Objective: To sustain competitively funded research projects that have temporarily lost extramural support.

The Bridge Program provides one-time support to eligible Principal Investigators to assist with re-establishing external funding.  A primary objective of the Program is to keep experienced research teams together; thus, priority will be given to retain project staffing temporarily.

Who is Eligible:

Bridge support is intended for those Principal Investigators who have experienced a significant reduction from extramural sources, and who can reasonably anticipate regaining competitive support in the upcoming year.

Priority is given to those Principal Investigators who meet the following criteria:

• They received continuous extramural funding from peer-reviewed sources during the five years preceding their request.
• They have lost, or will lose most of their extramural funding during the current fiscal year.
• They can reasonably anticipate re-establishing funding.

Expense Categories Eligible for Assistance:

• Salaries/Benefits for research support personnel
• Supplies and Equipment
• Animal Care

• PI and co-PI salaries (including Summer salaries)
• Travel
• Budget overdrafts on other projects
• Administrative Costs

How to Apply:

Applications should include:

• A cover letter summarizing the Principal Investigator's funding history, the need for Bridge Fund support and a description of plans to re-establish funding.
• A detailed budget of proposed expenditures.
• NIH- or NSF-style Biographical Sketch.

The application need not describe in detail the research project for which funding is requested because this program does not evaluate scientific merit per se.

Proposals should be submitted electronically to:

Laura S. Levy, Ph.D.

Vice President for Research

llevy@tulane.edu

The deadline for submission is Monday, March 18, 2013..

Awards:

Awards will be made in consultation with an internal review committee and with academic Deans.

It is anticipated that four awards of $30,000 each will be made in this cycle.