pittsburgh
Foundation without the timely receipt of such progress reports. Mentors of resident
and fellow investigators bear ultimate responsibility for progress reports by their
mentees.
Final Report
All investigators who have been awarded funds throughout the Walter A. Copeland
Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation are required to submit a final report to Dr.
Dixon’s office to then be forwarded to the Pittsburgh Foundation at the end of the
year of research for which they had been funded if the project has been completed.
It is emphasized that no investigator will be eligible to receive subsequent funding
from the Pittsburgh Foundation for a new project without the timely receipt of such
final report. Mentors of resident and fellow investigators have further
responsibility for final reports by their mentees.
The Walter L. Copeland Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation
Checklist
A completed checklist with requested documents must be submitted with the
application or the project will not be considered for funding.
Source of Funds
The Walter A. Copeland Fund of Pittsburgh Foundation
Inquiries
Questions regarding this request for application should be directed to:
Patricia Quirin
Department of Neurological Surgery
3520 Fifth Avenue, PARKV 202
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Telephone number: 412.802.6497. Facsimile number: 412.802.6405.
Email: quirinpt@upmc.edu
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The Walter L. Copeland Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation
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DEPARTMENT OF NEUROSURGERY GRANT APPLICATION
DEADLINE: February 15, 2011
The Walter L. Copeland Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation
Funding for Cranial Research
TITLE OF PROJECT:
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR:
TITLE OF P.I.:
CAMPUS ADDRESS:
SCHOOL:
DEPARTMENT:
PHONE NUMBER:
FAX NUMBER:
E-MAIL ADDRESS:
ABSTRACT: (Description of the project, including a one sentence justification and followed by
a summary of your hypothesis and specific aims. The majority of the summary should be the
strategies or techniques employed to address the specific aims and the summary should conclude
with expected results and significance of those results.) MAXIMUM of 300 words.
KEY PERSONNEL: (Include degrees, position title, department, phone/fax number and email
address). Also include letters of support from each collaborator.
DETAILED BUDGET:
(The budget should include 1% university based salary and
applicable fringe benefits of the PI. Costs should be applied toward animal purchase or care, and
lab equipment. A $1,200 limit for travel and for preparation of slides may be included. If you do
not budget for travel initially, it will not be approved later. Except under very unusual
circumstances, you should not request more than $25,000. The budget should be planned for a oneyear project.) NO SUPPORT FOR MAJOR EQUIPMENT WILL BE PROVIDED.
BUDGET JUSTIFICATION: (Briefly summarize your justification for the categories that
you are requesting.)
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
Provide the following information for the key personnel in the order listed on Form Page 1.
Photocopy this page or follow this format for each person.
NAME
POSITION TITLE
EDUCATION/TRAINING (Begin with baccalaureate or other initial professional education, such
as nursing, and include postdoctoral training.)
INSTITUTION AND LOCATION
DEGREE
YEAR(s) FIELD OF
(if
STUDY
applicable)
RESEARCH AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Concluding with present position, list, in
chronological order, previous employment, experience, and honors. Include present membership on
any Federal Government public advisory committee. List, in chronological order, the titles, all
authors, and complete references to all publications during the past three years and to representative
earlier publications pertinent to this application. If the list of publications in the last three years
exceeds two pages, select the most pertinent publications. DO NOT EXCEED TWO PAGES.
OTHER SUPPORT
RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT
Laboratory:
Clinical:
Animal:
Computer:
Office:
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Other:
MAJOR EQUIPMENT:
RESEARCH PLAN (maximum of 10 pages excluding references)
SPECIFIC AIMS:
BACKGROUND AND SIGNIFICANCE:
PRELIMINARY STUDIES:
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS:
HUMAN SUBJECTS: (If human subject investigation is being used, please provide a very
brief summary of precautions taken to assure safety of your methods and provide a statement that
IRB approval has been obtained or is pending. Also include a copy of your IRB approval letter. If
human subjects are not being used, type “nonapplicable” below.)
VERTEBRATE ANIMALS:
(If vertebrate animal investigation is being used, please
provide a very brief summary of precautions taken to assure safety of your methods and provide a
statement that approval has been obtained or is pending. Also include a copy of your Institutional
Animal Care & Use Committee approval letter. If vertebrate animals are not being used, type
“nonapplicable” below.)
LITERATURE CITED: (Please provide a summary of the literature used annotated in your
research plan.)
LAY DESCRIPTION: (Please provide a description in lay language not to exceed one
paragraph in length)
The Walter L. Copeland Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation
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THE WALTER L. COPELAND FUND
APPLICATION CHECKLIST
TITLE OF PROJECT:
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR:
MENTOR (if Applicant is a resident or fellow):
PROJECT YEAR:
1.
APPLICATION
Abstract (Maximum 300 words)
Key Personnel-letters of support from each collaborator
Detailed budget-direct costs only
Biographical Sketch (Maximum 4 pages)
Other Support
Resources and Environment
Research Plan (Maximum 10 pages excluding references)
Specific Aims
Background and Significance
Preliminary Studies
Research Design and Methods
References
Human Subjects, if clinical study
IRB letter attached
Vertebrate Animals, if laboratory study utilizing vertebrate animals
IACUC approval letter
Literature Cited
Lay Description
2.
Project Continuation (If more than 1 grant year project)
Progress Report filed
3.
Project Conclusion
Final Report filed
4.
New Application for Continuation of Previous PI’s Project
The Walter L. Copeland Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation
Project Justification
All Progress Reports filed for previous project and attached
All Final Reports filed for previous project and attached
5.
I have read and understand the Copeland Guidelines
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