Passano Foundation Clinician-Investigator Awards for Career Development at the University of Maryland School of Medicine September 2012 Background and Purpose

In an effort to promote the research career development of young faculty clinician investigators, the Passano Foundation and the School of Medicine (UMSOM) have, together, created a mechanism to provide partial salary and fringe benefits for clinician- investigators in the early stages of their faculty appointments. This initiative has been developed to address the increasing pressures on young faculty clinician-investigators to expend substantial clinical time and effort in order to generate sufficient funds to support their salaries. The purpose of these Passano Clinician-Investigator Awards is to help protect the research time and thereby further the acquisition of experience and preliminary results for qualified young UMSOM faculty clinician-investigators during the time that they apply for external career development grant support. Allocations from this fund will be based on a competitive application process that is tied closely to concurrent efforts to obtain external research support. Eligibility

• M.D. degree (or equivalent) • Full-time appointment as instructor or assistant professor in a clinical department, as of the time of initiation of the Passano Clinician-Investigator Award • Nomination letter from the clinical department chair and commitment to permit at least 75% effort toward research if a Passano Clinician-Investigator Award is made and evidence from Chair and/or mentor that adequate resources are available to perform the research • Submission of an existing, pending or about-to-be-submitted draft application (new or revised) for external research support -- especially career development/mentored awards (e.g. NIH K08, K23) or other career awards for new clinician-investigators obtained through a competitive peer review process (federal or non-federal). However, an R01 or similar multiyear grant application is acceptable (instead of a career development award). • Active support on a K or similar CDA grant shall not disqualify applicants, but they will have the same requirement as above to submit a new or revised existing, pending or draft application for external research support. • Active role as a clinician and evidence (to be provided in the support letters) that the award of a Passano Clinician-Investigator Award will in fact result in protection of research time • Limit - A maximum of 2 submissions per applicant to secure a Passano Clinician-Investigator Award

Deadlines for Submission of Applications

 November 1st (or the non-holiday weekday afterwards; yearly). UMSOM will recommend 2 candidates yearly to the Passano Foundation; and the Passano Foundation, based on its interest in the research and accomplishments of the candidates, will select 1 new clinician-investigator/year for 2 years of funding (at $37,500/yr per clinician-investigator). Application Submission

 Submit application to the SOM as a single PDF (by email to Susan Hobbs at [email protected]; UMSOM Dean’s Office of Research). Application Format and Content

Application must be collated and organized in the following order:

1.Abstract (same format and rules as for PHS 398 application abstract) 2.Letter of support from applicant’s clinical department chair addressing: ◦ Qualifications of applicant and career plans ◦ Description of applicant’s active role as a clinician and evidence (to be provided in the support letters) that the award of a Passano Clinician-Investigator Award will in fact result in protection of research time ◦ Research space and facilities available to applicant ◦ A clinical division chief may co-author this letter, if appropriate, or write a separate letter (see below) 3.Letter from applicant addressing: ◦ Overall plans for research career development ◦ Specific impact of successful application (include information on the extent and nature of your clinical responsibilities with and without the PCIA) ◦ Listing of other existing, pending or planned research support (internal or external) in format of PHS 398 ‘Other Support” ◦ NOTE: IF THIS IS NOT YOUR FIRST APPLICATION for the Passano Clinician- Investigator Award, describe in your letter specific details about your progress since your earlier submission and how the revised grant application addresses critical reviews of your external grant application(s) 4.Letters of support from 2 faculty members (in addition to your department chair) who are familiar with your qualifications; generally, the applicant’s research mentor should write one of these letters. The clinical division chief or a Center/Institute leader might write one of these letters. The letters of support, along with all other components, should be included with the application, which should be assembled into a single PDF 5.Applicant's Biographical Sketch (PHS 398 format) and UMSOM-format full curriculum vitae 6.Copy of pending (submitted externally) or draft (not yet submitted externally) application for external research support or career development support from a sponsor (federal or private) which makes selections based on a peer review process. If you are unsure about whether your application qualifies, check by email with Susan Hobbs in the Office of Research. If you submit a pending application, you must provide the Committee with a copy of the sponsor's review of that application (e.g. the "summary statement” from NIH eRA Commons) as soon as it becomes available 7.Appendix material, e.g. reprints, pre-prints or other supporting materials (only if absolutely necessary) Criteria for Selection

• The quality and potential of the applicant -- including the productivity of the applicant, both in prior publications and in the development of preliminary data for the grant • The grant -- Is the grant sufficiently focused and is the applicant able to articulate the potential strengths (in significance, innovation, experimental design) and weaknesses (pitfalls, alternatives) in the application? Can the applicant address questions that any prior reviews have raised? • The quality of the mentor/applicant relationship • The commitment of the mentor, division chief and department chair to provide sufficient resources and protect the applicant's research time • The strength of the recommendations • The likelihood that the applicant will complete the specific aims of the grant, publish important results in peer reviewed journals, and receive external career development funding

Allowable Expenditures

• Awards will ordinarily be made for $37,500 per year for a maximum of 2 years to support only the applicant's salary and fringe benefits (Note that the funding is derived $12,500/yr per fellow from the Passano Foundation matched by $25,000/yr per fellow from UMSOM [$12,500 from UMSOM Dean plus $12,500 from UMSOM Department, Center and/or Institute]). • Funding beyond the first year is dependent on the continuation of this Passano Clinician-Investigator Award program and a satisfactory progress report from the applicant

Second Year Funding

• A second year of Passano Clinician-Investigator Award funding is usually awarded at the level of the first year, provided that the candidate has demonstrated sufficient progress, has submitted the required external grant application(s) with encouraging critique, will re-submit application(s) for external funding, and has a continuing need for salary support. The awardee will automatically receive notification regarding the format of the renewal progress report at least one month before it is due. If a substantial external grant has been awarded to the applicant during the first year, the applicant will generally not be eligible for second year funding • If a draft application was used to apply for the first year of Passano Clinician- Investigator Award funding, an application for a research project or career development award must be submitted to a peer-review sponsor prior to applying for the second year's funding

Reporting

• To document the benefit of this program, successful applicants will be required to report to the Committee on their research, publications and funding for several years following their award.

Cognizant Office

Further information on this Program may be obtained by emailing Susan Hobbs