Entrepreneurial Research Small Business Transition Award

The goal of this Research and Entrepreneurial Development Immersion (REDI) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grant is to foster the career development of early-career scientists with an interest in entrepreneurship by simultaneously supporting their entrepreneurial development and facilitating their transition to industry.

University research fosters a substantial portion of industrial R&D in the biotech industry, and university spinoffs employ high-tech talents, generate taxes, and act as economic hotbeds for the local economy. Also, spin-offs frequently catalyze the formation of technology-focused geographic clusters. The biotech community has been essential in catalyzing academic discoveries and commercializing them into needed solutions that improve public health.

Purpose

NIA seeks to address the growing need to accelerate commercialization from research laboratories by supporting both the transition of translational research into commercial products and services and the entrepreneurship training of early-career scientists using this initiative. This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) utilizes the R43/R44 SBIR Award to provide a small business concern (SBC) the opportunity to increase its scientific staff by supporting the salaries of postdoctoral fellows and early-stage researchers as Program Directors/Principal Investigators (PD/PIs). It is expected that the SBC will ensure robust entrepreneurial training for the PD/PI, while the PD/PI will bring extensive research knowledge and experience (as demonstrated by patents and publications) to the SBC.

ntrepreneurial training and mentoring will be critical components of the peer review. It is expected that the SBC ensures participation of the PD/PI in entrepreneurial training activities by utilizing locally and/or widely available entrepreneurship-focused courses and training programs as well as by assembling a mentoring team that supports the career growth and development of the PD/PI. The proposed projects must be in line with the aim and mission of NIA. It is therefore encouraged that the applicant contacts program staff listed in Section VII to discuss both their R&D ideas and career development plans.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) utilizes the R43/R44 Industry Development Award to provide a small business concern (SBC) the opportunity to support the hiring and salary of postdoctoral fellows and early stage researchers as Principal Investigators/Program Directors (PIs/PDs) to increase its scientific research staff and support product development. Additionally, a major component of this FOA is a strong focus on entrepreneurial training, mentoring, and career development of the PD/PI.

Eligibility

• As this FOA will support the transition of early-career scientists into the industry, the eligibility of the PD/PI is limited to early-career scientists, including postdoctoral fellows. We encourage women and individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities to apply (see: NOT-OD-20-031). The transition candidate must be listed as PD/PI on the application. Additional investigators can serve as co-investigators and provide support to the transition of the early career scientist to a PD/PI role within a small business.

Benefits

Funding Instrument

• Grant: A support mechanism providing money, property, or both to an eligible entity to carry out an approved project or activity.

Funds Available and Anticipated Number of Awards

• NIA intends to commit $1.5 million in FY 2022 to fund 4 awards.

Award Budget

• According to statutory guidelines, total funding support (direct costs, indirect costs, fee) normally may not exceed $259,613 for Phase I awards and $1,730,751 for Phase II awards (with appropriate justification from the applicant). However, NIH has received a waiver from SBA, as authorized by statute, to exceed $259,613 for Phase I or $1,730,751 for Phase II for specific topics. The current list of approved topics can be found at https://sbir.nih.gov/funding#omni-sbir. Applications that address the approved waiver topics may request total cost budgets up to $400,000 for Phase I and $2,000,000 for Fast-Track. A

Application Process

• All applications are due by 5:00 PM local time of the applicant organization. All types of non-AIDS applications allowed for this funding opportunity announcement are due on the listed date(s).
• Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow adequate time to make any corrections to errors found in the application during the submission process by the due date.
• No late applications will be accepted for this Funding Opportunity Announcement.
• Click here to apply

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