Delaware Clinical and Translational Research ACCEL Program-Pilot Programs

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Abstract—Pilot Project Program The goal of the Pilot Project Program is to provide small grants to stimulate, establish, and encourage new clinical and translational research within the Delaware CTR ACCEL Program. Small awards allow investigators to establish and test new collaborations and to collect preliminary data to demonstrate the feasibility of important clinical and translational research projects. This provides a pathway for new investigators to lay foundations for larger external awards. Our program has three aims: 1) To inspire interdisciplinary clinical and translational research through the funding of small research awards. Three types of awards will be funded in this aim: Standard Pilots, Community Engagement Pilots, and SHOvel REady (ShoRe) Pilot Proposals. While Standard Pilots are for one year on a clinical and translational research topic, the sec- ond group focuses on research related to Community Engagement and are for two years, as our experience has taught us that this research often requires more time to get started. Both of these types of awards are for the same amount of funding ($80K). The third type of award, ShoRe grants, are smaller ($20K), shorter grants (6 months) for investi- gators that have already submitted external proposals, received a review, and require additional funds to address the reviewers’ concerns (e.g., the collection of additional pilot data). 2) To catalyze high-impact areas of research and interdisciplinary collaboration. This will be done by hosting research retreats in strategic areas. We will also provide small ($20K) “Jumpstart” grants for those that attend such events and wish to have funding for release time or additional meetings to further consolidate collaborations, discuss research ideas, and plan future work. 3) To overcome barriers that investigators face in successful translation of their work across the research contin- uum. This will be addressed by offering funding to faculty teams for OveRcoming Barriers to Translational Success (ORBiTS) awards. These two-year grants ($20 to $120K) enable faculty to hire technical staff, procure specialized equipment or hire a specialized consultant so that they could generate strong clinical and translational research pro- grams. Many of the activities offered in this core are novel, developed form lessons learned though our first four years of funding (e.g., ShoRe, Jumpstart, ORBiTS). The ACCEL Pilot Project Program will enable investigators to create new partnerships and new research activities. It will encourage and vastly expand clinical and translational research across our consortium.